EP #9: Sashee Chandran - Founder of Multi-Million Dollar Company Tea Drops (Started As Passion Project, Sparked Into Something Bigger By A Chrissy Teigen Tweet)

Sashee Chandran is the Founder & CEO of California based company, Tea Drops. After initially starting the brand as a passion project and side gig, she has raised $3.5 million and garnered mainstream attention from the likes of Chrissy Teigen and Tory Burch. She joins Ara to discuss growing up on a tea estate and learning to sell from a young age, how one tweet changed her entire life, and the power of both learning to let go and celery juice.***To support the work we do to tell creator stories around the world, become a VIP fan - CLICK HERE!***Connect with Sashee - https://www.instagram.com/sasheechandran/Follow Tea Drops - https://www.instagram.com/myteadrop/Timestamps:00:15 - Introducing Sashee Chandran01:23 - Growing up on a tea estate with entrepreneurial parents04:35 - Learning to sell from a young age05:24 - Starting Tea Drops while working a full-time job at eBay in Silicon Valley06:46 - How Sashee knew it was time to quit her job and go all-in on Tea Drops10:57 - The process of patenting Tea Drops13:39 - The impact of being tweeted about by Chrissy Teigen15:58 - Transitioning from bootstrapping to raising funds18:31 - Maintaining open to feedback while having conviction in what you’re building22:48 - Raising $3.5 million to date and embarking on a $5 million series A round24:39 - Receiving support from her family, friends, and mentors27:18 - Meeting people she would have never expected28:06 - Following her father’s “Horizon Theory”30:05 - Expanding beyond tea to incorporate and emphasize self-care34:59 - Wanting to separate work from her personal life, and investing in other founders41:20 - What Sashee would be doing if Tea Drops wasn’t a thing46:24 - Why Sashee moved into a 250-sqft home and got rid of 75% of her belongings49:47 - Sashee’s view on social media51:40 - Sashee’s interests outside of work (spending time with family and travelling)54:04 - How the book “Untethered Soul” by Michael Singer helped Sashee learn to let go56:12 - The power of celery juice57:20 - Wanting to make other people feel like they are the priority58:40 - The influence of Tamil culture on Sashee01:00:17 - Admiration for Maitreyi Ramakrishnan01:01:37 - Sashee’s advice to other Tamil creators01:02:38 - Would You RatherSupport the show