{
  "id": 5663997,
  "title": "A storm destroyed her tea factory. One Canadian friend kept the business alive 2,300 miles away",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/04/a-storm-destroyed-her-tea-factory-one-canadian-friend-kept-the",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-09-04T12:00:06.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Guardian Business",
    "slug": "guardian-business",
    "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/society/ng-interactive/2026/sep/04/asheville-tea-business-canada-support-storm"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Jessie Dean and Alexandra Sangster bonded over mutual tea businesses in 2024. Both entrepreneurs pledged to support each other if their respective companies faced difficulties. When Hurricane Helene struck Asheville, North Carolina in September of that year, it devastated the Asheville Tea Company, which lacked flood protection in the Swannanoa River area. The building, housing the company's inventory and equipment, was swept away when the river surged 20 feet above its normal level. Sangster, who ran a tea company Sarjesa in Calgary, Canada, 2,300 miles away, vowed to help Dean by manufacturing Asheville Tea Company's products. A month after the disaster, Sarjesa's facility was blending, processing and packaging the tea company's products, maintaining production through nearly two years of challenges including tariffs and an uncertain economy. The promise of support has now led to potential future collaboration, with Asheville Tea Company set to reopen in a new facility in Asheville by fall. This cross-border relationship, rare in the aftermath of a disaster, highlights the importance of strong bonds and bridges between businesses, especially when community support is limited by geographical distance.",
  "summary": "Two businesswomen made a promise to each other, and after two years of support, the Asheville Tea Company in North Carolina will reopen When Jessie Dean and Alexandra Sangster met in the summer of 2024, they made a pact. The two women both ran tea companies – Dean’s Asheville Tea Company in North Carolina and Sangster’s Sarjesa, more than 2,300 miles away in Calgary, Canada – and they pledged to…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}