Going national has never been easy for regional brands. Moving away from the traditional distribution route to go pan-India, a clutch of regional tea brands are using vending machines and counters to gain a broader footprint across the country.
While Mumbai-based Sapat Tea is using retail chain Big Bazaar to go national, Girnar Tea is targeting public sector undertakings (PSUs) and corporates in the Capital by setting up vending machines under its brand.
Sapat Tea has already set up counters at Big Bazaar outlets through its ‘Parivar Fresh Tea factory’ to sell a range of flavoured fresh teas. “Today, we have presence across 13 Big Bazaar outlets in Maharashtra, but expect to take our brands to the 90-odd Big Bazaars across the country, as we are currently present in just about 2-3 States,” says Poonam Soni, Brand Manager, Sapat.
Family-run Sapat has limited presence across Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Chattisgarh.
Girnar has decided to set up vending machines in corporate offices in places such as Gurgaon and Delhi. Though the brand has extended beyond Maharashtra into Gujarat, Goa and Tamil Nadu, it has yet to enter the north . Rupesh Gandhi, Marketing Head, Girnar Tea, said, “Instead of taking our exclusive stores or lounges across the country, we are targeting PSUs such as ONGC and NTPC based in Delhi and the NCR region to set up our vending operations.”
While Girnar has a tea lounge in Coimbatore, expanding into new cities through the lounge format is not going to be feasible. “Tea lounge is a loss-making format, as nobody is willing to pay a premium for a cup of tea. Since companies outsource their teas mostly from roadside vendors, we are setting up vending machines within the premises of their offices. This will also help in taking our brand pan India.”
Gujarat Tea Processors and Packers, the maker of Wagh Bakri chai, with a presence across Maharashtra and Gujarat, also plans to target Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. Wagh Bakri’s vending machines would soon be set up in offices and at railway platforms in tier 2 and 3 cities such as Jodhpur, Udaipur, Jaipur and Indore.