In Conversation with Sooji Im
A conversation with the impressive Sooji: tea expert, entrepreneur and founder of be-oom and CHA-OOM. We chat about her favourite blends and food pairings, as well as her fascinating background.
I met Sooji just over a couple of years ago, during a supper club she held at her intimate and exquisitely kitted-out flagship tea store, be-oom, in Exmouth Market. Prior to that occasion, I had been to her shop a few times as an enthusiastic customer, enjoying the relaxing interiors and the interesting selection of Korean teas, treats and objects Sooji curates in her space. We gradually became friends, and I got the chance to learn more about her story and the fascinating journey that led her to become an entrepreneur, as well as one of the most recognized Korean tea experts in the country.
Originally from Incheon, South Korea, Sooji moved to the UK by herself, aged 15, to study. Her career led her to Washington, where she was working as a high-flying finance advisor, until she decided to turn her life on its head, move back to London and found be-oom in 2020, just months before the Pandemic hit. From there, she moved from strength to strength, opening a second tea business (Cha-Oom) last summer, with a stall in Boxpark, Shoreditch.
Needless to say, I find Sooji’s achievements inspiring and fascinating in equal measure, and her story too interesting not to share. Put the kettle on, your feet up, and enjoy our conversation.
Sooji, I’d like to start from your background. What made you leave your country so young to come to the UK?Â
From a young age, I always had a curiosity for the world outside of Korea. Although I had never travelled, I would watch a lot of documentaries and read books about other parts of the world and had a desire to explore. Then an opportunity came when I was 14 – to study English for a winter holiday in the UK. I liked it so much I wanted to come back permanently, so I went back to Korea, packed my bags and came back when I was 15.
How did you find the experience of settling in this country?
I didn’t speak much English when I first moved, and I moved to the Isle of Wight (very random, I know) so I did feel very much like a foreigner for the first year – but I settled into school quite well and really started to enjoy the life here. Coming to London for university was another shock to the system, having lived quite comfortably in the English country for a few years, but London really grew on me and now I cannot imagine living anywhere else.
In your previous professional life, you were working in Finance. What made you suddenly change your career?
I was a management consultant working in Washington D.C., when I decided to change my career. Given the education and background I had, management consulting or finance was the natural path after university. However, I struggled to enjoy it, or see it as a lifetime career, or even see it just as a job that pays the bills and helps me afford a certain lifestyle. I needed something more fulfilling that met my creative needs.Â
Can you share a pivotal moment or experience that sparked your interest in becoming a tea expert? How did that journey unfold?
I initially wanted to create a lifestyle brand with a focus on Korean crafts and tea, so tea was going to be an addition to the brand, not the core. To source the teas, I started travelling to tea farms and speaking to tea farmers and there, I fell in love with all the different types of Korean teas that I hadn’t ever tried as well as the ways the tea farmers talked about their products. I decided to shift the highlight to tea instead, and that was the beginning of be-oom
As an entrepreneur, what challenges have you faced, and how have you overcome them? Any lessons you'd like to share with aspiring entrepreneurs? Â
The first crisis I had as a business owner was Covid. The shop was ready to open and a few days later, the first lockdown was announced. For the first year and a half of business, I had to combat this crisis that seemed never-ending and was completely out of my control. But this taught me a great lesson – in that, we can never be prepared for the future and no matter how prepared we may be, some situations are not under our control and we just have to accept it and move on sometimes. We have to ride the wave as it comes, no matter how large and small it may be, and enjoy it as much as possible.Â
Running a small business means you wear many hats, and are deeply involved in every aspect of be-oom, from sourcing the teas to running workshops. Which aspect of the job gives you the most pleasure?
My favourite part of running the business has been meeting and making friends with people from all walks of life; from fellow entrepreneurs and chefs, to designers, other tea lovers or even just neighbours on the street. Some of the connections have become some of my closest friends, and the bonding experience I have had with each one of them has been just so unique and meaningful.
Do you have a favourite tea? Do you make your own blends?
My favourite tea is Hadong Black. This black tea, which is available at be-oom, is a delicate black tea with strong notes and cocoa. While the flavour is delicate, it is also just as complex. These black tea leaves are wild tea tree leaves, meaning they are harvested from old tea trees in the mountains.Â
I have some blended teas – black & yuza and black & cinnamon, etc but they are creations of tea farms we work with. I make simple tea blends for myself – for example, I got into blending coconut with Full Sparrow green tea for iced teas in the summer.Â
As a tea expert, how do you see the tea industry evolving? Are there any innovative trends or practices that particularly excite you?
