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16 n e w h a v e n B I Z | J a n u a r y / F e b r u a r y 2 0 1 9 n e w h a v e n b i z . c o m F a t h e r / D a u g h t e r Cindi's grandfather), David E. Bi- gelow, had switched careers several times, from publishing and selling food to handling finances for the fledgling venture. "It's a miracle that the company got off the ground," says Bigelow, who in 2005 became the family firm's third-generation president and CEO. Grandma Ruth wanted Cindi's father, David, to lead the company she started, and he and his wife Eunice developed many specialty teas and expanded retail channels to market to consumers. Growing up, Cindi Bigelow's mother actively discouraged dinner-table discussions about the family business. She preferred the dining room be a sanctuary from the ceaseless demands of com- merce. Nevertheless, her daughter had business genes. Cindi Bigelow took marketing classes in high school, studied finance and marketing at Boston College, earned an MBA at Northwestern's Kellogg School of Management, and worked in operations and sales for the Sea- gram Co. before entering the family business at last. She worked her way up through the Bigelow ranks without fear or favor. "I went on a journey every two to three years, moving into a new department," she says. "As a cost accountant, I got the first PC in the company and had to set it up." She also learned about business planning and control systems, and became the first planner for Bige- low Tea, overseeing production, customer service and purchasing. Meanwhile, her sister Lori was running Bigelow's blending division. "I had to build relationships on my own, and make my own mis- takes," Bigelow recounts. "I really earned my stripes. Some people ar- en't going to like you because you're family, and some are not going to like you because you're female. "I was trying to balance being a full-time mom with two children and a full-time employee, and had a husband who traveled a lot." Even more challenging was the matter of succession planning. From time to time, Cindi had made known her ambitions to lead the company, but didn't receive a clear answer from her parents until 2003, when they designated both their daughters as co-presidents and "put all their effort" into buying black tea and running the Charleston (S.C. tea) Plantation, which Bigelow Tea had recently acquired. Today Cindi and Lori remain co-chairs of the company. Tea for four: The second and third generation of the Bigelow Tea dynasty: (l-r) Eunice, Lori, Cindi and David. Continued from previous page

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