The Rs 4,874-crore Tata Tea Ltd has not just tea on its mind. Which is why the company has been looking to expand its non-tea portfolio in line with its strategy of evolving into a well-rounded beverage player. Health and wellness is a major thrust area for the company in its drive to achieve this objective. Water is one such area it identified some time ago which allowed it to leapfrog into a space beyond tea. It acquired the Mount Everest Mineral Water Company (MEMW), promoters of the Himalayan brand of bottled water, two years ago for a total acquisition cost of Rs 210 crore. That acquisition more importantly gave the company access to a pristine source of water in the Himalayas. The company has articulated in the past its intention to expand its water portfolio. A movement into energy drinks cannot be ruled out either, it has said.
Incidentally, the health and wellness platform is something the company is pitching its tea products as well. A year and a half ago, the company launched Tata Tea Life in the health and wellness space. ?It?s a niche product but helps us complete our tea portfolio,? says Sushant Dash, associate president, marketing, Tata Tea Ltd.
At a time when consumers are getting health conscious, Tata Tea realises that making its presence felt in this space is imperative. It gives the company the necessary room in its process of evolution from a tea major to a beverage giant.
This evolutionary process can be seen in its advertising and communication as well. Over the last two years, the company has been associating itself with a social cause through its advertising. This is again intended to project the company as one which is conscious to the needs of its target audience, be it the youth or otherwise, and thereby take it to a new level.
Tata Tea?s popular Jaago Re campaign is into its third leg at the moment. And the focus this time is on corruption and what ordinary citizens can do to help wipe out the latter from society. ?They can do so by taking a pledge,? says Sangeeta Talwar, executive director, Tata Tea Ltd.
Basically people are exhorted to take a pledge to stop giving bribes to get their work done, she says. The company is leveraging the internet and mobile phones besides television to do so. The company also has plans to kick-off an on-ground event in the next 10 days involving the trade to get them engaged in this endeavour, Talwar says. ?The ad spends are much more than what we had invested in the first two rounds of the campaign,? she says.
The company has achieved success with its Jaago Re initiative. It bagged the gold at the Bombay-Ad-Club-organised EMVIES this year for best integrated campaign for the second leg, unveiled last year, which focused on the need to vote especially among the youth, who constitute a large voter segment but hardly vote on account of inertia or lack of knowledge about candidates in the fray or because their names do not figure on the voter list. The company alongwith NGO Janagraha launched a website offering to help those interested in casting their vote. ?The website is still there. It is an ongoing effort,? says Talwar.
