Tata Tea to integrate US business

In a move towards the integration of Tatas' beverage businesses in the US, and possibly the rest of the world, Tata Tea is looking at synergising the operations of its tea and coffee segments with its latest foray into enhanced water.

The integration will not just be restricted to cross-utilisation of distribution channels, but also extend to areas like product development and co-ordination of a growth agenda for the Tata Tea bouquet.

Responding to queries in Mumbai, RK Krishna Kumar, director, Tata Sons, and vice-chairman of Tata Tea, said, "We will share the synergies for all our beverage categories, and focus on the US market as a single-minded company."

This fits into Tata Tea's strategy of "increasing the share of the bladder" as an integrated beverage company. Glaceau's recent acquisition is the third and the largest one by Tata Tea in the US in the last two years.

Last year, the company had acquired Good Earth Teas, a speciality herbal and green tea company, which was followed by the acquisition of Eight O' Clock Coffee by Tata Coffee, a Tata Tea subsidiary, in June this year.

Tetley, a Tata Tea brand, is already distributed in the US, and offers ready-to-drink teas. Analysts pointed out that using the distribution channels of individual brands would prove highly advantageous in the US market.

Kumar said various category heads of Tata Tea had met two weeks before the Glaceau deal on how to work together in the US.