Archives West Finding Aid
Table of Contents
Oregon Chai records, 1994-2005
Overview of the Collection
- Creator
- Oregon Chai, Inc.
- Title
- Oregon Chai records
- Dates
- 1994-2005 (inclusive)19942005
- Quantity
- 2.4 cubic feet, (4 letter document cases; 1 slim letter document case; 1 flat box (16x20); 1 oversize folder (30x42))
- Collection Number
- Coll 553
- Summary
- Financial and marketing records of the firm Oregon Chai, along with press material about the company. Oregon Chai was a tea company that was founded in Portland, Oregon, in 1994, and sold to Kerry Foods in 2004.
- Repository
-
Oregon Historical Society Research Library
1200 SW Park Avenue
Portland, OR
97205
Telephone: 503-306-5240
Fax: 503-219-2040
libreference@ohs.org - Access Restrictions
-
Collection is open for research.
- Languages
- English
Historical NoteReturn to Top
Oregon Chai was founded in 1994 in Portland, Oregon, by the mother-daughter team Theodora McMillen and Heather McMillen. The company quickly became successful, and in 2004 the McMillens sold it to the Irish firm Kerry Foods.
Content DescriptionReturn to Top
The collection consists of records and publicity material regarding the firm Oregon Chai. The company's records include notes from its startup, incorporation papers, financial audits, investment documents, board minutes, and staff meeting notes. The collection also contains correspondence between Oregon Chai and other companies, including documents relating to Oregon Chai's sale to Kerry Foods; sales figures; marketing strategies; and advertising material. Press materials include articles which ran in trade magazines, and in publications such as Men's Journal, the Wall Street Journal, and the Oregonian. Additional materials include letterheads and unassembled Oregon Chai cartons and boxes.
Use of the CollectionReturn to Top
Preferred Citation
Oregon Chai records, Coll 553, Oregon Historical Society Research Library.
Restrictions on Use
The Oregon Historical Society owns the materials in the Research Library and makes available reproductions for research, publication, and other uses. The Society does not necessarily hold copyright to all materials in the collections. In some cases, permission for use may require seeking additional authorization from copyright owners.
Administrative InformationReturn to Top
Arrangement
Collection is arranged in five series: Series 1. Administrative records; Series 2. Dealings with other companies; Series 3. Marketing and sales records; Series 4. Press and publicity materials; Series 5. Other materials.
Acquisition Information
Gift of Theodora McMillen, May 2016 (Lib. Acc. 28827).
Processing Note
Processed by Susan Armitage and Jeffrey A. Hayes.
Separated Materials
Videotape cassettes were separated to Moving Image Collections, Oregon Historical Society Research Library. Model of Oregon Chai carton was separated to Museum Collections, Oregon Historical Society.
Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top
Series 1: Administrative records, 1994-2004Return to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Box | Folder | ||
| 1 | 1 | Start-up notes |
circa 1994 |
| 1 | 2 | License and incorporation |
1994 |
| 1 | 3 | Trademark registration |
1994 |
| 1 | 4 | Small Business Administration loan |
1995 |
| 1 | 5 | Distribution |
1995 |
| 1 | 6 | Warehousing |
1995-1996 |
| 1 | 7 | Co-packer |
undated |
| 1 | 8 | Loan insurance |
1996 |
| 1 | 9 | Non-disclosure papers |
1997-1998; undated |
| 1 | 10 | Financial audits |
1994-2001 |
| 1 | 11 | Early income and expense reports |
undated |
| 1 | 12 | Investment decisions |
1994-1997 |
| 1 | 13 | Venture capital strategies |
1996; 1999 |
| 1 | 14 | Long-range planning |
1998 |
| 1 | 15 | Stock incentive plan |
1999 |
| 1 | 16 | Shareholder meetings |
1995; 2000-2004 |
| 1 | 17 | Shareholder meeting |
1999 June 28 |
| 1 | 18-19 | Board minutes |
1994-1998 |
| 1 | 20 | Staff meetings |
1996-1998 |
| 1 | 21 | Job analysis |
undated |
