Clayton Christopher
Listen to Clayton's podcast.
Credentials:
- Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Sweet Leaf Tea
- Winner of the 2006 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year
- BA, St. Edward's University
Clayton Christopher comes from a family of entrepreneurs. Clayton's father, Todd Christopher, founded Taylor Medical Supply that grew to become the largest private medical supply company in the U.S. After college, Clayton honed his business building and sales expertise as a sales executive for Taylor Medical Supply and Physician Sales & Service, Inc. During his tenure at Physician Sales & Service, Inc., Clayton took responsibility for an undeveloped sales territory, growing its sales revenue to $800,000 in just two years.
Despite his business success in the medical supplies industry, Clayton's entrepreneurial drive was growing. So, he left the lucrative medical supplies sales profession and launched his first entrepreneurial endeavor as a charter boat captain in the Florida Keys. It was during this time on sailing voyages and road trips through Alabama and Mississippi that Clayton's idea for Sweet Leaf Tea was born. Clayton was inspired by the quality and abundance of homemade sweet tea being served in local restaurants throughout the Southeast. Yet, for all the delicious iced tea being brewed at home and in restaurants, there was no bottled tea on the market that tasted like real iced tea.
In 1998, Clayton returned home to Beaumont, Texas, and founded Sweet Leaf Tea Co. In the beginning the tea was brewed in pillowcases and the bottles filled by hand with garden hoses. Clayton and business partner, David Smith, began by delivering product in an old van to local supermarkets, restaurants and convenience stores. Sweet Leaf Tea now has a line-up of ten flavors and distribution in all 50 states. The company continues to grow rapidly and has grown from 4 employees in 2003 to over 20 in 2007.