MEET NOOR: HEAD OF TRADING, VAN REES KENYA & MANAGING DIRECTOR, VAN REES MIDDLE EAST
From Kenya to Dubai
“Today, I am happy to look back on 25 years in the tea industry, and almost as many at Van Rees! As the Head of Trading at Van Rees Kenya, my role is quite ‘simple’: buying and selling tea. To do this, I have to fully understand the product and its market dynamics, enabling me to buy as efficiently as possible in the weekly Mombasa tea auctions. A significant part of my job involves tea tasting and grading—an art in itself! The ability to explore this craft while also using it in trade makes my work both fascinating and fun.
Weekly interactions with various stakeholders—buyers, producers, and brokers—are integral to what I do. The key to success in our line of business is to maintain professional and honest relationships with all stakeholders. Within these good relationships, we strive to meet our customers’ demands with the tea available at auction.
To increase the global presence of the company, in 2013, I was given the challenge of opening a new Van Rees office in Dubai. Understanding the local tea market dynamics in the region to ensure long-term business success was an exciting experience. Today, I still oversee the Van Rees Middle East office in Dubai as Managing Director, proud to be one of the many global ambassadors of tea at Van Rees.”
Hunting for tea and business, while making positive impact
“Keeping our Kenyan and Middle Eastern trading teams strong means ensuring our Weekly Sales Order Books align with our commercial budgets. Trading involves risk, and part of my job is to analyze these risks to achieve the best mitigation results towards our trading goals.
‘Hunting’ for business is one of my favorite activities. The adrenaline rush from winning a new client or securing a new contract is thrilling! Van Rees is now a 205-year-old company—‘royal’ since 2019—and remarkably, we focus solely on tea. I am constantly on the lookout for good trading opportunities, ensuring that our company continues to connect tea supply and demand for many years to come.
At the same time, we must consider that we only have one planet, and we need to take immense care of it. For me, this also means having a positive impact on the people without whom we would not have an industry: tea farmers. At Van Rees, our corporate Code of Conduct states that we must source teas responsibly and ethically, and I take that commitment seriously.”
From IT to T
“On March 1, 2000—25 years ago—I set foot in the Van Rees Kenya office for the first time. My background was in IT, and I had just gotten married a few months prior. My IT job was quite demanding, requiring extensive travel upcountry, and at times, even weekends were not spared. This was not aligning well with my personal life, so I sought an opportunity where I could work normal hours and have weekends with my family.
I was appointed as the IT and Shipping Manager at Van Rees Kenya. My initial role was to upgrade the IT systems and create a database for the trading and shipping departments. Not knowing much about shipping, I took on the challenge to learn and master it. A few years later, I was promoted to the Trading team, and from that moment on, my life became all about tea! My friends from my IT days still joke about how I went from IT to just ‘T.’”
Fun makes it run!
“Since being bitten by the ‘tea bug,’ I have never considered any other commodity or field. My daily activities—understanding tea, buying it, and selling it—have continued to inspire me and remain my passion. All of this has been possible thanks to the global Van Rees network and the opportunities I received to grow and develop my skills over the years. A former Group Managing Director once said, ‘Fun makes it run,’ and for me, that still holds true.”
Strong milk tea
“Being born and raised in Kenya, I am a proud advocate of Kenyan tea! We have some of the best growing regions in the world. Personally, I have a preference for strong milk tea, and I even make my own special blend of Pekoe Fannings 1 and Pekoe Dust from both East and West of the Rift. The exact blend recipe remains my secret!
I encourage everyone to explore tea by drinking it. Tea has numerous health benefits and can be enjoyed in many ways—hot or cold, with milk or without, with sugar, honey, or even your favorite herbs and spices. Any combination is good, but the important thing is to drink tea. By doing so, you also positively impact the lives of millions of tea farmers across the globe by supporting the industry.”
Rebranding tea
“It is great to see tea being ‘rebranded’ worldwide, thanks to innovations like flavored teas, ready-to-drink solutions, and a growing specialty tea segment. Instead of being a ‘poor man’s drink,’ often cheaper than bottled water, tea is gaining popularity and even attracting younger generations. Additionally, I see a shift in how tea is sold—from traditional loose leaves to packaged and branded products—making it a more modern offering. These trends are positive and encouraging.
However, I look forward to the day when Kenyans drink more tea than they currently do! Kenya is the world’s largest CTC tea exporter, yet it consumes only about 5% of its own production, with 95% being exported. This makes tea farmers and producers highly dependent on export markets, which can be affected by political or economic challenges. A stronger local market for our own tea would benefit the Kenyan tea industry greatly.”