| 2 | 1 | Employee job descriptions |
undated |
| 2 | 2 | Ingredients |
undated |
| 2 | 3 | Ready-to-drink proposals |
undated |
| 2 | 4 | Tests on Prisma Chai product |
undated |
Series 2: Dealings with other companies, 1994-2005Return to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Box | Folder | ||
| 2 | 5 | Starbucks proposal |
1994-1995 |
| 2 | 6 | Correspondence with Longbottom Distributors |
1995 |
| 2 | 7 | Production agreement with Sunshine Dairy Foods |
1995 |
| 2 | 8 | Sunshine Dairy |
1995-1997 |
| 2 | 9 | Offer to purchase by Swander, Pace |
2002 |
| 2 | 10 | Sale to Kerry Foods |
2004-2005 |
Series 3: Marketing and sales records, 1994-1998Return to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Box | Folder | ||
| 2 | 11 | Sales pitches |
undated |
| 2 | 12 | Advertising ideas |
undated |
| 2 | 13 | Artwork |
undated |
| 2 | 14 | Sales packets |
undated |
| 2 | 15 | Small posters |
undated |
| 6 | 1 | "Feature Drink" kit |
undated |
| 6 | 2 | Posters and mobile displays |
undated |
| 2 | 16 | Point of Sale advertising |
undated |
| 3 | 1 | Advertising materials from scrapbook |
undated |
| 3 | 2 | Small facts sheet |
undated |
| 3 | 3 | Product descriptions |
undated |
| 3 | 4 | Chai recipes for marketing |
undated |
| 3 | 5 | Cool Chai recipe cards |
undated |
| 3 | 6 | Demo instructions |
1995 |
| 3 | 7 | Sales figures |
1996 |
| 3 | 8 | Sales projections |
1995; 1999 |
| 3 | 9 | Sales |
undated |
| 3 | 10 | Consumer and marketing analysis |
undated |
| 3 | 11 | Marketing analyses |
1998 |
| 3 | 12 | Sales data from Spence Information Services (SPINS) |
1994-1998 |
| 3 | 13 | Marketing strategies |
undated |
| 3 | 14 | Marketing letter |
undated |
| 4 | 1 | Customer lists and notes |
undated |
Series 4: Press and publicity materials, 1994-2005Return to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Box | Folder | ||
| 4 | 2 | Press release |
1994 |
| 4 | 3 | Press coverage |
1994-2005 |
| 4 | 4 | Daily Journal of Commerce article |
1994 November 8 |
| 4 | 5 | Tonic article |
1995 January 12 |
| 4 | 6 | Portland State University Daily Vanguard article |
1995 March 8 |
| 4 | 7 | Wall Street Journal article |
1995 June 21 |
| 4 | 8 | Newsweek article |
1995 August |
| 4 | 9 | Oregon Business article |
1997 April |
| 4 | 10 | Tea and Coffee Trade Journal article |
1997 July |
| 4 | 11 | Inc. magazine article |
1997 September |
| 4 | 12 | Portland Seen article |
1999 January |
| 4 | 13 | San Francisco Chronicle article |
1999 March 17 |
| 4 | 14 | Portland Business Journal article |
1999 June 11 |
| 4 | 15 | Coverage in Skywest magazine |
2000 |
| 4 | 16 | Coverage in Inc. magazine |
2001 January |
| 4 | 17 | Miscellaneous articles |
undated |
| 6 | 3 | Newspaper articles from Wall Street Journal, Business Journal, and the Oregonian |
1995-2005 |
| 6 | 4 | Men's Journal articles |
1996 April; 1997 September |
| 4 | 18 | Testimonials |
2002 |
| 4 | 19 | Publicity materials from scrapbook |
undated |
Series 5: Other materials, circa 1994-2005Return to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Box | Folder | ||
| 5 | 1 | Article about chai in Fresh Cup magazine |
1998 |
| 5 | 2 | Product UPC codes |
1997 |
| 5 | 3 | Packaging |
undated |
| 5 | 4 | Letterhead |
undated |
| 5 | 5 | Alternative letterhead |
undated |
| 5 | 6 | Labels |
undated |
| 5 | 7 | Table tents |
undated |
| 5 | 8 | Oregon Chai stickers |
undated |
| 5 | 9 | Product Award stickers |
undated |
| 5 | 10 | Borders Books label for book "Nirvana in a Cup: The Founding of Oregon Chai" |
undated |
| 6 | 5 | Unassembled cup sleeves and containers |
undated |
| Folder | |||
| Oversize 1 | Unassembled boxes |
undated | |
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Business enterprises--Oregon--Portland
- Tea trade--Oregon--Portland
Personal Names
- McMillen, Heather
- McMillen, Theodora Jo
Corporate Names
- Oregon Chai, Inc.
Form or Genre Terms
- business records
- clippings (information artifacts)
- magazines (periodicals)
