Privacy Policy

Wah Tea respects your right to privacy. Accordingly, we do not share or sell your information to any third-parties. Any and all information collected by Wah Tea is used solely for the purpose of processing of your order. Once you make a purchase with Wah Tea, you are automatically included in our updates, newsletters and correspondences.

SECURITY

To protect your personal information, we take reasonable precautions and follow industry-best practices to make sure it is not inappropriately lost, misused, accessed, disclosed, altered or destroyed.

We process personal data for purchases, payments, customer support and fulfilment to enable us to perform our contract with you; where your contact details and transactional information are processed.

If you provide us with your credit card information, the information is encrypted using secure socket layer technology (SSL) and stored with a AES-256 encryption. Although no method of transmission over the Internet or electronic storage is 100% secure, we follow all PCI-DSS requirements and implement additional generally accepted industry standards.

COOKIES

We employ the use of cookies. By accessing Wah Tea, you agree to use cookies in agreement with the Wah Tea Privacy Policy. Most interactive websites use cookies to let us retrieve the user’s details for each visit. Cookies are used by our website to enable the functionality of certain areas to make it easier for people visiting our website. Some of our affiliate/advertising partners may also use cookies.

CONSENT

When you provide us with personal information to complete a transaction, verify your credit card, place an order, arrange for a delivery or return a purchase, we imply that you consent to our collecting it and using it for that specific reason only.

By using this site, you represent that you are at least the age of majority in your state or province of residence, or that you are the age of majority in your state or province of residence and you have given us your consent to allow any of your minor dependents to use this site.

DISCLOSURE

We may disclose your personal information if we are required by law to do so or if you violate our Terms of Service.

SHOPIFY

Our store is hosted on Shopify Inc. They provide us with the online e-commerce platform that allows us to sell our products and services to you. Your data is stored through Shopify’s data storage, databases and the general Shopify application. They store your data on a secure server behind a firewall.

PAYMENTS

All payments made on our website are secure and safe.

If you choose a direct payment gateway to complete your purchase, then Shopify stores your credit card data. It is encrypted through the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI-DSS). Your purchase transaction data is stored only as long as is necessary to complete your purchase transaction. After that is complete, your purchase transaction information is deleted.

All direct payment gateways adhere to the standards set by PCI-DSS as managed by the PCI Security Standards Council, which is a joint effort of brands like Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover.
PCI-DSS requirements help ensure the secure handling of credit card information by our store and its service providers.
For more insight, you may also want to read Shopify’s Terms of Service (https://www.shopify.com/legal/terms) or Privacy Statement (https://www.shopify.com/legal/privacy).

In general, the third-party providers used by us will only collect, use and disclose your information to the extent necessary to allow them to perform the services they provide to us.
However, certain third-party service providers, such as payment gateways and other payment transaction processors, have their own privacy policies in respect to the information we are required to provide to them for your purchase-related transactions.
For these providers, we recommend that you read their privacy policies so you can understand the manner in which your personal information will be handled by these providers.
In particular, remember that certain providers may be located in or have facilities that are located a different jurisdiction than either you or us. So if you elect to proceed with a transaction that involves the services of a third-party service provider, then your information may become subject to the laws of the jurisdiction(s) in which that service provider or its facilities are located.
Once you leave our store’s website or are redirected to a third-party website or application, you are no longer governed by this Privacy Policy or our website’s Terms of Service.

CHANGES TO THIS PRIVACY POLICY

We reserve the right to modify this privacy policy at any time, so please review it frequently. Changes and clarifications will take effect immediately upon their posting on the website. If we make material changes to this policy, we will notify you here that it has been updated, so that you are aware of what information we collect, how we use it, and under what circumstances, if any, we use and/or disclose it.

QUESTIONS AND CONTACT INFORMATION

If you would like to: access, correct, amend or delete any personal information we have about you, register a complaint, or simply want more information contact us at surya@wahtea.com

Decades Of Tea Tradition

I come from a family of tea planters, and grew up accustomed to the taste of chai, often more cups of orthodox tea than water! Over time, my extended family has owned gardens in Darjeeling, Assam, Dooars and of course, Himachal Pradesh.

Now, I am a fourth generation planter and personally look into the entire manufacturing process. I live in Palampur, and this means that all my time and effort is spent in creating perfect cups of tea for my friends and supporters, instead of directing the process from afar.

Many companies and brands have been built around tea. But I wanted to be able to ensure that our best quality tea goes directly from our estate to your home. Just as it holds for many things, nothing compares to a single-estate tea looked into personally by the owners. I also wanted to begin taking steps towards making Wah Tea a sustainable brand.

- Surya

A Family Legacy – The “Chaiwalas”

In the early 1900s, my forefather Sheo Parsad owned a simple provisions shop in Dehra Dun from which he also sold tea that he would purchase from Goodrich Tea Estate in Kaulagarh. Tea proved to be a profitable product, and with some hard work, Sheo Parsad and his brother Dharshanlal were able to expand the number of shops.

Sometime in 1917, the Goodrich Tea Estate owner Darbar Sahib was about to lose the estate to the British as collateral against dues. But Sheo Prasad was able to cover the loan on the condition that Goodrich Tea Estate would be leased to them for some years. This proved to be the first step towards generations of tea experience and multiple tea gardens. The family eventually came to be respectfully known as the ‘Chaiwalas’. 

This was the first tea garden managed by my family and provided them the opportunity to learn the business of growing and manufacturing tea. The family’s tea empire was built on the money generated from leasing Goodrich. By 1960, the family was producing approximately 10 million kgs of tea from estates across India.

The Wah Factor

Wah Tea Estate was established in 1857 in Palampur, Himachal Pradesh by the British. The estate saw decades of continuous cultivation, and even survived an earthquake which struck the region in 1905. The Wah estate was then taken over by Sir Sikander Hayat-Khan, the son of the Nawab of Wah in Pakistan, who named the estate after his birthplace. The word ‘Wah’ means ‘wow’, and a visit to the estate will hopefully elicit the same reaction!

In 1953, the estate was taken over by my family, known as the Chaiwala family. As the family grew, the plantations were divided amongst the younger generations; however, the renowned ‘Chaiwala’ name continues to bind them together. Wah Tea Estate is now looked after by the third and fourth generation of the family, my father Deepak Prakash and I.

As a young boy, I grew up visiting the tea garden several times a year. With each passing year, I came to appreciate the beauty and charm offered by the vast tracts of unpolluted, tranquil Kangra – a place where the pine-scented air is said to have curative powers. Years of travelling around the world compelled me to start sharing the experience at Wah, and with this, the idea for The Lodge at Wah was born.

Explore our Tea

To the many, many people who encouraged me to share my story, and my passion for the beverage – Thank You. And to all those who are considering believing in our brand and ideals – Welcome.

Good things are brewing!

-Surya