Tata Consumer Products Ltd. (TCPL) will purchase Bisleri for Rs 6,000–7,000 crore.According to the contract, the current administration will last for two years.
Ramesh Chauhan (82) is selling Bisleri as he has no successor to expand the brand. His daughter, Jayanti, is not keen.
Bisleri is the only brand still maintained by the original owners. In 1993, Coca-Cola acquired Thums Up, Maaza, Citra, Gold Spot, and Limca from Chauhan when it re-entered the Indian market.
The Bisleri brand is estimated to have had a turnover of Rs 2,500 crore and a profit of Rs 220 crore in FY23.
Bisleri International owns a premium bottled water brand called Vedica and four sparkling beverages: Limonata, Fonzo, and Bisleri Soda.
Earlier this year, Bisleri Marketing Director Anjana Ghosh decided to leave after 16 years with the company.
In 2018, the brand started fighting counterfeiting in the bottled water category with its campaign, “Samajhdaar Jaante Hain Har Paani Ki Bottle Bisleri Nahin.”It also introduced labeling in regional languages to help consumers identify the brand and its products.
Tata Consumer Products is an active player in packaged water (Himalaya, Tata Copper Plus Water). Its liquid beverage portfolio also includes Tata Gluco, an energy drink, and Tata Fruski, a soft drink, reflecting the influence of drinks sold on the streets of India.
While selling Bisleri is a “painful” decision, the Tata Group is “growing and running it even better,” Chauhan told ET.
“I like Tata’s culture of values and honesty, and that’s why I decided despite the aggressiveness of other interested buyers,” he added.
Chauhan has no minority stake in the company. He would focus on and invest in environmental and charitable causes such as water harvesting and plastic recycling.
“Although I don’t know what I will do with it (the money), let me explain it.” It wasn’t just the value I got from it; I wanted more to find a home that would dress and take care of it as I do. “It is a company that I built with passion and that is now run by equally passionate employees,” Chauhan added.
In 1965, Bisleri was founded in Mumbai as an Italian brand. The Chauhans bought the company in 1969. Today, it has more than 122 operational factories and 500 dealers in India and its neighboring countries.
Source: ET
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