Andrews & GeorgeAndrews & George
OUR HISTORY
ANDREWS & GEORGE COMPANY LIMITED was founded and incorporated in 1892
by William H. Andrews and Edward W. George in Japan. In the early years, Andrews & George
specialized in importing machinery and tools that were not manufactured in Japan.
The Japanese Zen Priest Eisai, famed for his widely-read book praising tea, Kissa Yōjōki (Drinking Tea for Health), brings green tea seeds from China back to Japan and begins Japan’s long history of green tea consumption and culture. Pictured: Zen priest Eisai.
Buhei Handa-san, 12th-generation Tea Master and ancestor of DōMatcha®’s Tea Master, begins the first company exporting Japanese green tea directly to other countries after Japanese green tea is enthusiastically received at the Paris Expo. Pictured: Buhei Handa-san.
Andrews & George Company Limited, a prosperous import/export business and DōMatcha®’s parent company, becomes the very first foreign trading company to establish a business in Tokyo.
Pictured: William Andrews, founder John Harrison’s great-grandfather.
Andrews & George imports the very first automobile to Japan; business is booming. Pictured: The first motor car in Japan.
Kinroku Handa-san hosts Charlie Chaplin and his brother Sydney with a traditional tea ceremony during a tour the famous actor took in Japan.
Pictured: Charlie Chaplin out of costume drinking tea.
Richard Andrews, grandfather to DōMatcha® founder John Harrison, must leave Japan before World War II.
Pictured: Richard M. Andrews.
Richard Andrews returns to Tokyo to find the city completely devastated by war. In the distance, he sees a lone building still standing: Andrews & George. The Japanese staff had protected the business from the fire raging through the city by putting wet rice burlap bags on the building. When Richard Andrews reunites with his staff, they return the keys to the building to him.
Pictured: Andrews & George Tokyo offices.
Founder John Harrison, who grew up in Japan, returns to Japan looking for a business venture. He meets the Handa clan and partners with Kazunori Handa-san, 16th-generation Tea Master, as well Shohokuen, one of Japan’s oldest and most respected matcha producers, to develop amazing, high-quality matcha for international sales.
Pictured: Kazunori Handa-san, Japan.
Outside of Japan, matcha is an obscure product. The DōMatcha® brand is developed honouring its Japanese roots with its name a reference to Sadō, “the Way of Tea.”
DōMatcha® introduces the world’s first decaf matcha outside of Japan, created using a proprietary water processing method. Master’s Decaf matcha has the same tiny amount of caffeine as decaf coffee, and still retains the nutritional benefits of regular matcha.
The company was wiped out by the earthquake and subsequent tsunami that leveled Tokyo in 1923. It was then re-built and during WWII the name was changed and the company was entrusted to its employees.
After the war Richard Andrews returned to find that Andrews & George was still intact. The opportunities were enormous and with Richard’s guidance, the company flourished.
A century later, Andrews & George is led by John Harrison, great-grandson of William H. Andrews. John is also the founder and CEO of Ecotrend Ecologics Limited, a national natural health and wellness product distributor that serves over 5000 retailers.
John also maintained his family legacy and ties to Japan when he set out to create a synergy of the east and west in his founding of DōMatcha in 2007. DōMatcha is a 100% authentic Japanese matcha which is now distributed globally.
ANDREWS & GEORGE has changed over the years as has the global marketplace.
The company currently focuses on importing bulk products into Canada. These bulk ingredients are used in many
finished products that are found in the natural health markets around the globe and offer consumers safer and greener alternatives.
Andrews & George also exports to countries around the world and because of its extensive history with Japan, this country is still one of
Andrews & George’s main trading partners.
© Andrews & George 2022. All rights reserved.
ANDREWS & GEORGE provides the freshest and best quality matcha on the market.
Along with these guarantees, we make our customers’ safety a top priority.