ADVERTORIAL

Watawala relaunches Zesta

Watawala Marketing Ltd. a subsidiary of Watawala Plantations, one of Sri Lanka’s leading plantation companies, relaunched its flagship brand, Zesta in a new and improved pack, as it gears to attract a new customer base. The newly improved pack will be significant in repositioning the brand and strengthening its presence across the country.

Group Managing Director Vish Govindasamy said, “We believe that the changes made to our packaging will appeal more to our consumers and will help propel the brand into greater heights.” However, Zesta will continue to offer the best pure Ceylon BOPF tea at the same price, said Govindasamy. Chief Executive Officer Visal Wickramarathne said, “Zesta was at first limited to a niche market. However, today, changes have taken place, the economy is growing and we believe we can expand our target audience. To do that, we have to reposition the brand in the consumers’ mind.

The basic objective of the relaunch is to reach more households. It is not going to a niche product anymore, restricted to a smaller segment.”

Renowned for its high quality, the relaunch of this popular brand reiterates the company’s commitment to providing consumers ‘good pure Ceylon tea.’ Thus, although the packaging has been enhanced to make the product more appealing to the consumers, the quality and price have been maintained.

The improved pack retains the significant elements that are associated with Zesta, including its signature strips. However, these have been enhanced with the new addition of gold, while the company logo is also placed prominently. Additionally, to make the packaging more attractive, a human element has been introduced, while the new design also depicts the freshness of the cup of tea.

Following the official relaunch of Zesta, the new improved pack was introduced to the general trade and supermarkets around Colombo on the same day by the company’s sales force, as the initial step. By the end of the month the new Zesta pack will made available in all outlets nationwide for all consumers to experience.

Launched in 1999, Zesta has been recognized for its unique aroma, taste and colour, gaining recognition not just in Sri Lanka, but the world over. Packaged in a foil pack, it was designed to retain the plantation freshness.

The company was the first to introduce the concept of ‘plantation fresh’, where tea is directly sourced from the plantations and was committed to give a quality cup of Tea.

Money transfer network:

ComBank adds Lebanon

The Commercial Bank of Ceylon PLC has partnered CashUnited, a leading financial services provider in Lebanon, to expand its ‘e-Exchange’ instant money transfer facility to that country.

The partnership will enable Sri Lankans living or working in Lebanon to send money home conveniently, securely and speedily, by accessing any of CashUnited’s 250 plus locations in Lebanon, the Bank said. Commercial Bank’s extensive network of 192 branches, holiday banking centres, supermarket banking counters and 405 ATM machines will enable recipients to access the remittances with ease even on bank and public holidays.

“We have expanded coverage of our money transfer facility to many countries that have a significant Sri Lankan expatriate population,” Commercial Bank’s Operations Deputy General Manager Sanath Bandaranayake said. “The launch of e-Exchange in Lebanon is a strategic step that will further strengthen our money transfer operations in the Middle-East region, which has a large base of Lankan migrant workers,” he said.

Commercial Bank’s low cost, yet sophisticated e-Exchange money transfer facility is currently available through a network of reputed agents in more than 50 countries around the world. CashUnited, a MoneyGram representative in Lebanon, utilizes advanced technology to provide a range of high quality payment and other services including bill payments, currency exchange, Mobile top-up, insurance and prepaid payment card services. The Beirut headquartered company commenced its money transfer operations in 2001.

Amana Investments wins global award

For the second year running, Amana Investments won the ‘Best Islamic Bank in Sri Lanka’ Award for 2010 at the global Islamic Finance news poll conducted by the Malaysia-based REDmoney Group.

The winning of this award for two consecutive years reflects Amana’s clear leadership position in the field of Islamic Finance in Sri Lanka.

The Islamic Finance news awards is the most transparent, definitive and competitive awards poll designed to honour the very best in the global Islamic finance industry. The Islamic Finance News survey prides itself on being the only comprehensive and unbiased guide to the leaders within the Islamic finance industry, as it is voted by the public.

In addition to organizing the Islamic Finance News poll,

The REDmoney Group publishes the leading and widely circulated Islamic Finance industry journal which captures the significant events and activities that take place in the field of Islamic financial services, worldwide. Winners of the Islamic Finance News Poll received their prestigious awards at the Shangri La Hotel in Kuala Lumpur on February 24.