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One of Britain's oldest tea names nearly disappeared in 2024. This sits in the tea industry cluster beside who owns Typhoo now.
Explore in our shop: Typhoo Original Breakfast, 80 Tea Bags 290g.
Industry information accurate as of May 2026 and based on public reporting; ownership and trading positions change. Not financial advice.
Typhoo collapse at a glance
| Detail | Fact |
|---|---|
| Brand founded | 1903, Birmingham, John Sumner Jr. |
| Heritage status | UK's oldest pre-packed tea brand |
| Administration date | 27 November 2024 |
| Pre-administration owner | Apeejay Surrendra Group (Indian conglomerate, since 2005) |
| Final-year revenue (to Sept 2024) | ~GBP 20m |
| Final-year pre-tax loss | ~GBP 4.6m (smaller than prior year's heavier loss) |
| Buyer | Supreme PLC (London-listed) |
| Purchase price | GBP 10.2m |
| Deal completion | 2 December 2024 |
| Post-rescue investment | New Gloucester facility "The Plant", April 2025 |
The brand before the fall
Typhoo was founded in Birmingham in 1903 by John Sumner Jr., a grocer's son, after his sister found a fine Indian tea easier to digest than the dusty teas then on sale. It grew quickly on a pure tea, no dust positioning, and by the 1950s was one of Britain's three dominant brands alongside PG Tips and Tetley, with packaging that became iconic. Ownership shifted repeatedly: Cadbury Schweppes in 1968, a Premier Foods spell, then the Indian conglomerate Apeejay Surrendra Group in 2005. Apeejay kept the brand alive but never funded the category-leadership investment that Tata gave Tetley or Unilever gave Lipton, and Typhoo lost share steadily through the 2010s and 2020s.
The November 2024 administration
Typhoo Tea Limited entered administration on 27 November 2024, with PwC appointed. The final-year position, revenue of around GBP 20m against a pre-tax loss of about GBP 4.6m (and a heavier loss the year before), had become unsustainable, and Apeejay Surrendra was unwilling to keep funding it. The administration was run quickly to find a rescue buyer rather than liquidate: the brand is a recognised heritage name with a loyal household base, which was enough to attract bidders despite the losses. A deal was reached within days.
The Supreme PLC rescue
Supreme PLC, a London-listed consumer-goods group, bought Typhoo out of administration for GBP 10.2m, completing on 2 December 2024. Supreme is best known for the 88Vape brand and household distribution, and the purchase was part of its diversification ahead of the UK's 2025 disposable-vape restrictions. The price was a low multiple of revenue, roughly half, reflecting the loss-making position and brand-decline risk. In April 2025 Supreme opened a new Gloucester facility, The Plant, signalling intent to run Typhoo as a continuing brand rather than asset-strip it.
Why it collapsed
The decline was the sector's pressures in miniature. UK black-tea volumes are falling as younger drinkers move to coffee, soft drinks and functional or herbal options; sourcing, packaging and energy costs have risen; supermarket own-brand competition keeps squeezing branded margins. And Typhoo sat stuck in the middle, without the scale of PG Tips, Tetley or Yorkshire Tea, or the premium positioning of Twinings or Fortnum, so it had neither volume leadership nor a clear premium-or-functional growth story. The administration was the eventual financial consequence of a gradual slide, not a sudden shock. See why tea brands are struggling.
What it means for drinkers
For drinkers, the rescue means Typhoo keeps trading, but a change of owner usually shows up in the product over time. Supreme's strategy may bring recipe tweaks (possibly cheaper blends for margin), repackaging, repricing, and new flavoured or functional variants. The Typhoo on shelves in 2026 is likely much like the pre-administration brand; the 2028 to 2030 version may be meaningfully different. Anyone who cares about a specific recipe or quality level is worth watching reviews as Supreme settles in, and switching if it drifts. See the ownership map.
A canary in the coal mine
The Typhoo administration matters beyond the one brand, because it signals broader pressure on UK mid-tier tea. PG Tips (now under Lipton Teas and Infusions) has lost share; Tetley faces growing own-brand competition; Whittard has been through administration and rescue more than once; regional specialists have closed or merged. Industry consolidation has accelerated through the 2020s, and the consumer consequences are narrower brand choice, more own-brand dominance and ownership concentrated in a few multinationals. Typhoo is the most prominent recent example, not the only one.
What to buy from the British tea landscape
For Typhoo itself (now under Supreme PLC) buy Typhoo tea. For comparable British mid-tier black tea buy PG Tips, Tetley or Yorkshire Tea (Bettys & Taylors of Harrogate, still family-owned). For premium British tea buy Twinings or Fortnum & Mason. For specialist independents buy Clipper or Dragonfly.
More tea reading
For who currently owns Typhoo see who owns Typhoo now. For the broader picture see the UK tea brand ownership map. For comparable ownership shifts see who owns PG Tips, who owns Tetley and who owns Twinings. For the industry pressure see why tea brands are struggling.
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