Date: DEC 10, 2018

THE ANALYSIS OF ALPHA TEA COMPANY

Group Members
ANUS AHMED SIDDIQUI (32302)
SAAD ALI KHAN (39483)
ALINA GUL (32260)
KIRAN (32217
PIR HASHIR (26014)
USMAN KHAN
KHIZER KHAN
WALIA ASHRAF (32335)

Submitted To Sir Ather Qadeer

Acknowledgements
The project proves to be a very good learning experience. We deal with intense pressure
to process the knowledge and information as per course need and requirement. We own great
deal of gratitude to the people who helped us in every possible manner in the compilation of this
report.

Yes, especially thanks to Sir Ather Qadeer who gave us this golden opportunity to
learn new things about corporate life, and thank you for the valuable guidance, advice, and
knowledge that sir gave us from their busy schedule.
We would also want to thanks Mr.Saleem Mushtaq (General Manager of Alpha Tea) who
gave us his interview and share his knowledge and experience with us which help us a lot in
making of this report.

ANUS AHMED SIDDIQUI (32302)

SAAD ALI KHAN (39483)
ALINA GUL (32260)
KIRAN (32217
PIR HASHIR (26014)
USMAN KHAN
KHIZER KHAN
WALIA ASHRAF (32335)
Table of Content
Executive Summary ........................................................................................................................ 1

Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 2

Brief History ................................................................................................................................... 2

Vision .............................................................................................................................................. 2

Mission............................................................................................................................................ 3

Evolution ......................................................................................................................................... 3

Development ................................................................................................................................... 3

Products........................................................................................................................................... 4

1. Alpha Chai - Super Family Mixture .................................................................................... 5

2. Zaikedar - Strong Taste Leaf ............................................................................................... 5

3. Bemisal Super Dust.............................................................................................................. 5

4. Kanwal Strong Dust ............................................................................................................. 5

5. MarviChoora Chai ............................................................................................................... 5

6. Super Danedar Leaf Tea ...................................................................................................... 6

7. Gul-e-Sabz (Green Tea) ....................................................................................................... 6

8. Gulrang Strong Dust Tea ..................................................................................................... 6

9. Special Cup Tea (Tea bag) ................................................................................................... 6

10. Sachet Product: ................................................................................................................. 7

Current Market Position.................................................................................................................. 8

International Concern...................................................................................................................... 9

Global Perspective .......................................................................................................................... 9

Pakistan Operations ........................................................................................................................ 9

Layers of Hierarchy ...................................................................................................................... 10

Recruitment process .................................................................................................................. 11

 Recruitment policy .................................................................................................................... 11

Organizational Life Cycle Stage and Justification........................................................................ 11

Miles and Snow Typology ............................................................................................................ 11

Environmental Uncertainty: .......................................................................................................... 13

Competitor and New Entrants. .................................................................................................. 13

Lack of supply. .......................................................................................................................... 13

Government Policies. ................................................................................................................ 13

Labor Union. ............................................................................................................................. 13

Competitive Advantage: ............................................................................................................... 14

Dominating in rural areas. ......................................................................................................... 14

Oldest Company. ....................................................................................................................... 14

Loyal Customers. ...................................................................................................................... 14

Problems ....................................................................................................................................... 15

Recommendation .......................................................................................................................... 16

Conclusion .................................................................................................................................... 18

References ..................................................................................................................................... 19
THE ANALYSIS OF ALPHA TEA COMPANY

Executive Summary
We have decided to make the report on Alpha Tea. We chose Alpha Tea because we
have a good relation with the company’s General Manager Mr. Saleem Mushtaq. We conducted
an informal interview with him because of the shortage and availability of time. He give us a lot
of information about his company internal affairs and working environment.
First of all we wrote a brief history and introduction about the company. It is one of the
oldest tea industry in Karachi, Pakistan. They have been in tea industry since 1949 with the
international brand called Floral International. They import tea from different parts of Africa.
Their mission is to become the largest tea company in Pakistan and they also want to grab
international market and sustain themselves there. Their ultimate vision is to satisfy their
customers with best quality in reasonable price. If we talk about their development they haven’t
achieve any milestone yet even they are the oldest but still they are very lacking behind
comparing with other brands because they don’t commercialize brand much and they don’t give
any attentions towards marketing and advertisement which is the their biggest weakness and
ultimately will become thread for them in future.
If we talk about their product range so there are 10 products which are being offered by
them (products details and information are mention below).

