Tata Global Beverages MD visits Watawala Plantations

The longstanding partnership between Tata Global Beverages and Watawala Plantation PLC, has created a platform for India to share the new clones and variants of teas they have developed with the Sri Lankan tea industry, says Harish Bhat, Managing Director of Tata Global Beverages Limited, during a recent visit to Sri Lanka.

India’s tea industry he says, focuses mostly on innovation and research. India’s Tea Board last week, has allocated a staggering 1.5 billion rupees towards research and development. It had also been reported that Rs. 200 million would be spent on developing weather resistant tea clones.

“The foundation of our partnership with Watawala Plantation is nothing, but trust and transparency. We have a lot to share with each other. This partnership allows the Indian tea industry to share its commitments towards technology and innovation with Sri Lanka,” he said.

Tata Global Beverages is strongly involved in Sri Lanka’s tea industry and has a joint venture with Estate Management Services (Private) Limited, the company which manages Sunshine Holdings subsidiary, Watawala Plantations PLC. Bhat, a veteran of the industry who has been with the Tata Group for nearly 25 years, is also a board director of Watawala Plantations PLC.

“We, as a company, are pleased to be engaged with the Sri Lankan tea industry. We have built a robust partnership with Sunshine Holdings through Watawala Plantation PLC, spanning nearly 25 years. We have been together in good times as well as in tough times. Both companies, I must say, have grown rapidly, particularly in the past several years and we share a similar vision for the future,” Bhagat said.

Tata Global Beverages, a 1.5 billion dollar company involved in the beverage industry, is a global industry leader with a wide investment portfolio covering tea, coffee and mineral waters. The company whose history spans across two centuries, unites the beverage interests of Tata under one umbrella. Tetley, a wholly owned subsidiary of Tata Global Beverages, is the world's second largest manufacturer and distributor of tea.

Tetley's manufacturing and distribution business which spreads across 40 countries, sells over 60 branded tea bags. According to the Managing Director of Tata Global Beverages, the Company wants to keep investing in the business, while creating strong brands.

Commenting on their partnership with Sunshine’s Watawala Plantations, he said, “As a company, we have grown substantially, both organically and through acquisition. Sri Lanka has a strong and vibrant tea industry of which Watawala Plantations is a significant stakeholder. Watawala has created three powerful tea brands in Sri Lanka targeting three different segments of the tea market. We need to appreciate their excellent performance and the commitment they have shown in achieving their goals. We are proud to partner with them.”

“One of the plus points we see is the brilliant execution and excellent focus on their business and business results. Both on plantation and marketing fronts, it has achieved remarkable success. On the other hand, he said, Watawala Plantations kept investing in the business even during difficult times.

This helped the business to remain strong in both good and bad years. He also mentioned that Tata Global Beverages was in the process of marketing Sri Lankan tea in markets where Tata Global Beverages hold a strong position.

“There is also a great potential to grow this partnership into new areas, where Tata Global Beverages is already strong,” he said.

Bhat said that the contributions of Vish Govindasamy, Group Managing Director of Sunshine Holdings, was of great value to Tata Global Beverages as far as global strategies were concerned.

He also stressed the need of strengthening the position of Ceylon Tea in markets in the international market, although it already has a strong equity in several key markets.

Vish Govindasamy, Group Managing Director of Sunshine Holdings, emphasizing the importance of the company’s partnership with Tata Global Beverages, stated that Sunshine Holdings was extremely eager to further strengthen existing markets and consolidate our International presence as well as to explore new markets in the near future.