Lupa Irie, Claire's mother and the founder of Lupa's Kitchen, is a renowned figure in the American kombucha brewing scene. Her kombucha journey began in the early 1990s while she was residing in Jamaica in the West Indies, a time and place where she first discovered kombucha. Today, their Georgia-based company in the Southern United States carries on her legacy

Kombucha, which broke into the commercial market around the mid-2000s, has been surging in popularity ever since. Before this era, home brewing was the norm. In tandem with honing her commercial culinary skills, Lupa also achieved her naturopath degree in 2010. Her business grew as she taught kombucha brewing and began crafting natural, wholesome treats like cereals. Demand quickly escalated, transitioning her products from serving a small clientele to gracing the shelves of local health food stores, eventually reaching the expansive Whole Foods Market chain.

During this time, Claire was increasingly lending a hand to Lupa. Ultimately, she dedicated her full-time efforts to transforming their high-quality kombucha into a commercial success.

While Lupa has now retired, passing down her traditional brewing methods to Claire, she remains an active influence on the company. Her retirement has allowed her to pursue her passions in creating cookbooks and artwork, hobbies that she couldn't devote time to amidst the rapid growth of Lupa's Kitchen. However, Lupa continues to contribute to beverage development, quality control, and designing new flavors and exciting products that Lupa's Kitchen proudly launches.