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Introduction
Lipton was launched in Pakistan in 1948 and today 100 billion drinks of Lipton are
consumed each year making Lipton a household name. Our vast experience in the world of
tea blending in Pakistan and around the world means only two things; quality and great
taste.

Lipton believes that in this world of indifference pausing and taking time out to engage
with others feels good and in doing so, it helps us feel good and bring out the best in
ourselves. Refresh, reset, rethink and re-engage with others. BE MORE TEA.

Lipton’s revitalizing taste is available in Yellow Label leaf tea, Mega Daane, Black Teabags
and Green Teabags (Lemon, Mint, Jasmine, Plain).

Brief History
Unilever is one of the worlds greatest consumer goods company and Lipton yellowlabel
is a product of Unilever

Lipton Tea is a British tea company, foundedand named after its original owner,
SirThomas Johnson Lipton Lipton tea began in1870 and is currenly one of the
biggest teadistributors in the world,I n 1890, Sir Thomas set out to buy his first tea plantations.
He purchased 5,500 acres of the Dambatenne Tea Plantation in Ceylon’s high country then re-organized
the plantations, making production more efficient.

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Mission

MISSION STATEMENT Purpose of Lipton is to meets every day needs of everywhere to

anticipate the aspiration of our consumers and customers to respond creatively and
competitively with products which raise the quality of life

Vision

Our vision is to grow our business, while decoupling our environmental footprint from our
growth and increasing our positive social impact

Evolution

Lipton tea can be found in almost any grocery store, and the brand is just about
synonymous with industrial Big Tea. So tea enthusiasts who sniff at the familiar square
bags might be surprised that once upon a time, Lipton was known as the "farm to table" of
the tea world. In fact, it was sold with the catchy slogan "direct from tea garden to tea
pot."

Development
"At a time when his dynamic sales and advertising methods, especially in the U.K. and America,
were building up a turnover of millions of pounds of tea per year," D.M. Forrest noted in his
authoritative A Hundred Years of Ceylon Tea: 1867-1967, "his 3,000 acres or so could not have
supplied a tenth of his needs and he was soon buying and blending where and how he could, like
all his major competitors."
But the "garden to teapot" public perception was already well-established: Lipton equaled tea,
and Ceylon was its home.

Lipton "gave, or rather did not discourage, the impression that all his teas came from his own
gardens," wrote Alec Waugh in Lipton: A Centennial Biography. But if that were true, "he would
have needed to own half the island."
Lipton was a showman, and his commercial and marketing savvy drove his success. A master of
the memorable stunt, in his early years, he had pigs paraded through the streets of Glasgow to his

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THE ANALYSIS OF ALPHA TEA COMPANY

shop to underscore the farm freshness of his bacon. He heralded the first arrival of Ceylon tea
with a brass band and bagpipe parade and for a time, printed Lipton Currency Notes.

Lipton is now a brand belonging to the colossal British-Dutch multinational Unilever. Its tea is
sold in more than 150 countries. While the company does buy tea from Sri Lanka, it no longer
owns any of its own gardens on the island. These were sold off — but not until after Lipton's
death

Products

The current range of products that Alpha tea provides are:

BLACK TEA

Made with the top, sun-ripened tea leaves, freshly picked for their brightening, rich and aromatic flavour. A brilliant
new blend with Natural tea essence. To bring you a new superior taste. A sunny sip to awaken you to the wonders
that the world has to offer.

GREEN TEA

Lipton Green Tea offers you a Zero Calorie Beverage* which Hydrates and cleanses your body from within giving
you healthier skin. With Lipton Green tea always feel Light & Active through-out the day especially after heavy
meals. Made with sunshine and rain, drink in the positivity of an enlivening Lipton Green Tea and be awake to what
really matters.

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THE ANALYSIS OF ALPHA TEA COMPANY

MEGA DAANE

Lipton Yellow Label Mega Daane is a premium blend of granular BPI Tea especially picked to match
LYL’s top quality standards. Now enjoy the rich taste & distinctive aroma of LYL in a new Danedar blend
as every granule comes together to give you a great tasting cup of tea.

