By The Spice and Tea Exchange®
The Spice & Tea Exchange®, a specialty retail brand offering fine spices, hand-mixed seasoning blends, and exotic teas from around the world, is heading into 2026 with new store openings across the country and strategic leadership appointments designed to support the brand’s next phase of growth.
A Company Built to Endure: Meet the Founders, Amy Freeman and Penny Rehling
Founded by Amy Freeman, now Chief Executive Officer, and Penny Rehling, now President, The Spice & Tea Exchange® was created with a vision to revive the spirit of the traditional trading post for the modern age, creating spaces where people gather, discover, and connect through the shared language of flavor.
Launched in 2008 during the Great Recession, The Spice & Tea Exchange® was built on resilience and community, qualities that remain at the heart of the brand today. What started as a single store in St. Augustine, Florida, has grown into a national franchise network offering guests a curated selection of more than 140 handcrafted spice blends, fine loose-leaf teas, salts, sugars, and gourmet gifts.
Today, the brand stands as a testament to the power of women-led entrepreneurship and collaboration. Freeman and Rehling built a company designed to endure; one that empowers local business owners, many of them women, to build meaningful community connections through the shared experience of flavor exploration.
“When we founded The Spice & Tea Exchange®, our goal was to create something lasting; a brand that could bring people together the way trading posts once did,” said Freeman. “Whether it’s a local guest discovering a new flavor or a franchise owner realizing their dream of business ownership, that sense of connection is still at the heart of everything that we do.”
Evolving While Staying True to Our Roots
Over more than 15 years, The Spice & Tea Exchange® has evolved from a single store concept into a nationally recognized brand known for its sensory retail experience and authentic approach to flavor. With innovations in product development, enhanced franchise support systems, and a renewed focus on guest experience, the brand continues to adapt to changing markets while preserving the craftsmanship and community spirit that started it all.
A Budding Executive Team
In tandem with retail growth, the company spent 2025 building out its leadership team with two key internal announcements:
- Sal Golfo has been appointed Supply Chain Manager. Based at the company’s distribution center in St. Augustine, Florida, Golfo brings more than 26 years of supply chain and operations experience. His focus will be on supporting efficiency, scalability, and consistency as the brand grows its national footprint.
- Tatum Gordon has been promoted to Director of Project Management & Communications, where she will lead multi-department initiatives, streamline workflows, and ensure clarity and alignment across the organization.
“These leadership appointments reflect our dedication to building a strong foundation for the future of our business,” said Rehling. “With Sal’s expertise in supply chain and Tatum’s vision for organizational alignment, we are confident in our ability to support both near-term execution and long-term success.”
The brand reaffirms its commitment to building a business that thrives on authenticity, connection, and staying power. Rooted in its mission of creating and sharing the experience of a more flavorful life, The Spice & Tea Exchange® continues to inspire curiosity and connection, inviting guests to explore, create, and share moments that celebrate the joy of flavor. With more than 90 locations nationwide and continued expansion on the horizon, Freeman and Rehling’s legacy continues to inspire the next generation of women in business.
Charting the Course for 2026
The brand is looking to bring its cozy and experiential retail concept to Holland, Traverse City, and Mackinac Island, MI, along with Door County, WI.
“We are targeting areas known for their beauty, vibrance and small-town, community-oriented sense of belonging. Expanding into charming towns throughout the Midwest allows us to bring the unique sights, smells, and tastes of The Spice & Tea Exchange® to even more guests nationwide,” said Tatum Crews, Vice President of Sales. “Each store opening is a milestone that reflects our commitment to creating and sharing the experience of a more flavorful life.”
The Spice & Tea Exchange® encapsulates the cozy, Main Street USA feeling of warmth that the Midwest is known for— timeless beauty, welcoming communities and a dedication to small businesses, with successful stores open and operating in:
- Crystal Lake, IL
- Valparaiso, IN
- Port Washington, WI
- Grosse Point, MI
- Rochester, MI
- Bellaire, MI
- West Des Moines, IA
- And beyond.
Additionally, the brand recently opened new stores in Apex, North Carolina, Florida, and Brighton, Michigan. Most recently, the location in Noblesville, Indiana opened its doors in mid-November of this year. Delray Beach is set to open in Mid December. These openings reinforce the brand’s mission to create immersive, sensory-driven shopping experiences in vibrant communities nationwide.
“We want to be the franchise of choice for quality, distinctive seasonings and teas, while generating excitement in the marketplace by immersing our guests in the unique sights, smells, and tastes of The Spice & Tea Exchange®. Being able to give franchisees the power to create and share the experience of a more flavorful life embodies our mission of supporting our communities,” Crews said. “This past year has been huge for us in terms of scaling up to prepare for our refreshed franchise opportunity. We will be moving into a 90,000 square-foot distribution center to keep up with this new phase of growth and are ready to welcome aspiring business owners into our family.”