Tata Global Beverages is a global natural beverage business with brand presence in over 40 countries. It is the second largest player in branded tea in the world and has growing interests in coffee and water. 250 million servings of its brands are consumed every day around the world.
With an annual turnover of US $1.4bn the Company focuses on creating ‘magical beverage moments’ for its consumers through its stable of innovative regional and global beverage brands, including: Tata Tea, Tetley, Himalayan natural mineral water, Tata Water+ and Tata Gluco+, Good Earth tea, Grand Coffee and Eight O’clock coffee.
Claire Phoenix questioned Global insights director Garth Viegas after he spoke at this year’s InnoBev Global Soft Drinks Congress in Portugal.
Garth Viegas: Tata is India’s largest business group with revenue of about a $100bn in seven sectors, ranging from steel to transport, and telecommunications. It has operations in over 100 countries and more than 540,000 employees. Interestingly, around 63% of the revenue is generated in geographies other than India.
Garth Viegas: The Wellness industry is growing at CAGR of 16%, supported largely by a rising middle class. This is driven by rising stress levels leading to a wave of interest in alternative therapies, Ayurveda treatments and spa’s.
The market for organic foods is also showing growth of around 18%, led by an increasing focus on health and eating better.
Indian women have among the highest calcium deficiency rates in the world (20%) We also have among the highest rates of diabetes and yet malnutrition still remains a key challenge for India today.
Garth Viegas: Last year at the Global Drinks Congress in Istanbul, our CEO Ajoy Misra said: “At Tata we want to make a big and lasting difference to the world of natural beverages – tea, coffee and water. Health is a big deal and diabetes and weight loss are very important and we have just launched functional water formulated to help in this sector.”
Hydration is the largest sub-segment growing at 20% CAGR and we are delighted with our launch of TATA Water Plus – India’s first nutrient water that tastes like water and looks like water but contains the goodness of copper and zinc. This water comes in 1 litre, 500ml PET bottles and 200ml pouch variants. Apart from health & wellness, another key trend we’re leveraging in the beverages segment is ‘convenience.’
Tata Gluco Plus is an innovation from NourishCo (a joint venture between Tata Global Beverages and PepsiCo). This affordable, on-the-go re-hydration solution is a combination of great taste and energy. The product is targeted at the mass consumer segment. The challenge was to deliver a quality product that tastes good, has functional benefits and is available at a low unit price. The breakthrough was the packaging format, which came in the form of a 200ml plastic cup that ensured product quality at that price point and yet did not compromise on taste or aroma.
In tea, research showed there are many consumers who want the health benefits of green tea, but prefer the taste of black tea. So, they stick with their standard cup of black tea, which most UK consumers drink with milk. Based upon this insight, Blend of Both was developed for the UK market and Tetley Black & Green for the US market. This is a combination of green & black tea. It tastes like a standard cup of black tea and yet contains the goodness of green tea and tastes great with milk as well.
Garth Viegas: At Tata Global Beverages, our focus on natural beverages translates to focus on health and wellness. We have kept pace with today’s lifestyle, understood the palate unique to each region and offer a range of interesting and innovative products across our beverage portfolio.
Research confirms that the key motivator for green tea consumption is health, and the key barrier is taste. With this in mind, Tetley’s 100% steamed Green Tea was launched in Australia and Canada. ‘Steamed’ has both a strong health and a more delicate taste profile connotation, addressing both the key barrier and driver for the segment. This product uses the centuries old Japanese technique of gently steaming tea leaves immediately after picking to lock-in its fresh, pure flavour. The result is a green tea with a light, refreshing, taste without the bitterness of some other green teas.
In addition, Tetley in Canada is helping Canadians enjoy a better every day in mind, body and spirit though another range of green teas. Green Tea Plus in Canada combines green tea with herbs and other ingredients that are known to address specific popular health concerns namely obesity (Figure), mental alertness (Aware) and ageing (Glow).
In Poland we have Tetley with vitamin C. A unique offering in the premium fruit flavoured segment, this black tea contains additional ingredients that are a natural source of vitamin C such as lemon, honey, ginger and elderberry.
In India, apart from Tata Water Plus and Tata Gluco Plus, we have Himalayan natural mineral water at the premium end of the segment. Himalayan water is sourced from an aquifer in the Himalayan mountains. The brand’s essence is ‘Live natural.’ It encourages consumers to go back to nature and enjoy untouched, unprocessed water.
Garth Viegas: We believe our brands help create many magical beverage moments for consumers across the world. A cup of tea or coffee or a drink of water is a part of everyday routine and yet gives consumers a break from their everyday routine. As part of the Tata Group, we believe in sustainability and in giving back to the community. Many of our product and marketing initiatives are also linked to this ethos. Health and wellness is at the centre of many of our innovations.
Garth Viegas: A significant number of our campaigns are aimed at women. Our green tea range in India taps into the growing number of people who want to make healthy lifestyle choices.
Tetley Green Tea in India has recently launched a refreshing campaign, which urges wellness seeking consumers to cleanse from within. A lot of Indian consumers are pursuing a healthy lifestyle and are opting for health and wellness products in their daily routine. Also our study revealed that green tea consumption occasions cover multiple points- be it at home, the workplace or during travel. So Tetley has kept pace with today’s lifestyle, understood the Indian palate and now offers six delicious flavours of green tea, customised to the Indian palate.
Garth Viegas: It is being aware of different people’s needs and price points and making differentiated offerings. If you can segment the right product at the right price I can guarantee you will be successful.
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