JASMEEN GREEN TEA

LIPTON TEA BAGS

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THE ANALYSIS OF ALPHA TEA COMPANY

Berry Hibiscus

Lipton Berry Hibiscus Herbal Tea is the delicious delight of Berries meeting Hibiscus that can be
enjoyed anytime - day or night. This herbal tea delivers the sweet and tangy taste of Berries and
Hibiscus that is naturally caffeine free. Lipton combines luscious flavors with our best herbal tea blends
to awaken the sense.

Matches Green Tea and Mint

Legend has it that Buddhist monks used Matcha to enhance their focus
for long hours of meditation, and to be alert and present in the moment. Today's Matcha leaf
comes from shade grown green tea whose chlorophyll-rich leaves are finely ground into a
brilliant green powder

Classic K-Cup Pack

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THE ANALYSIS OF ALPHA TEA COMPANY

Lipton Iced Tea Unsweetened Tea K-Cups deliver a rich, aromatic cup of unsweetened iced black
tea you can enjoy anytime. This iced black tea is classic and America’s best iced tea with Lipton
tea leaves picked at the peak of flavor and brewed over ice. taste the best tea.

Green Iced Tea Citrus

lipton Green Tea with Citrus is the Lipton Iced Tea you want to have in the fridge when you're
seeking instant refreshment. Our green tea is full of clean taste, vitality, and great flavor.Sachet
Product:

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THE ANALYSIS OF ALPHA TEA COMPANY

Current Market Position

The per capita consumption of tea in Pakistan is one of the highest in the world with
about one kilogram and is continuously increasing
Market Share
due to increase in demand as tea is used as common
beverage in Pakistan and all around the world. Also
Pakistan is ranked as the third largest importer of tea
in the world.

There are many competitors of tea in the

Pakistan. Unilever (Lipton) has the most share in the
market of tea which is approximately 54%. Tapal has
28%. Tetley has approximately 4%. Whereas Alpha
Unilever Tapal tea along with other tea companies such as Kohinoor
Tetley Other brands tea company and Vital Tea Company altogether
comprise of approximately 16% of market share in Pakistan.

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THE ANALYSIS OF ALPHA TEA COMPANY

International Concern
They focus internationally at very minor level because they are facing so many barriers
like different competitors, lack of commercialization and low brand image.

They import tea from different countries which are better and fresh in quality. But other
brands are investing huge cost on marketing and advertising which is the biggest weakness of
Alpha Tea (Locally as well as internationally).

Global Perspective
Their Global perspective is very good they import different machines which are
important to make tea and its packaging process. Globally they are updated for their product
production process but very behind when it comes to target more customer and grab the market
share. They have a lot of knowledge in tea industry because they are very old than their
competitors but they are still following traditional and conservative approaches.

Pakistan Operations
Consumer perceived that if product is not full filling their need so they switch to the other
brand. Alpha make sure not to leave such criticism and they are more focusing on their quality of
a product so the existing consumers of Alpha tea from Pakistan could not go anywhere else.
Their sales are stable because their existing customers are loyal to them but it is not guarantee
that they will buy product in future also because today it is the era of competition and they are
lacking in commercialization.

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THE ANALYSIS OF ALPHA TEA COMPANY

Layers of Hierarchy

Top Management

Middle Management

Lower Management
Their company can be defined as a centralized where all decisions and processes are
handled strictly at the top or the executive level. Centralized organizational structures rely on one
individual to make decisions and provide direction for the company.

Alpha tea is totally centralized organization during the interview, General Manager told
us that even every day decisions and operations are generally decided upon by upper level they
can’t make any single decision whom to hire or whom to fire. In this organization managers and
employee does not have a single authority to make decisions. During hiring and recruitment
process top level management does not give any place to middle and lower management to make
decisions therefore they are still very behind in tea industry. They are also very behind as
compare to their competitor because they don’t give attention to marketing. They should give
complete authority to sales and marketing department because empowerment is necessary if you
want to see yourself on the top of the table because if you don’t give any freedom to your
employees they become demotivated and this is not good for your organization.

They have different departments like labour department, selling department, research
department. The top management deals in HR department regarding hiring, firing and selection
CVs are shortlisted by HR manager and final selection is done by CEO as well as financial
department. All the important decisions are taken by top management strictly.

