The G.S. Haly Company

Origins

In 1887, George Standish Haly, a Scotsman working as a coffee, tea, and spice trader in London, saw opportunity in the booming economy of the western United States. San Francisco in particular emerged as a thriving metropolis in the wake of the Gold Rush, completion of the first transcontinental railroad, and growth of the port. Moving his family and his business to the growing city, he established the G.S. Haly Company by 1889, importing tea, coffee, spices and other commodities.

Growth

Significant expansion in the tea industry took place around the turn of the century. The Tea Law of 1897 created a Board of Tea Experts to establish and maintain quality standards for all tea bought and sold in the United States. Technological developments in brewing, tea bags, and trends like iced tea meant that tea was reaching a wider audience than ever before, and the fledgling G.S. Haly Company worked to establish a foothold among the many importers working in the Bay Area.

Rebuilding

In 1906, an earthquake struck the coast of Northern California, sparking fires that raged through San Francisco, destroying much of the city. Included in this destruction were the holdings of every major tea and spice importer--including The G.S. Haly Company.

Still a relatively young company at this time, George Haly was able to rebuild with the help of his son Thomas, and the Halys continued to expand and establish themselves as trusted and reputable brokers.

Blockades

The First World War shifted even more importation to the West Coast and San Francisco. Due to blockades and threats from U-boats in the Atlantic passage, all teas and other imports were transported via the Pacific Ocean.

The G.S. Haly Company took advantage of this opportunity and continued to expand, eventually bringing someone outside the family into the company.

The Young Apprentice

When San Francisco native Edward Spillane graduated from high school in 1924, he went to work at the Keystone Coffee Company in San Jose. Intrigued by the world of coffee and tea, he joined The G.S. Haly Company by his early 20s to apprentice with Thomas Haly.

In 1931, Thomas’ widow sold the company to Edward for a bargain price of just under $5000. While the beginning of the Great Depression was not an auspicious time in America’s history to take over a company, Edward was a community-oriented man with deep ties to the working-class San Francisco neighborhood of his childhood, determined to be successful. He leveraged all his local connections to maintain the reputation of The G.S. Haly Company through lean years.

WWII and Beyond

By 1941, as World War II escalated, the United States government temporarily shut down all private importation of foreign goods. Since The G.S. Haly Company wasn’t able to bring in any tea, Edward joined the Coast Guard.

In 1946, he was notified that The G.S. Haly Company could resume operations overseas, as seen in this letter from the United States Department of Agriculture.

Tea in the West

After the war, Edward stopped importing coffee, cocoa, and spices, concentrating solely on tea. With this newly specialized focus, The G.S. Haly Company began to shape the growing post-war tea industry and frequently hosted the many international brokers who regularly visited the city.

In 1949, Edward became a founding member of the Western States Tea Association and he served on the United States Tea Board of Experts throughout the 1950s. Also during this decade, Edward hosted weekly Thursday afternoon lunches at The G. S. Haly Company offices for all San Francisco tea importers and anyone else involved in the tea trade. Through these lunches, The G.S. Haly Company and Edward Spillane fostered a tight-knit tea community centered on the west coast.

Marie Spillane

Edward’s death in 1961 left The G.S. Haly Company in the hands of his widow, Marie Spillane. Marie immediately undertook learning the complexities of tea and tea importation, relying on the global network of tea producers and local tea community who had liked and respected her husband and wanted to see her succeed in his stead.

As the first female tea importer in the United States, Marie built on The G.S. Haly Company’s reputation for quality. Among other milestones, she served as President of the Western States Tea Association and was the first woman to attend the Calcutta tea auctions. Looking to create new opportunities and markets, she also ushered a new era of high-quality, ‘specialty’ tea in America.

Specialty Tea

How did she do this? By the mid-1960s nearly all of the West Coast tea industry had moved to New York in response to dock strikes in San Francisco. With no intention of moving east, and to combat this potentially enormous loss of business, Marie began importing small amounts of unusual premium teas along with her larger commodity shipments and holding them in stock for her local customers.

Cafe Culture

At the same time, new appreciation for coffee was emerging in San Francisco, driven largely by the grandfather of specialty coffee, Alfred Peet. The rapid growth of coffee culture throughout the Bay Area, and later through the rest of the United States, helped establish an audience primed to appreciate new and different loose leaf teas along with their coffee.

Over the next few years, Marie’s main customers became the many coffee roasters of the West Coast and the growing grocery markets across the country.

Michael Spillane

By the end of her career, Marie transformed The G. S. Haly Company into one of the premier full-service importer and specialty tea wholesalers in the United States. In 1977, her youngest son, Michael, succeeded his mother as president of the company.

Mike and his devoted team operate The G.S. Haly Company to this day, and continue the tradition of excellence that has carried the company through so much of America’s history.

We Are The G.S. Haly Company

Mike and his devoted team operate The G.S. Haly Company to this day, and continue the tradition of excellence that has carried the company through so much of America’s history.