Gopalakrishnan: Upbeat

New Delhi, Jan. 24: The Tata group, which claims to have the highest brand valuation in the country, plans to focus more on the telecommunications, insurance and retail segments. It has also lined up an investment plan of Rs 1,80,000 crore to be spread over the next eight to 10 years.

A substantial investment would go into the three sunrise sectors, Tata Sons director R. Gopalakrishnan said. He, however, refused to divulge any details.

Gopalakrishnan said the combined valuation of all the group companies has been pegged at Rs 24,396 crore ? the highest in the country among all business conglomerates.

?Not many have undertaken the brand valuation exercise, but I think we are the biggest brand in India. We are head and shoulders above others,? said Gopalakrishnan.

Of the total valuation, Rs 11,629 crore was accounted for by the name Tata itself, which is borne by seven companies in the group. The remaining Rs 12,767 crore was for the Tata sub-brands.

The four independent brands ? Titan, Voltas, Taitlen and Trent ? were valued at Rs 1,500 crore, despite not having the Tata name associated with them.

He said the perception of the group has changed manifold since the image took a beating in the aftermath of the Tata Finance episode where a top executive was charged of dishonest practice.

Besides, between 2001 and 2003, Indica ? the indigenously developed small car of Tata Motors ? failed to live up to market expectations and the lukewarm reception also had an indirect bearing on the group?s image.

The group undertakes the brand valuation exercise twice a year since 2001. Gopalakrishnan said the group has successfully shrugged off its image of ?old people?. Acknowledging the perception that the Tatas had an image problem of not being able to relate to the younger generation, he said all group companies have undertaken an exercise to reverse the trend.

This is epitomised in Ratan Tata?s New Year message where he has asked them to ?be bold, take courage, go out and do things?.

Gopalakrishnan said extensive brainstorming has gone behind image management exercise and each of the group companies was being encouraged to make its own plans. This company will also exit from non-core areas such as cement, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals.

The organisational and image restructuring initiative has also yielded rich dividends in terms of reducing overall costs in the company. ?Costs were reduced by as much as Rs 4,000-Rs 5,000 crore in the last five years. Tata Steel and Tata Motors cut down expenses by up to Rs 3,000 crore,? he said.

On an average turnover of Rs 30,000 crore and profit of Rs 7,000 crore, cost-savings had a major positive impact, he added.