Boxes of herbal tea labeled "Spirit Tea," "Then & Now Ceremonial Matcha," and "Rosella Loose leaf herbal tonic" arranged on rocks with a white background.

CASE STUDY:

Spirit Tea

GROCERY AISLE:

Tea & Specialty Beverages

SERVICES:

Sign with orange and beige colors reading "Accounting" and an icon of three bar graphs.
Loan support banner with a blue butterfly logo and the words 'Loan Support' in blue text on a beige background.
A sign with a shield icon and the word 'OPERATIONS' in gold letters on a beige background
Logo with three stacked green ovals and the word 'FINANCE' in green capital letters on a beige background with a dark green border.

CHALLENGE:

Spirit Tea’s co-founder, Jordan Scherer, had built a fast-growing, industry-respected tea company. He was preparing to hit eight figures in annual revenue, had grown the team 5x over the last few years, and was exploring new channels.

But growth had outpaced infrastructure.

Spirit Tea had recently implemented a new ERP (Cin7 Core), but it wasn’t fully functional. The accounting team couldn’t tie inventory to COGS. Gross margin reporting was broken. Despite record sales, Jordan was frustrated: "My bank balance isn’t growing the way I’d expect it to."

He needed operational clarity, a better grasp on margin and cash flow, and help thinking through a smart path to finance growth without relying solely on equity.

OUR FIX:

Spirit Tea engaged Cultivar for full-stack support across accounting, finance, and operations. We became deeply embedded in the team: joining weekly ops calls, syncing with implementation partners, and leading finance strategy alongside Jordan.

Together, we finalized Spirit Tea’s Cin7 Core ERP implementation, ensuring inventory flowed correctly through to COGS and gross margin while simultaneously rebuilding the chart of accounts to match business reality and enable clean reporting by SKU, channel, and fulfillment method. We then created a cash flow forecast to help Jordan visualize runway and plan headcount and working capital investments

We also supported loan packaging and lender negotiations to secure a flexible, non-dilutive line of credit

Cultivar helped Spirit Tea go from “scrambling” to scaling with systems and tools built for the next phase of growth.

RESULTS:

Jordan now has full visibility into gross margin and profitability by SKU and channel. He knows where the cash is going and how to plan 3–6 months ahead. His team has the support they need to make fast decisions without flying blind.

With Cultivar, Spirit Tea is positioned to grow with control backed by strong systems, investor-ready reporting, and a thoughtful path to financing.

BY THE NUMBERS:

1

FLEXIBLE LINE OF CREDIT IN PROGRESS

0

EQUITY DILUTION

  • "Cultivar helped us understand what was really going on under the hood and gave us the clarity to grow without chaos."

    — Jordan Scherer, Co-Founder

MORE TO EXPLORE:

A hand pouring red wine from a bottle into a wine glass on a wooden table outdoors.

Schweiger Vineyards

Family-run Schweiger Vineyards needed financial clarity to match its craft. Cultivar brought the tools, insights, and strategy to help them scale with confidence.

A glass filled with an pinkish-orange beverage with ice cubes and lemon slices, next to a red bottle labeled "UNDONE non-alcoholic bittersweet aperitif" on a blue surface and peach-colored background.

UNDONE

UNDONE was ready to bring its alcohol-free spirits stateside—but needed a full U.S. back office built from scratch. Cultivar set up the systems, structure, and financial clarity to fuel their launch.

Open jar of Pistachio Spread with a spoonful lifted above it, and a closed jar of Pistachio Spread beside it on a light green background.

Pistakio

Pistakio was winning hearts and headlines, but founder Nicola Buffo was still crunching numbers solo. With Cultivar, he leveled up to smarter tools, sharper systems, and storytelling that scales.