Tata Tea scouts for consultant

By Our Staff Reporter

KOLKATA. SEPT. 27. Tata Tea will soon appoint an international consultant to bring in synergy in the operations between the parent company and the Tetly Group. Talking to media persons, the vice chairman of Tata Tea, Mr. R. K. Krishna Kumar said the company's vision was to bring in a `third entity' to synergise the operations. The company planned to widen its distribution network to improve its market share in India by 5 per cent in the next three years.

Referring to the acquisition of Tetly as `ring fenced' to protect the interests of the parent company, Mr. Krishna Kumar said, ``the acquisition did not leave any negative impact on the cash flow of Tata Tea''. Moreover, the interest cost of the company had come down.

On the overall business strategy, Mr. Krishna Kumar said, ``there are opportunities behind the present gloom. Moreover contrary to the general feeling, the consumer preference is rapidly shifting towards packet teas.''

The growth in the packet tea market is generally overlooked as regional and local brands are more preferred to customers than the national brands. Picking up clues from the market behaviour, Tata Tea has been increasingly placing its brands as local brands.

On the possibility of expanding the tea production facility, the managing director, Mr. H. R. Khusrokhan, said Tata Tea was open to acquisition of plantation estates in Kenya and Sri Lanka. In India, however, the present holding of 55 estates was considered ``sufficient''.

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Section  : Business
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