Classy Hippie Tea Merges Culture, Tech, And Agriculture

Classy Hippie Tea in Sacramento combines innovation with tradition. Founder Leo Hickman isn’t simply providing tea; he’s redefining it. Hickman creates a self-sustaining ecosystem where a simple cup of tea becomes a means for healing, connection, and advancement through what he terms “tea futurism,” a concept that combines agriculture, technology, and community building.

The aroma of spices and herbs permeates his comfortable Broadway tea room. Customers greet each other as if they were family, their laughter blending with the gentle buzz of discussion. At the heart of it all is Hickman, a man who has transformed tea into both a business and a cultural movement.

“I am the owner of Classy Hippie Tea, a proprietor,” says Hickman. “We’ve been in business for 15 years.”

For him, tea is more than a drink; it’s a philosophy and a reflection of his own journey.

Before he became a tea sommelier, Hickman served in the U.S. military, traveling to 33 countries. “Every country I went to had a tea ceremony,” he says. “At the time, I had PTSD, but back then, it wasn’t something people were diagnosed with. I didn’t want it on my record, so I went backpacking, trying to help myself.”

It wasn’t until his last stop, Guatemala, that Hickman realized tea’s healing potential. “I got sick, and the host mother I was staying with went to the corner store, bought one bag of tea, and within 24 hours I was healed,” he says. “When I came back to America, I started looking into what career field could heal someone with a tea bag.”

That search became his calling and his philosophy. “Tea for us is travel, events, and agriculture,” Hickman explains. “From my time in the military, we would travel to foreign countries, hold town hall meetings, and figure out ways to get active in the community. I replicated that system through my business. It’s not just about the drink, it’s a whole ecosystem of connection, movement, and growth.”

Hickman opened Classy Hippie Tea at 3226 Broadway, what he calls “our clubhouse.” There, he built a space that touches all five senses. “If you’re smiling, if you enjoy the food, if you like the smells, that means we’re on the right path,” he says. “Once we touch all five senses, you’ll never forget us. Once you never forget us, we become part of your lifestyle.”

Over the years, Hickman’s philosophy evolved into something larger, a movement he calls tea futurism. “In the beginning, it was about balance,” he explains. “That was the first 10 or 12 years.

“Now, Classy Hippie is about that rub, where hip-hop comes in, where culture comes in. We’re infusing every cup of tea with the culture we’ve created.”

Hickman’s life looked very different before he set up Classy Hippie Tea. “I was married for 10 years, and when that ended, I felt lost,” he says. “I had to rebuild myself from the ground up. Tea gave me a way to slow down and listen. It helped me realize that sometimes things have to fall apart so you can build something stronger.”

During that rebuilding period, he turned to yoga and began hosting small gatherings at his apartment. “After the divorce, I started doing yoga, hosting events at my apartment. That’s when one of my friends called me a classy hippie,” he recalls. “I didn’t have furniture, but I had tea, and people kept showing up. That’s how the name and the business started. It wasn’t planned. It was healing.”

That moment of personal renewal became the foundation for the community he would later build. “Tea taught me patience, compassion, and how to sit with myself,” Hickman says. “It made me want to share that calm with others.”

Customers at the store described the atmosphere as “beautiful”and the tea as “enjoyable.”

“I was not exactly sure of what to expect, but it’s been really lovely here. I am really enjoying the tea and the way it’s paired with the fruit is really nice,” says Keri Schuman, museum sales and retail operations manager at Crocker Art Museum

“The atmosphere is really beautiful,” says Josette Burroughs, senior supervisor at Kate Spade New York. “I love the displays of teas. I love how Leo is sharing with us that you can even create your own blend. That’s very unique.”

Hickman shares some teas you can find at Classy hippie tea. They include blends for sinus and respiratory relief during allergy and flu season, for restoring vitality to the digestive system, and for providing steady energy throughout the day without jitters or a crash.

Hickman calls himself both a tea futurist and an herbalist, identities that bridge the past and the future. “The intersection of herbalism for me is the past, and hip-hop allows me to be past and future,” he says. “Tea is known as a currency, as medicine, and as a commodity. It’s that robust. But you can also add in supporting herbs. That’s where the hip-hop comes in. That’s where things really start to dance.”

