The
cultured cup
Sri
Lanka-based Dilmah Tea recently launched its spread of speciality teas
in India, Binny Sabharwal speaks to Tommy Joseph, Country Manager, Dilmah
What
are the various blends that Dilmah Tea has introduced to capture the
attention of the Indian tea connoisseurs?
We
have launched five variants of tea for the Indian market. The first
one is Ceylon Gold, which is a large leaf variety basically for tea
connoisseurs who never compromise on quality. It is a special occasion
tea and therefore we have positioned it at the top end. And then we
have Dilmah Premium, which is also orthodox tea but the leaf is smaller
in size. While Ceylon Gold delivers only the flavour of the tea, Dilmah
Premium possesses a full flavour in addition to strength. We have also
launched, specifically for the Indian market, ginger and cardamom flavours,
which we have introduced to suit the Indian palate. Then we also have
the Premium tea bags and a classic range like English Breakfast, Earl
Grey and English Afternoon.
But
the Indian tea industry feels that speciality teas are not popular in
India?
I
totally disagree. It is a very niche segment but it is growing. Indians
have a lot of disposable income, and their standard of living is improving
and the economy is also booming. People are fed up with regular teas
– cosmetic packaging and freebies won’t help - consumers are continuously
looking for something different and that’s why our products are gaining
popularity, as they are uniquely designed for this market.
Considering
that Dilmah Tea is 100 per cent pure Ceylon Tea and has managed to carve
a niche for itself in the world market, what kind of market do you enjoy
in Sri Lanka?
Surprisingly
our market share in Sri Lanka is almost negligible and though we have
been in this business since the past 15 years we launched the brand
in Sri Lanka only last year. The reason being that the Sri Lankan tea
market is more-or-less a mass market and since its inception our brand
has been positioned as a premium brand meant for export and therefore
focusing on Sri Lanka does not comply with our immediate plans. However,
in 2003 as a brand promotion activity we tied up with the Sri Lankan
cricket team, as the game is popular in all the major tea drinking countries
like Australia and Russia. But this strategy has worked both ways –
in popularising Dilmah Tea in the foreign countries and also creating
awareness in Sri Lanka. But as for now increasing market share in Sri
Lanka is not a priority at all.
The
tea industry around the globe is on a declining trend. How has this
global crisis affected Sri Lanka?
I
don't think that the Sri Lankan tea industry is unaffected by the global
scenario. But as far as Dilmah Tea is concerned everything is normal
for us as there has been no bearing on exports from Sri Lanka. The crisis
may be affecting the local business but not exports and we are continuously
growing.
As
India is one of the most gravely affected victims of the slump in the
tea industry, why has Dilmah decided to enter the market?
If
we look at the Indian tea scenario we have to identify the reasons for
the declining trend, which are dwindling exports and overemphasis on
production of CTC teas when...
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