David: For the perfect mix

Calcutta, Dec. 5: Goodricke Group Limited may buy domestic brands to expand its packet-tea business.

The company, which is known for its Darjeeling tea, is interested in Assam brands. ?We will evaluate the domestic brands. We may look at blends too. Certain blends have become synonymous with brands,? said managing director K.S. David.

Goodricke, which is part of UK?s Camellia Plc, has emerged as one of the important players in the packet-tea segment with a 6 per cent market share. Camellia has a 74 per cent stake in Goodricke.

In the last few months the Indian tea industry has witnessed two overseas brand buy-outs ? Goodearth by Tata Tea and Typhoo by the Apeejay group.

Apart from acquiring new brands, Goodricke has also firmed up plans to re-launch all its existing brands in the next one year.

Arun Grover, vice-president (marketing), Goodricke, said, ?The relaunch and repositioning of the brands will be done in a phased manner.?

In its Darjeeling portfolio, the company has an impressive range of products indexed to markets, quality and price points. The single estate Castleton and Badamtam is for the niche gifting segments and Thurbo, Goodricke Roasted and Premium Darjeeling is targeted at the household segment.

Goodricke is also retailing its unique Darjeeling green tea for the health conscious consumer.

In the traditional variety, Goodricke CTC (leaf and dust) targets the mid-mass segments, while Zabardast (leaf and dust) caters to the economy segment. In the tea bags category, it has three kinds of blends ? Goodricke Fine Estate (targeted towards institutions), Assam premium (for people who prefer Assam tea) and Castleton Darjeeling (for customers who like Darjeeling tea). ?Goodricke is also stepping up its packet tea production in order to meet the re-launch initiative,? said David.

Goodricke has recently launched Goodricke Perfect, which is a perfect blend of 40 per cent Darjeeling and 60 per cent Assam tea. ?Consumers across the country and especially in the east usually mix Assam and Darjeeling tea to strike a balance between the strong Assam tea and the Darjeeling flavour,? David said.