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In memory of Kent Rhoads (09/03/1952-01/25/2020)

ShizuokaTea.com, KagoshimaTea.com, and GreenTeaMerchant were founded by Kent Rhoads.

We always honor Kent’s spirit of providing high-quality tea and customer service, and our commitment is to always retain the same level of service to all the customers.

Our first blog post is dedicated to the memory of Kent.

The following is written by Kent’s twin brother, Kirk.

Kent Roy Rhoads (09/03/1952-01/25/2020)

Kent Rhoads, founder of GreenTeaMerchant, was a pioneer of Japanese green tea internet sales from Shizuoka and Kagoshima Prefectures. Born in Columbus, Kansas and educated in Coffeyville, Kansas, he earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration and Accounting from the University of Kansas, and a MBA Degree from Whittier College.

Kent worked in the Appliance Industry for over 25 years in Los Angeles County, California. In 1998 he moved to Japan, and following in the footsteps of his late Mother, Marlys, he became an English teacher at the University level, and like his late Father, Jack, also an entrepreneur, he started GreenTeaMerchant in the year 2000.

Kent is respectfully and fondly remembered by many in the green tea industry in Japan, and by thousands of loyal retail and wholesale Japanese green tea patrons throughout the world.

He is survived by two older sisters, two older brothers, an aunt, an uncle, numerous loving cousins, nieces and nephews, and the love of his life in Japan, Saiko Sugiyama.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Kirk Rhoads says

    July 16, 2020 at 8:33 pm

    Thank you very much, Kei, for dedicating your first blog post to Kent’s memory. My family and I truly appreciate your kind and thoughtful gesture.

    Reply
    • shizuokatea says

      July 18, 2020 at 5:05 pm

      Hi Kirk,
      Thank you very much for your comment and your kindness in sharing about Mr. Kent’s life in this writing.
      Honor is ours to be able to share and continue his legacy.
      I hope to always remind ourselves to keep the standard high as Mr. Kent did.
      Sincerely,
      Kei Nishida

      Reply
  2. Jeanne Dickerson says

    July 23, 2020 at 11:15 pm

    Thank you for the the memory of my brother Kent. I cared for him deeply.

    Sincerely,
    Jeanne Dickerson

    Reply
    • Stephen Anderson says

      August 11, 2020 at 1:53 pm

      Twenty years ago, I served at the U.S. Consulate in Nagoya as Commercial Consul and considered Kent Rhoads as my key American contact in Shizuoka. I again visited from Embassy Tokyo in 2015 and celebrated with him all of his business success. His memorial will include the warm relationships that he built as an American abroad, and Kent will be much missed.

      Reply
      • Kirk Rhoads says

        August 25, 2020 at 2:32 pm

        Thank you for your kind words and remembrance, Stephen. Warm regards, Kirk Rhoads

        Reply
  3. Patty Tellechea says

    July 24, 2020 at 2:27 pm

    My husband and I had the opportunity to visit Kent, Saiko and Tomiki in Shizuoka a few years ago. I’d known him since high school in Coffeyville but hadn’t seen him other than HS reunions since then. He and his friends met up with us, introduced us to a wonderful restaurant where Saiko selected the most wonderful dishes. Kent guided us to a wonderful hotel that used to be a Samurai castle. What a gracious person Kent was.

    Reply
  4. Jane Stockton says

    July 24, 2020 at 3:18 pm

    Thank you for dedicating this blog to Kent’s memory, I loved my brother dearly.

    Sincerely
    Jane Stockton,

    Reply
  5. Nikolas Koutsakos says

    August 6, 2020 at 3:08 pm

    I had the chance to work with Mr. Kent for more than 3 years, for my small Tea Supply business in Cyprus.
    Though I didn’t had the opportunity to physically meet him, I must say he has been a valuable business partner that has helped me a lot! Always honest, gentle, professional and offering amazing quality of product!
    Mr Kirk, Kent’s brother has been amazing helping us, after Mr Kent’s passing.
    Wishing the best to the family!
    Nikolas

    Reply
    • Kirk Rhoads says

      August 8, 2020 at 3:54 pm

      Thank you very much for the kind thoughts, Nikolas. My family and I wish you all the very best.

      Reply
  6. Saad Usmani says

    August 6, 2020 at 3:19 pm

    I only had the pleasure of speaking to Kent over email. Yet, while inquiring about business as usual, my heart sank when I was told he was no longer with us.
    I’ve conversed with many people from different parts of the world for business purposes; no one comes close to how warm and welcoming Kent was when he was dealing with my nagging emails. He didn’t even know me, yet he helped me far more than I expected.
    I was thousands of miles away and he left a pleasant impression on me. It’s funny but every time I think green tea or Matcha, I think Kent.
    God bless his kind soul. He is in a far better place now.

    Reply
    • Kirk Rhoads says

      August 8, 2020 at 3:57 pm

      Thank you so very much for your kind words. Saad.

      Reply
  7. Mark Davison - The Tea Junction Isle of Man says

    August 7, 2020 at 12:27 pm

    Thanks for uploading this blog. I never met Kent in person but I dealt with him for over 10 years when I first found out about his company. He was always a real gentleman and a pleasure to do business with. Sadly missed.

    Reply
    • Kirk Rhoads says

      August 8, 2020 at 3:59 pm

      Thank you, Mark.

      Reply
  8. Heman Bhojwani says

    August 8, 2020 at 11:51 am

    Thank you very much sharing more about Kent, Kei! It is very helpful to now understand the beginnings of Green Tea Merchant.

    Reply
    • Kirk Rhoads says

      August 8, 2020 at 4:00 pm

      Glad to have made contact with you, Heman.

      Reply
  9. Muriel Eaton says

    August 10, 2020 at 10:06 pm

    I think he was among the kindest people around. He always acknowledged messages and was so helpful. He gave you the feeling that he understood what your taste was and would suggest new teas to try. Rarely does one feel blessed doing business like this.

    Reply
    • Kirk Rhoads says

      August 11, 2020 at 2:59 am

      Thank you 🙏 for sharing, Muriel.

      Reply
  10. Orlando Romain says

    August 13, 2020 at 5:53 pm

    Great story Kei. Thanks a lot for sharing, it’s good to know the history of green tea and how it all started.
    Orlando
    BlissfullBoxes

    Reply

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About Green Tea Merchant Blog

Shizuoka Tea and Mt. Fuji
Green Tea Merchant Blog is to help answer frequently asked questions from our customers about Japanese green tea.

We have been actively involved in the Japanese tea industry since 2000. This extensive experience has made us knowledgeable about how to source the right green teas at the best prices for our worldwide customers.

We operate ShizuokaTea.com, KaoghimaTea.com, and GreenTeaMerchant.com.

This blog is to share our knowledge with you to navigate through the complicated but wonderful world of Japanese green tea.

Hope you enjoy it.

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