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The Tata-owned Himalayan natural mineral water will soon be sold through Starbucks outlets in the UK and US. Himalayan belongs to NourishCo Beverages, an equal joint venture company between Tata Global Beverages and Pepsico.
Having done a pilot for Himalayan at the Starbucks stores in Singapore, the brand is now poised to travel to the UK and the US, adding distribution muscle for the premium label, as well as making it a global entity.
Starbucks network The Tatas can leverage Starbucks’ network for its Himalayan brand, through Tata Global Beverages’ joint venture with Starbucks.
Harsh K Rai, CEO, NourishCo Beverages, said: “Singapore was the first market where we started distribution through the Starbucks stores. We are now evaluating London as the next market, while the US launch will happen later.’’
Starbucks has 17,000 stores across the world with the US being its largest market.
NourishCo was formed to handle sales, marketing and distribution of Himalayan natural mineral water and other water products through the PepsiCo distribution network.
“Work is divided between Pepsico, which handles brand sales, and Tata Global beverages, which is into product development,’’ added Rai.
In terms of international distribution, NourishCo is already helping the Himalayan brand reach markets in West Asia such as Dubai and Saudi Arabia. The Starbucks outlets in these markets are also expected to stock the brand.
Limited home distribution In the domestic market, however, Himalayan’s distribution has been restricted to the metro markets.
“Himalayan is sold in a few top cities. We are planning innovations like sparkling water as variants,’’ added Rai.
Pitted against brands such as Vedica (from Bisleri International), Catch, Ava and international brands such as Evian, Himalayan is a part of the natural mineral water category, which is still a niche segment in India.
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