Financial Daily from THE HINDU group of publications
Friday, Mar 07, 2003
Financial Daily from THE HINDU group of publications Friday, Mar 07, 2003 |
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Corporate
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Outlook Tata Tea hopes to gain greater market share Our Bureau
KOLKATA, March 6 AFTER severe competition from local players, Tata Tea Ltd claims to have consolidated its operations and hopes to register a growth in its profitability during the next 12-18 months. This was stated by Mr R.K. Krishna Kumar, Vice-Chairman of Tata Tea, on the sidelines of the India International Tea Convention 2003. Talking to reporters, he said the Tata Tea Premium brand, which was relaunched in November last, was witnessing a healthy growth. According to him, the market share of Tata Tea Premium, which was first launched in 1987, was currently at eight per cent. He expected the share to go up to 8-8.5 per cent by the end of 2003. It may be noted that Tata Tea Premium, which is the flagship brand of the company, is by far the largest selling tea brand in the country. Prior to the relaunch, its market share was 6.7 per cent. Mr Krishna Kumar clarified that the brand is not available all over the country. ``If we can compare the market shares on a like-to-like basis, the share of Tata Tea Premium would be significantly higher than seven per cent,'' he said. In the current financial year, the results of Tata Tea have not been too good mainly because of poor tea prices. When asked whether the company's fortunes would change for the better in the last quarter of the current financial year, he preferred not to comment as ``it would be price sensitive''. Instead, he said: ``Tata Tea has got its act together and we have made significant improvement in profits.'' Earlier, at the convention, he said Indian tea exporters should not expect sharp price increases. He asked the industry to look into its cost structure and make Indian tea more attractive in the global market. ``We talk of our social costs, but that is irrelevant to the global buyer and consumer. The state governments have started realising that they would have to support the tea producers to maintain the rural economy'', he said. He also felt that Indian exporters should diversify their product portfolio to suit the demands of the consumers.
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