At Classy Hippie, Hickman uses herbs such as ashwagandha and chamomile to complement traditional tea blends. “Every herb in its essence is medicinal,” he says. “When we start adding sugar or dairy, we segregate the herb. But the herb in itself is pure.”

For Hickman, tea isn’t just a beverage; it’s a form of connection. “Tea is an herb, just like you and I are human,” he says. “Through developing a relationship with tea, I learned compassion and patience. It helped me understand the world outside of how I was feeling.”

He laughs softly. “It took me to take something that is overlooked, like tea, and create an advocacy around it. That energy moved into love. And now I believe I get to create a cultural movement through this herb that’s been around for a long time, but in a way people haven’t seen before.”

In a business where Black ownership is rare, Hickman stands out. “Tea isn’t something traditionally associated with Black people,” he says. “So it allows other cultures to be interested, curious, and start to explore. That’s how we break boundaries.”

Representation matters deeply to him. “Seeing someone who’s made it this long that looks like you resonates within the Black community,” Hickman says. “Every cup of tea has a bit of Black joy.”

But it hasn’t been easy. “The number one challenge I’ve faced is allowing myself to grow,” he admits. “As you learn, there’s always a conversation with yourself: do I accept this or reject it? And that goes into each cup of tea. That’s acceptance of different communities, different people, different colors.”

When asked how he has managed to thrive as a Black man in a largely white industry, Hickman pauses. “I’ve been thriving because I had to redefine certain words in my mind,” he says. “Thriving is generally associated with income. But if it’s based on money, I’ve been poor for a long time.

“However,” he says, “tea gave me time.”

As Hickman notes, people tend not to value time until they are older, but tea gave him time in his 30s to reflect on his 20s. “Most people don’t get that until they’re 60,” he says. “It let me take care of my mental and physical health, and that’s priceless.”

Hickman’s ultimate dream merges nature with innovation. “My ultimate dream for Classy Hippie is for people to realize that it’s a tech company,” he says. “I’m working in tea futurism, which is going to put our hands heavily into the dirt and engineering agriculture, but it’s also going to make us travel way more efficiently.”

He says his business will start developing rubber, alternative fuels, and energy sources, all through plants. “From there, our community is going to be extremely strong. We’ll have our own currency, our own government, our own home,” Hickman says. 

For Hickman, technology and tradition are partners, not opposites. “Right now, the seed bearers are out planting everywhere, trying to restore,” he says. “Classy Hippie is going to give them a way to come back home.”

That’s where Planet Classy comes in. Through Planet Classy, customers can order online from anywhere. 

“They’ll send me a message, and then next thing you know, we’re sitting in a virtual tea room talking about life. That’s where Classy Hippie is going, creating real connections in a digital space,” Hickman says.

The business also engages in regenerative agriculture and sourcing, partnering with growers who prioritize healthy ecosystems and fair practices. They also engage in sourcing rare teas and cultivating botanicals through innovative STEM methods such as vertical hydroponics.

Hickman’s early life was grounded in love and family. “I grew up in a two-parent household,” he says. “My dad was educated, my mom was educated. Things were tight, but we didn’t realize how hard they had to work.”

As a kid, he dreamed of becoming a professional athlete before joining the military, a detour that, in hindsight, led him straight to his purpose. “I believe tea is going to be the economic driver that brings people of color, specifically Black people, out of a poverty mindset,” he says. “It gives them something affordable to focus on, a way to give back, and through that, they’ll find their voice.”

After 15 years in business, Hickman says he no longer chases legacy; he lives it. 

“For the first 14 years of my career, I had answers for what my legacy would be,” he says. “Now, I don’t care to have one. Tea adopted me so that it could live. I didn’t adopt tea so that I may live.

“I’m a seed carrier. I’ll carry on the word of tea so someone else can pick it up. With every good cup, I, like a leaf, will pass on, but the plant remains. It continues strong.”

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