ANNOUNCEMENT

TEA CONNEXIONS OF CANADA SET TO OFFER AN INNOVATIVE RANGE OF TEA RELATED PRODUCTS

Connexions Trading International Incorporated, who own the trading name Tea Connexions is pleased to announce that they are in advanced talks with UK-based Shangers Ltd. The aim is that both parties collaborate on a unique entertainment and licensed products venture, celebrating the history, tradition and current market strength of tea, the world's most popular beverage.

Based in Saskatoon, Tea Connexions, which was founded by husband and wife team Sanjay and Suruchi Gupta, is a tea distributor specialising in quality leaf teas from India. The Company has seen robust growth over the past two years and now plans to broaden its range of tea products to offer blends and infusions from other tea producing regions, as well as tea accessories and gifts through its distribution network which, to date, has largely been based in the United States.

Shangers Ltd is a new UK company founded by the veteran British broadcaster and programme maker Mike Prince. Prince has created and produced a number of children's entertainment series that have sold internationally, including 'The Big Garage', 'St. Bears Doll's Hospital' and 'Jellabies'.

The core activity of Shangers is to produce a range of home-entertainment features and merchandise surrounding the 'tea experience'. A key element of the Shangers enterprise is to launch a new children's series entitled Princess Teana (pronounced 'Tina') that is being designed to complement the renewed interest in the etiquette and pro-social attitudes of the tea ceremony.

Tea Connexions' CEO, Sanjay Gupta, comments:

"My ambition is to empower our distributors with a range of high quality products that consumers will view as distinctive whether they be excellent tea flavours, collectable tea accessories or children's products that promote healthy family values. Shangers delivers an intriguing story that is a perfect fit to the world of tea. If we can play a pivotal role in building this new brand, then I believe we will be offering consumers something very different and worthwhile."

Shangers Chairman and Founder Mike Prince says:

"Shangers' goal is to build an obvious link between two giant sectors: tea and home entertainment. Our marketing strategy is to take Shangers and Princess Teana to consumers through localised marketing initiatives that will hopefully benefit small entrepreneurial businesses and the buying public. I feel that the team at Tea Connexions have the vision and determination to succeed in bringing the world of show business to the mother of all beverages."

Currently discussions between Tea Connexions and Shangers are focused on product development and distribution arrangements. Both parties believe that the business model under review will offer distributors an opportunity to be involved with an intellectual property and range of products that would normally be the domain of 'big business operations'. Furthermore, the creative concepts behind the core idea of Shangers is viewed by Tea Connexions and Shangers as having a strong point of difference to existing tea-based products and entertainment formats.

It is planned that the parties will make a further announcement on their future plans on or before 1st August 2003.

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