Hälssen & Lyon
Corporate brand
UnclaimedA Hamburg-based, family-owned tea company founded in 1879, supplying tea products and related services to customers in international markets.
Last updated September 25, 2026
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Overview
Hälssen & Lyon is a Hamburg-based tea company whose business dates to 1879, when Alfred Moritz Lyon and Gustav Vincent Hälssen founded a joint tea trading company. It is an international, family-owned business: the company says that the Ellerbrock family took ownership after its founding period and that the fourth generation of that family now owns it. The company’s headquarters remain at Pickhuben 9 in Hamburg’s historic Speicherstadt warehouse district, where it moved in 1887. The company presents itself as a tea supplier and manufacturer serving business customers. Its range includes premium and specialty teas, herbal and fruit infusions, botanicals, tea extracts, and instant mixes, using ingredients sourced from around the world. Its catalogue also describes teas and blends tailored to the needs of the upmarket retail trade. The company emphasizes tea tasting, product variety, quality control, and experience in international tea importing and exporting. Hälssen & Lyon also offers services around tea products and packaging. These include packaging concepts and tea formats such as pyramid, rectangular, pot, and mug tea bags, as well as foil packaging and folding boxes. Its eco-friendly packaging work includes plant-based materials and packaging options described as compostable under specified conditions. The company says it serves customers internationally and highlights a North American team providing local access to its tea expertise and products. The company remains active and describes its mission in terms of innovative products, outstanding service, and personal dedication. In 2024 it marked 145 years in the tea business. Its public materials identify it as family-owned and provide a Hamburg headquarters, but do not name current executives or identify a separate corporate parent.
History
Hälssen & Lyon began on 1 January 1879, when Alfred Moritz Lyon and Gustav Vincent Hälssen founded a tea trading company in Hamburg. The company’s history page records that Hälssen died in a tragic accident later that year. The venture established a presence in Hamburg’s Speicherstadt, the warehouse district then being developed near the port. In 1887, the company moved into its building at Pickhuben 9. Hälssen & Lyon describes itself as the longest-standing tenant in the historic district, and that address remains its headquarters. The company’s early history was closely tied to the Ellerbrock family. Johann Carl Ferdinand Ellerbrock, who had joined the company in 1895, became a partner in 1907. Following Alfred Moritz Lyon’s death in 1916, Ellerbrock became the company’s sole proprietor. The history page also records his participation in co-founding the German Tea Association in 1917. His son, Carl Ellerbrock, joined the company in 1923. In 1927, Carl founded Hälssen & Lyon Ltd. in London, an early step in the company’s international development. The company characterizes the decades after its founding as a period of investment and steady growth at home and abroad. Its public materials describe an international tea business spanning importing, exporting, supply, and manufacturing. The company’s present-day range extends beyond tea itself to herbal and fruit infusions, botanicals, tea extracts, and instant mixes. It also serves business customers with product and packaging services, including tea-bag formats and packaging options using plant-based materials. Hälssen & Lyon describes itself as an international family-owned company and says that the fourth generation of the Ellerbrock family now owns it. The company continues to operate from Hamburg and serves customers in international markets, with a dedicated team in the United States providing local access to its expertise for the North American market. In 2024, it marked 145 years in the tea business. Its stated mission emphasizes innovative products, outstanding service, and the personal dedication of its staff. The company’s published history excerpt gives early milestones through 1927; later ownership or expansion dates are not specified in the supplied evidence.
Products and positioning
An experienced international tea supplier and manufacturer serving business customers, with a broad product range, specialist tea expertise, quality control, and packaging services.
Premium and specialty teas
Tea products offered as part of the company’s broad range for business customers.
Herbal and fruit infusions
Herbal and fruit blends are included in the company’s product range.
Botanicals, tea extracts, and instant mixes
Products listed among the company’s offerings for North American customers.
Tea bags and packaging formats
Formats include pyramid, rectangular, pot, and mug tea bags, as well as foil packaging and folding boxes.
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