BENGALURU: Tata Global Beverages (TGBL) advertisement and sales charges (ASP) in FY-2014 was up 13.2 per cent to Rs 1402.26 crore (18.1 per cent of Total Operating Income or Tot Inc) from Rs 1238.96 crore (16.9 per cent of Tot Inc) in FY-2013.

However, the company’s Q4-2014 ASP at Rs 347.51 crore (18.2 per cent of Tot Inc) was 13.3 per cent lower than the Rs 400.71 crore (19.3 per cent of Tot Inc) in the immediate trailing quarter and 13.6 per cent more than the Rs 305.99 crore (16.5 per cent of Tot Inc) in the year ago quarter Q4-2013.

Note: 100,00,000 = 1 crore = 100 lakh = 10 million.

TGBL PAT in FY-2014 at Rs 480.51 crore (6.2 per cent of Tot Inc) was 28.9 per cent more than the Rs 372.75 crore (5.1 per cent of Tot Inc) in FY-2013. In Q4-2014, the company’s PAT at Rs 69.30 crore (3.6 per cent of Tot Inc) was 42 per cent less than the Rs 119.55 crore (5.7 per cent of Tot Inc) in Q3-2014 and 27.6 per cent less than the Rs 95.76 crore (5.2 per cent of Tot Inc) in Q4-2013.

Over the nine quarter period starting Q4-2012 until Q4-2014, TGBL’s ASP shows an upward linear trend, both in terms of rupee value as well as in terms of percentage of Tot Inc. A similar linear trend is observed in the five year period starting FY-2010 until FY-2014. Please refer to Fig. 1 below.

The company’s Tot Inc in FY-2014 was 5.3 per cent more at Rs 7737.61 crore as compared to the Rs 7350.98 crore in FY-2013. In Q4-2014 TGBL’s Tot Inc at Rs 1909.93 crore was 8.2 per cent lower than the Rs 2080.74 crore in Q3-2014 and 3.3 per cent more than the Rs 1849.50 crore in Q4-2013. Figure 2 below indicates a linear upward trend acorss the above mentioned nine quarter period as well as the five year period.

While the linear trend across the five years from FY-2010 till FY-2014 in Fig 3 below seems to indicate that PAT seems to have flattened at about 6.2 per cent of Tot Inc, the linear trend across the nine quarters indicates an upward trend.

So of the points of note in an investors’ presentation for performance in FY-2014 and a TGBL press release are:

(1)    The company claims a 15 per cent top line growth across the portfolio with volume and value increases.

(2)     It says that TGBL has maintained market volume and value leadership at 20.1 per cent and 22.3 per cent respectively. Tata Tea Gold restaged with primary TV campaign – Tata Tea Gold Power of 49 campaign and IIFA integration.

(3)    Iconic Power of 49 ‘Jaago Re’ campaign integrating brand messaging with social cause.

(4)    Chakra Gold and Kanan Devan restage in Q4-2014.

(5)     Tetley Green tea re-launched in January with an impactful campaign with Kareena Kapoor.

(6)     Various consumer promotions were undertaken to drive sales growth. Competition has launched aggressive promotions.

The company’s press release says:

The ‘Power of 49’ campaign for Tata Tea Gold in India, which encouraged women to exercise the power of their franchise, saw strong momentum and consumer participation last quarter with a mix of elements spanning advertising, on ground activation and digital marketing. TGBL says the campaign touched over 10 crore women across India and sparked over 50 lakh interactions through its communication channels.

Tata Starbucks – a joint venture between Tata Global Beverages and Starbucks- now has 46 Starbucks stores across the cities of Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore and Pune.  The stores continue to see excellent consumer response.  Tata Water Plus- India’s first nutrient water, now has a presence in the states of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat in PET bottle as well as pouch formats. Tata Gluco Plus launched a new flavor variant- Apple Cinnamon last quarter, which was been very well received in the market. With this launch, the brand now has five delicious flavours available.

TGBL managing director and CEO Ajoy Misra said, “In a challenging market environment, we continue to invest strongly behind our brands. We have made good progress on category expansion into coffee and the single serve business in Australia with the acquisition of the MAP brand. By leveraging key consumer trends like wellness, convenience and indulgence, Tata Global Beverages continues to create many magical beverage moments for consumers across the globe. Our strategic alliances with PepsiCo and Starbucks are making good progress and seeing steady growth.”