My name is Lalith Guy Paranavitana. I am the President and founder of Empire Tea Services LLC. I have been associated with the tea industry for over 45 years. I was the Manager of Nuwara Eliya Tea Estate in Sri Lanka (Ceylon) and a Director of the Sri Lanka State Plantations (Tea) Corporation, before immigrating to the USA in 1989. At the very beginning, I managed and operated the Victorian style Empire Tea Room in the Columbus Inn B&B. I started importing tea and blending shortly thereafter.