Business
Standard February 23, 2002
The
Rs.38,000 crore Tata group has pegged the valuation
of the ‘Tata’ brand at around Rs.10,000 crore.
"Three
years ago, the brand was valued at around Rs.
4,000 crore and at present its value stands at
around Rs.10,000 crore. The earlier valuation
was done by Interbrand, an independent agency,
around three years back," said R. Gopalakrishnan,
executive director, Tata Sons.
To
leverage the value of the Tata brand, the company
has shifted the group’s business thrust from products
to a brand-driven portfolio.
"By
combining ethical values with business acumen,
globalisation with national interests and core
strengths with flexibility, the Tata group is
aiming to be the largest global brand from India,"
Gopalakrishnan said.
The
group’s brands and services stable includes Tata,
Titan, Taj Hotels, Tata Safari, Tata Indica, Tata
Tea, Tetley, Westside, Tata Nova Internet Services
and the new addition in the group, Videsh Sanchar
Nigam (VSNL). Few years ago, the group had made
an effort to bring all its products and services
under a few highly focussed brands under the Tata
logo.
Today,
the scale of the group’s operations has become
increasingly global. For instance, Tata Tea is
the first Indian multinational company in the
global tea industry and India’s largest integrated
tea company," analysts said.
The
Tata group, over the past few years, has made
a number of acquisitions and efforts for consolidation,
in the hotel business, telecommunication, infotech
and other areas. "For instance, the group
has consolidated its cellular business with that
of BPL Communications. We have recently picked
up stakes in the state-run VSNL and CMC,"
Gopalakrishnan added.
It
has also existed from some businesses such as
cement major ACC, diversified Forbes Gokak, Tata
Liebert and Goodlass Nerolac.