'Tata is the biggest Indian brand'

By agencies   |   Wednesday, 25 January 2006, 20:30 IST
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NEW DELHI: In the midst of an investment drive, Tatasons claimed that the brand value of group companies and products has shot up to $5544.54 million. Talking to mediapersons, Tatasons, Director, R Gopalakrishnan said, “Not many have undertaken the brand valuation exercise but I think we are the biggest (brand) in India. We are head and shoulders above anybody.” Listing telecommunication, insurance and retail as three new areas for substantial investment, he admitted that the combined investment of the Group companies could be over $40909.09 million. However he refused to give more details. Gopalakrishnan said the brand valuation exercise was being taken since 2001 twice a year and Tatas were way ahead of their peers in various aspects and group reflected the same Chairman Ratan Tata's New Year message to employee in which he said that "be bold... take courage... go out and do things." Latest valuation by Pathfinders based on international practices was done in 2005 on 17 group companies and their products, whose result was way ahead of brand valuation of $840.90 million done in 1997 on five group companies. He said, that during the years 2001-03, the perception about Tatas was not as good, may be on account of "performance, Tata Finance (Pandse episode), Tata Motors (which posted losses) and Indica (which was not received very well by the market). However, after a lot of soul searching the path forward was determined and each of the group companies was being encouraged to make its own plans. Besides, the group exited from lot of non-core areas including cement, cosmetics and pharma in the recent years. The Brand exercise by Tatas assumes importance in the wake of the group's increasing business-cum-acquisition spree in the international market with the Tatasons Executive saying that "we are building Brand India with Brand Tata." Substantiating, he said that South Africa was an example of this process where the South African government was sponsoring an advertisement on their national TV about Tata Steel as an Indian company that was partnering the country in its progress.