The Spice & Tea Exchange of Newport — Local services in Newport

UPDATE: Wow! After my initial review, Sheree (store manager for Newport & Mystic) reached out and completely blew me away. She went above and beyond to fix the situation—surpassing what most companies would even do! Sheree was attentive, knowledgeable, and truly made it a personal experience. It was the most genuine customer service interaction I've ever had. I've now returned as a truly happy and loyal customer!

I've been a loyal customer for years, drawn in by the wonderful experience I had about five years ago. A lovely manager (whose name I sadly can't recall) introduced me to "Sugar Cookie" tea, and it became a favorite. Even after it was discontinued, the staff helped me find new options, solidifying my love for this shop.

Today, however, I was met with unbelievable rudeness. After being greeted warmly by a staff member, I approached the tea station in the back reviewing what was in stock. I was then asked by an associate at the “packaging/weighing table” if there was something particular I was looking for. To which I responded and said, "I'm looking for something similar to the Sugar Cookie tea. I know it's been discontinued, but I was hoping to find something with a similar taste."

Suddenly, a woman from behind the associates interjected with, "That has never been in stock. She then abruptly grabbed a "Confetti Cake" tea, thrust it at me, and returned to the station. Feeling dismissed, I started talking to my son about the teas we already had at home and what alternatives I would like to purchase.

Out of nowhere, this previous woman came back over and loudly declared, "I've been the manager here for 15 years, and we have NEVER sold Sugar Cookie tea!". Taken aback, I nervously said, "I know it was discontinued, but I loved it! This store is where I first discovered it." I even mentioned buying it in both a sample bag and a black metal tin and even pointed to where they use to store it. She proceeded to have wildly rude and publicly loud responses about how she’s been the manager and even with previous managers this would never have been in stock.

I couldn’t believe I was being gaslit and publicly shamed. Her behavior was so condescending and dismissive. Even as I moved to another area of the store, I could hear her talking to her staff, "I don't like when people make up stories.” It felt like she was accusing me of lying, which was incredibly embarrassing. I ended up leaving the "Confetti Cake" tea behind and quickly purchasing something else just to get away.

I've never experienced such unprofessional behavior, especially from someone claiming to be the manager. While I appreciate her knowledge of the store's history, it doesn't excuse her rude and accusatory demeanor. This experience has unfortunately tarnished my view of this...

The store is bit messy and disorganized — also no expiration dates, teas/spices are stored in unsealed plastic bags. But it would be okay, with optional tin can and pure trust that everything is fresh…. HOWEVER

The real issue, though, is the extremely rude older woman running it. I simply asked about caffeine-free teas, while holding a green tea in my hand (I am aware that it’s caffeinated, If im asking about caffeine free it just means I don’t know where they are in that messy store, not that I can’t buy both) and she yelled at me in a condescending tone:

“WELL, THAT IS GREEN, THAT IS CAAAAAAFFINATED!” The friend standing next to me was shocked that I did not snap at her for obviously raising her voice and using very condescending rude language. While pointing somewhere at wall, telling me to go look there.

Here’s the thing: I still made a purchase. I wanted to bring home a tea from Newport, and since this was the only shop I saw, I bought what I wanted despite the poor storage and the attitude. Honestly, her poor manners don’t affect anyone but her and her little business, because I would probably buy more things and not write this obviously.

But there was also a young girl working there, and I hope she finds a better job — the environment looked toxic. She was very stressed. She was always looking at the older lady with concern that she is doing everything right.

Overall, between the chaotic setup, overpriced items, and rude treatment, I don’t...

Product wise, I love going to The Spice & Tea Exchange - my favorite tea is their Mint Chilla Chai-Nilla, I refill it whenever I'm in an area that has it - Portsmouth, Portland, Mystic, and now twice in Newport.

I hadn't been able to travel refill my stock and have been out of my leaves for awhile so when I took a trip to Newport yesterday, it was a priority for me. The shelf has 2oz bags, I knew I wanted something bigger. I went over to the measuring counter where two women were working diligently, I stood there patiently until another staff member stopped to tell me the register was elsewhere, I said I was actually trying to get a bigger bag than on the shelf..never been an issue before.

Lynn was measuring out and with a snarky tone and cadence said "what do you want?!" I replied I'm not sure on the sizes she quickly and aggressively stated "we have 1 2 3 4..10", I was hoping for some kind of reference but she was clearly too inconvenienced and blatantly rude to truly help. I was so taken back and anxious by the nature of her attitude that I said 4 and immediately left, I typically spend time looking around and buy tons of their products. My group, including a child, felt so uncomfortable I doubt they'll ever go back in..I'll default to a different location...