Monica Sunny, 48, started The Chai Box in 2016. She's been blending her own chai since she was a child.Not the Americanized spicy, sugary version. In India, "chai" simply means "tea" – and after emigrating from Punjab, India, to Atlanta when she was nine, Sunny and her parents made chai together. They'd mix spices like ginger and fennel, boil them with milk or water on the stove, and strain.
When Sunny made chai during her sons' playdates, another mom asked why she wasn't selling it. So, in late 2016, she started a side hustle, launching a website called The Chai Box from her basement. She offered individual tea blends and concentrates, but primarily sold variety packs. Sales rose, but Sunny kept her full-time consultant job. Then, in March 2020, Covid hit. Sunny lost her job, and her husband was furloughed. She continued posting her chai meditations, and to her surprise, Instagram users started tuning in. Lots of them.
At first, Sunny thought it was a mistake. But Winfrey's team had apparently heard about The Chai Box through one of Sunny's AmericasMart connections, and watched Sunny's Instagram chai meditations.
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