Born in 1850, Thomas Lipton was a Scottish-born entrepreneur who decided in 1880 that he would make tea accessible to all at acceptable prices with guaranteed quality. Before Thomas Lipton, tea was a beverage for the rich. Thomas Lipton acquired tea estates in Ceylon (today Sri Lanka) and organized packaging and transportation at low cost. As Mr. Lipton himself said, he wanted to sell his teas "direct from the tea garden to the tea pot". In 1893, he established the Thomas J. Lipton Co., a tea packing company.

His Lipton® teas have enjoyed great success in Canada over the years. Thomas Lipton was knighted by Queen Victoria, who made him Sir Thomas Lipton in 1898 at the age of 48.

Thanks to Sir Thomas Lipton, Lipton® is one of the world's leading tea brand and available in more than 80 countries.