Capital Teas Opens Micro-Shop in Columbia Mall

Tea lovers, there’s a new business brewing in Columbia.

Capital Teas, which is based in Annapolis, recently opened two micro-shops in the Baltimore metro area this month, including one at The Mall in Columbia. The other store is at the Towson Town Center.

Each freestanding tea bar is 150 square feet, with a menu that includes hot and iced teas, bubble tea, tea smoothies, organic teas, loose teas and tea sachets as well as tea-ware, according to a statement from Capital Teas.

The tea bars carry the 16 best-selling and seasonal teas, all of which are hand-selected by the owners, Peter and Manelle Martino.

The company’s signature “sniffing wall” is part of the design as well. There, black, oolong, white and green teas waft out as employees explain each tea’s characteristics to customers.

The Columbia and Towson stores are the eleventh and twelfth locations to open under the Capital Teas name. The Martinos chose to open the micro-shops in early November to get ahead of the holidays, according to Baltimore magazine, which reported that Peter Martino said it is “such a great time to be in a mall.”

Capital Teas carries more than 200 specialty teas on its website, and offers 50 to 60 varieties in each of its full-sized shops.

Photo Credit: Capital Teas. The store at The Mall in Columbia opened this month.