This billion-dollar global conglomerate has been a top player in the business world for decades and is a part of our everyday lives more closely than we realise. It plays a significant part in our consumption patterns and the brands we choose. The 155-year-old Tata Group is a name, a legacy, that is a leading Indian multinational conglomerate catering to many sectors and businesses.
Operating in more than 100 countries, the Tata group has about 30 companies under its umbrella, and the main investment holding firm and sponsor of Tata Enterprises is Tata Sons. Philanthropic trusts that assist the arts, culture, livelihood creation, and the fields of education and health hold 66% of Tata Sons’ equity share capital, as per companies official reports. The combined revenue of all Tata firms in 2022–2023 was $150 billion (Rs 12 trillion). Over a million people are employed by these businesses as a whole. The board of directors of each Tata firm serves as the organisation’s governing body and acts as its supervisory body. As of July 31, 2023, there were 29 publicly traded Tata companies with a total market value of $300 billion (Rs 24 trillion), the official website of Tata Group asserts.
Here’s a list of brands that you might come across daily but didn’t know are a part of Tata’s trillion-dollar empire:
Westside
Littlewoods International (India) Private Limited (LIIPL), a clothing retail company, was acquired by Tata’s 1952-founded cosmetics company, Lakmé, from Littlewoods International Limited, a UK company, in 1998. Later, the subsidiaries Lakmé Exports Limited and LIIPL were combined, and the resulting company was known as Trent Limited. The same year, Tata also sold HUL their shares in Lakmé. Simply put, Trent Limited, an Indian retail company with a variety of brands that is owned by the Tata Group, operates its flagship retail location, now called Westside. As per reports, it is one of the largest and fastest-growing retail chains in the country.
Starbucks
A favourite among every Gen-Z and a brand that is known all over the world, for its coffee, Starbucks is a Tata product. If you think coffee, you think Starbucks. As a joint venture between Tata Consumer Products Ltd. and Starbucks Coffee Company, Starbucks, the most well-known coffee brand in the world, debuted in India in October 2012. It is referred to as “Tata Starbucks” in India.
Big Basket
Tata Group currently owns BigBasket, an online supermarket with its headquarters in Bangalore, India. It was launched in 2011 and was India’s first online grocer. The Supermarket Grocery Supplies Pvt. Ltd. is the name of the company, which is registered. The Tata Group purchased Big Basket in 2021 by having a subsidiary buy a 64% ownership in the business, which it had previously bought as a software startup.
ZARA
Yes! ZARA! Fashion is synonymous with this brand, a favourite of every fashion enthusiast all around the globe. From red carpets to everyday office wear, this brand has carved a niche for itself. But did you know it is a part of the Tata Group?
One of the biggest global fashion brands, Zara, is a part of one of the biggest distribution corporations in the world, Inditex. The Spanish fashion company Inditex and Tata’s Trent have a joint venture called Inditex Trent, which operates 21 Zara stores in India.
ZUDIO
Trendy and affordable fashion pieces are attracting more and more youngsters to choose ZUDIO, a brand under Trent Limited, a division of the Tata Group, one of the biggest corporations in India, is the owner of this retail clothing line.
Fastrack
Through 158 unique Fastrack locations in more than 79 cities, authorised multi-brand outlets, and online, Fastrack retails across the country. The company is now officially recognised as the most popular youth fashion brand in the nation. Launched by the Titan Company, a partnership between the Tata Group and the Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation (TIDCO), as a sub-brand of Titan Watches, Fastrack is now a leading choice among the youth!
cult.fit
Cult makes exercising enjoyable and simple with top-notch trainers and group exercise classes ranging from yoga to boxing. With the use of do-it-yourself (DIY) workout DVDs, their exercises may be performed both at a cult centre and at home, thus providing top-notch experience by utilising cutting-edge technologies. Tata backed up Cult.fit and invested in the fitness startup and owns a minor stake.
Jaguar
Tata Motors, an Indian firm, currently owns Jaguar, which was originally a British business. In 2008, Tata Motors acquired Jaguar and Land Rover from Ford, establishing Jaguar Land Rover. Although ownership of the business has changed multiple times over the years, Jaguar’s headquarters are still in Coventry, England, and the majority of its vehicles are still made there.
Taj Hotels
The Indian Hotels Company Limited, with its main office in Mumbai, India, is the parent company of the chain of opulent hotels known as Taj Hotels. The company, a member of the Tata Group, was founded by Jamsetji Tata in 1902.