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THE ANALYSIS OF ALPHA TEA COMPANY

Recruitment process
They give ads through Dawn newspaper and website job.pk and rozze.pk. They don't hire
any labour without any reference and they used both sources for hiring the employee included as
internet and print media such as newspaper.

Recruitment policy
If the vacancy is available they first prefer their own staff to get hired or promoted
because they have internal experience plus knowledge and culture about their organization in any
department than they make an ad according to the department’s requirement such as skills and
experience but based on the reference.

Organizational Life Cycle Stage and Justification

As they have already their formalized their rules, regulations, procedures and their
employee’s involvement, They are not at declining stage neither in maturity phrase as they are
not focusing more on marketing. They are somewhere between these two stages because they are
very much assure about their product and their consumer. Their consumer still use their product
because they are loyal towards it. They don’t need to give any reminder to their existing
consumers. But new entrants are coming in tea industry and slowly & gradually they are
grabbing the market share which is the alarming condition to them because if they do not do
anything they will reach to their declining stage where they will not only lose their existing
customer but they will be vanish from the market.

Miles and Snow Typology

Up till now we have observed that they are Defenders. The reasons are following.

 They are centralized company. Every decisions are taken by top management.
 Neither they are bringing any innovation nor seeking to grow. They are holding their
current domain and do want to expand it because of the conservative approach.
 They are very much concern to the good taste and quality of the product for their existing
customer.
 They are good in internal efficiency in their organization because they have fully
automatic machines in the production and packaging department.

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THE ANALYSIS OF ALPHA TEA COMPANY

 They are currently in the maturity stage or we can say that they are stable but it is
predicted that they will decline in future because of lack of commercialization and
strategic planning.
 They don’t give empowerment to their employee. They have a very close supervision.
 They are very much conservative in having some other people’s idea on board, they resist
to do marketing.

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THE ANALYSIS OF ALPHA TEA COMPANY

Environmental Uncertainty:
Alpha tea is considered as a smallest company of tea with less number of employees.
There are some environment uncertainty which are following.

Competitor and New Entrants.

There are number of other company who are entering in the tea industry field and try to
grabbing the market. Alpha tea has also a huge competitors like Tapal, Lipton, and Brooke Bond
to become the market leader they have to make their product unique which should be
differentiating from other competitor’s product. They should give some special discounts on
their product so that customer can switch there selves from other brands to their brand. They
have to make their distribution channel more efficient and effective as it is considered as a
backbone of a company the better their distribution system the better they can gain market share.

Lack of supply.
As they mentioned us that they import tea from the international market and they have to
depend them in order to produce the final good which is the high uncertainty for them because
international market keep fluctuating when it comes to tea industry.

Government Policies.
Government policies keep change when there is any shortage and surplus of the tea in the
market so company also have to account for this uncertainty before and after the production of
tea.

Labor Union.
Labour union is the major problem in every company so they have to also prepare for it.
They have to maintain the strict policies as well as long term strategic planning to cope up with
this uncertainty.

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THE ANALYSIS OF ALPHA TEA COMPANY

Competitive Advantage:
Their competitive advantage are following.

Dominating in rural areas.

Alpha Tea has an excellent competitive over other brands that their product are being
used in rural areas of Pakistan so there is not much competition over there. In rural areas people
are not brand conscious like in urban areas. In rural areas people cannot afford branded product
because of less income and they also have simple lifestyle so they use those product which are
less cheap than other brands for that those brands are more successful in these areas if there all
specifications meet with the mind of people.

As people cannot afford high price tea because of high inflation so Alpha tea is
considered as an economy price tea. As they are the only one who is supplying their product in a
rural area so large number of people are giving them a good amount of revenue.

Oldest Company.
They have been in the tea industry field since 1949 and they have a strong brand image in
the market because they are conducting their operation till now without commercialization. So
we think that it is there competitive advantage.

Loyal Customers.
Instead of lack of commercialization, they have loyal customers who use their products
and not shifting to the other brand. The reason is that they are highly focus to the quality and
taste of the product which give them a competitive advantage.

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THE ANALYSIS OF ALPHA TEA COMPANY

Problems
After a discussion we have found number of grey areas in their company which is
currently their weaknesses and in future it might become threat for them.