I see that people are definitely consuming less ‘P.G. Tips’ kind of tea bags and that loose-leaf teas or biodegradable tea bags are on the rise. This is a healthy change – we are consuming less microplastics from tea bags this way and large corporations that make these ‘builder’s cup’ tea bags have previously benefited unfairly from cheap labour in former colonies.Â
I have also noticed that RTD (Ready-To-Drink) teas, such as canned and bottled teas as well as sparkling tea as an alternative to an alcoholic drink, are also becoming popular. There is room for growth in this area and it’s nice to see tea and non-alcoholic drinks replace alcohol.
You have quickly become a point of reference in the world of Korean teas, holding workshops on behalf of notorious brands and institutions of the likes of Samsung. How do you see your role in educating and promoting the Korean tea culture in a broader sense?
I feel a lot of responsibility in making sure I deliver the right information on Korean tea history, background and production, primarily because no one else is doing it at the moment. It has been fascinating to see the interest spike in Korean culture in general and therefore in tea also and I’d like to create a bigger platform, probably online or via my own channel, to share more information. I want to communicate it as informally as possible, so that the knowledge is easily accessible.
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Other than a passion for tea, you and I also share a love for good food and cooking. Tell me a little more about your passion for food. Where did that originate?
Every single member of my family is a big foodie (or a self-claimed food critic), and many conversations at home involved ingredients, food and restaurants. As my mum is from a small island just off the coast of Incheon, West Sea, Korea, we would get seasonal seafood straight from the island – we would often steam or marinade crabs in May and make kimchi in the winter with fresh oysters from the island. I would often help out or watch my mum put together banchan (side dishes) and make dinner for us and these experiences helped me develop my own passion for food.Â
Do you have a food memory that has particular meaning to you?
In Korea, most households drink tea or herbal infusion instead of water – I remember my mum preparing large pots of barley, burdock root, rooibos, corn silk, and buckwheat infusions almost daily and when we ran out, we would quickly make another pot. I remember thinking that some dishes would go well with a certain infusion, and that made me enjoy them much more. This influenced the way I look at tea, as something that is enjoyed throughout the day but also a complement to food.Â
Do you have a simple tea-food pairing recipe you can share?
It’s too simple to be called a recipe, but I like to put together a piece of toasted sourdough, a generous amount of peanut butter, sliced strawberries and a drizzle of honey on top with some baby mint leaves and pair that with Hadong Black or Wuyishan Black Tea (any black tea that has a tone of dark chocolate will do).Â
At be-oom, you hosted events in collaboration with talented chefs, pairing food and teas. How do you go about the process of food pairing? Any unexpected or particularly intriguing combinations that come to mind?Â
We look for either commonality or contrast in flavours – for instance, if a dish has a seafood component, we tend to pair it with green tea as it has an umami – almost like seaweed – flavour. On the other hand, if a dish has a strong flavour profile, with many spices and garlic, we like to contrast it with a tea that has an earthy flavour that rounds off the dish. My favourite pairing is Korean spicy pork belly stir-fry with burdock root tea, a pairing we did with Chef Joo from Calong. It’s a dish we eat on a regular basis in Korea and we don’t often think to pair this with tea, but it made a big difference in how we enjoyed the dish. It’s a case of contrasting flavours, where the tea was very earthy and rounded off the spiciness of the dish well.Â
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Could you share with us your top 3 spots in London?
The first that comes to mind is Arôme Bakery – the best pastries ever! I especially like to go to the one on Duke Street; I like to go to Barbican, for the conservatory as well as the other programmes, including the London Symphony Orchestra; and, My Old Place, which is a casual, slightly grubby Chinese spot near Liverpool Street.
What's next for you? Any future projects you are excited about?
We have some beautiful handblown glass pieces arriving from Korea soon – I am very excited to display them at the store. I am also keen to work on RTD projects, though it’s too early to say yet. But mainly, I am happy to just ride the wave as it comes!
I hope you enjoyed this conversation! For more tea and food pairing tips, you can follow Sooji and her businesses at the Instagram handles below:
⟶ Sooji’s personal account
⟶ be-oom
⟶ CHA-OOM
And if you found this article interesting, it you’d mean the world if you would pop a comment, or share it with someone you think might enjoy it!
Excellent chat. Just want to add that acqua is so important (obviously). Unfortunately, the water here in of Rome is not the best being so full of hard 'calcare'. But a bottle of Levissima is always in the kitchen. grazie!
Such an interesting and inspiring read