Tatas eye low-end salt market with Samudra brand
Economic Times — February 15, 2003

As if having the fourth most trusted brand in the country in its portfolio— Tata Salt— was not enough, Tata Chemicals (TCL) is developing a second salt brand called “Samudra”, which is under test marketing in Tamil Nadu. If all goes well, the second brand will be launched nationally.

“Besides wishing to remain present at a lower price point, we want to expand the branded salt market,” R Mukundan, chief operating officer, told ET. With new brands putting up stiff competition, the company wants to retain its leadership position, he said. However, Mr. Mukundan declined to give a time-frame for the all-India launch of Samudra, saying the company would take a decision in this regard at an appropriate time. Unlike Tata Salt, which is produced using vacuum evaporation, Samudra is a refined salt.

“We feel that there are a lot of customers who want branded salt at lower price points,” he said. Samudra has been priced at Rs. 5 for a one kilogram pack, while Tata Salt is available at Rs.7. Besides, the focus of the second brand is in regional markets.

Also, the company is looking at the export market in order to capture higher turnovers. “We are eyeing the Middle east region to export our salt,” he said. Using this slew of initiatives, the company is targeting to raise market share from 38% to 40%.

The Rs 600-crore packed branded salt market is witnessing a flat growth over a period of time, growing only at around 2% per annum. Though he conceded that the domestic soda ash producers are in a tight spot following reduction of import duty from 35% to 20%, he, however, emphasised that TCL was trying to become the lowest-cost soda ash producer in the country. Improving efficiencies was one of the key measures taken by the company to achieve this goal, he said.

The company hopes to double its exports to 70,000 tonnes in ‘02-03 as against 34,000 tonnes last fiscal.