Lifestyle

Tetley Tea To BigBasket: Tata Group’s Biggest Strides Under Ratan Tata

Ratan Tata served as the Chairman of Tata Sons from 1991 till his retirement on December 28, 2012.

Delhi:
Industrialist Ratan Tata, who passed away at the age of 86, is credited with transforming the Tata Group’s portfolio during his tenure as chairman to include products from salt to software to sports cars.

Here are some of Tata Group’s biggest strides since 1991:

1991: In 2004, Tata Group’s software outsourcing arm Tata Consultancy Services went public, becoming a major player in Information Technology services. This was significant as it came at a time when many did not invest in technology stocks.
2000: Tata Tea bought a 33 percent stake in global tea brand Tetley Group for 271 million euros.
2004: Tata Motors signed an agreement to buy Daewoo Commercial Vehicle, the truck-making arm of bankrupt South Korea’s Daewoo Motors for $102 million (Rs 465 crore).
2006: Tata ventured into the Direct-to-Home (DTH) television business by launching TataSky, which is now a giant in the television network distribution space.
2007: Tata Steel acquired the UK-based Corus Group for $11.3 billion, marking one of the largest acquisitions in Indian corporate history at the time and giving the company a significant position in Europe. However, the venture did not see soaring success as the demand for European steel tumbled as compared to its Chinese competition.
2007: Tata Advanced Systems Ltd was launched to explore the aerospace and defense solutions business, marking one of the earliest entries by a private entity in the sector. The company logged a revenue of Rs 342 crore in 2024 and signed an agreement with American aerospace major Lockheed Martin to expand C-130J Super Hercules opportunities in India.
2008: Tata Motors acquired Jaguar-Land Rover (JLR) from Ford Motors for $2.5 billion.
2008: The year saw the launch of Mr Tata’s pet project – the Nano car – tagged as the cheapest in the country with a price tag of Rs 1 lakh. However, Nano was not a major success, with sales dwindling each year after 2012. Its production was halted in 2018.
2009: Tata Communications acquired a majority stake in the South African telecom company, Neotel, enhancing its presence in the African market.
2011: Tata acquired a controlling stake in the Indian hotel chain Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces, further strengthening its hospitality sector.
2012: Tata Steel acquired a 26 percent stake in the Canadian company AcelorMittal, allowing for diversification into different steel markets.
2012: Starbucks entered into a 50:50 joint venture with the Tata Group, taking 11 years to scale its operations to a revenue of over Rs 1,000 crore. The coffee retailer now aims to open 1,000 more stores in India by 2028, which amounts to one new store opening every three days.
2021: Tata Sons acquired a 64 percent stake in online grocery seller BigBasket, putting the Indian conglomerate in a direct race with e-commerce players Amazon.com Inc, Walmart, Flipkart, and Reliance.
2021: Completing a full circle since it was founded by JRD Tata in 1932, Air India came back into the Tata fold as the government looked to privatize the airline which accumulated billions of dollars in debt.