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Strategies & Market Trends : India Coffee House -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Mohan Marette who wrote (10163)	12/21/1999 10:53:00 AM
From: Mohan Marette	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 12475

Titan plans to spin off Tanishq (jewellery division) tata.com Mini K Joseph (FE) Bangalore, Dec 20: Titan Industries is planning to spin off its jewellery division, Tanishq, as a separate company with a view to help it establish a better focus and reach in the domestic market. Vice-president (jewellery) Vasant Nangia said, "Turning Tanishq into a separate company is one of the options before us as part of our expansion plans. We are still debating the idea." Tanishq is reaching out to the mass market by shedding its premium high-end image to become the largest jeweller in the country by 2001. Nangia said there was a common feeling that Tanishq products were not very accessible and affordable to common buyers. As an initial step, the company has decided to train its boutique staff on how to woo and handle customers by making the brand more accessible, affordable and attractive, he said. To expand Tanishq's geographical reach, Titan would open 30 more outlets across the country during the next calendar taking the total to 60. The company has already signed 17 franchise agreements andanother eight are under negotiation. Titan would also introduce carat meters in 12 more outlets - taking it to around 30 - to help customers buy and sell right quality gold. The company recently launched an awareness and customer interaction programme with a view to collate their feedback on tastes, styles and patterns. The exercise was expected to assist the brand locate and design newer varieties of jewellery, he said. Nangia said Titan would invest over Rs 1 crore to network all Tanishq outlets - both franchise networks and own shops - to facilitate greater interaction within the brand. The networking exercise would be kicked off by mid-2000. "Our focus will be on volumes and revenues because, being a jeweller, we will not be able to make high margins. Therefore, we will be looking at a quantitative return pattern without charging an undue premium on our products," he said. In the pipeline from Tanishq are its new Valentine's Day, Summer and Wedding collections. The launches will take place betweenJanuary and April next year. Tanishq plans to double its turnover in 1999-2000 to Rs 150 crore by selling over 3 lakh pieces of jewellery and is looking at Rs 200 crore during 2000-01. During fiscal 1998-99, the brand recorded a turnover of Rs 74 crore from 1.70 lakh units against Rs 60 crore from 1.2 lakh pieces in the previous year. Over 10 per cent of the brand's revenue comes from exports. The export destinations include the US, UK, Australia, Scandinavia and the Middle East.