1. Alpha Tea Company has been working in the tea industry since 1949 but still they could
not grab much customers share as they could since 1949.
2. They are not doing any marketing activity and they don’t believe in it because according
to them marketing is not necessary because customers want that tea which should be
good in the quality and less in price.
3. It is the centralized company and every decision are made by top management.
4. Middle managers don’t have much authority as they should have in their position, so they
can’t participate in the decision making and other matters related to the company affairs.
5. Because of their lack of attention and marketing there are new entrants who has already
entered in the market with persuasive advertisement and marketing strategies.
6. Because of their conservative approach they don’t want to bring the change in their
company because they believe that if they bring change then they will have to face the
problems and issues which will come along with change.
7. Their prices of the products are same as the Lipton product prices which is the alarming
situation for them because Lipton Company is not only grabbing the market but also
trying to decrease their prices to target more customers towards their brand.
8. They don’t give value to their labour and because of this their employee turnover ratio is
high and their labour switch to the competitor companies which is alarming situation for
them because labours have the insight and knowledge about the company’s machine,
production, quality and many things which might be leaked and discovered by their
competitor.
9. They don’t have strategic planning about their company future growth. They believe that
if their company is working today it will work tomorrow as well.
10. They also export their product in different countries but their export is decreasing day by
day because their competitor has grabbed the international market as well.

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Recommendation
After found the problems/flaws in their company we would like to highlight the
recommendation of the problems. These recommendation are suggested by us and we do not
give guarantee that these are accurate but we hope that it will solve the problems.

1. They have 69 years of experience in the tea industry which is the competitive advantage
for them because they are serving their customers since 1949 so they should use that
experience and try to grab high market share by doing survey, marketing, rebranding and
try to adapt change as per market requirement.
2. Marketing plays vital role in the success of any organization and they should realize it
that they are wrong and give the importance of marketing in their company by making
the advertisement and starting the marketing campaign which is highly necessary for
them in the stage where they are moving to the decline point.
3. They should give the value to their employee and try to listen the views of their employee
that how they think about the company and allow them to give their views in decision
making.
4. Middle managers are those who has the connection to the top management as well as low
management so their views, knowledge and experience are important to include it in the
decision making and other matters related to the company affairs.
5. Competition is everywhere and in every field so we can’t refuse it but we can deal with it
by making strategic planning. They should not only focus to their existing customers only
but try to grab the more customer’s share which is only possible by doing marketing and
advertisement.
6. Change is really important in every field and if any company does not adapt the change
so they have to face the consequences after it. Alpha tea should realize the importance of
change and try to adapt it before the further loss. They will have to rebrand themselves
and try to come up with better innovative ideas for the growth.
7. Lipton and Tapal are the leading companies in the tea industry and Alpha company is the
small company in front of them but still their quality has the potential to compete with
them which is only and only possible by doing more survey and research and try to make
their tea more better in taste and quality as per customer need. They also need to focus in

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their other department like production, marketing and finance to make their product more
popular and cheaper among the customer to target many customer as they can.
8. They have to give the value to their employee and labour and offer them compensation
benefit in order to sustain them in the company. They will also need to train them in order
to increase the production and productivity of their employee which is the beneficial for
the company in the long run.
9. They will have to make the strategic planning in order to survive in the market and try to
rebrand themselves and bring the innovation ideas in order to have the competitive
advance in the tea industry.
10. First it is highly important for them to sustain themselves in the local market and then
they should focus to the global level because their core domain is Pakistan and their
identity is going to declining stage day after day. So their first priority should be local
market then international market.

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Conclusion
We have found some problems and we also highlighted some recommendation regarding
these problems which we think that these recommendation might help them in order to survive in
the tea industry. They have been in this field since 1949 but they did not change them at all and
still they are following conservative and traditional approaches which need to be change. The
major issues which we found are fear to bring change, centralized management, traditional style
of management, no innovation, lack of marketing, lack of R&D, high employee turnover rate,
lack of strategic planning, etc. But the recommendation which we gave are bring innovation,
embrace change, start marketing campaign, change the traditional management, invest in R&D,
improve quality, improve taste, empower employees, rebranding alpha etc.

We hope if they follow our recommendation so they will not only improve themselves but also
they will able to target more market share which will give them competitive advantage in the tea
industry.

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References
http://www.alphatea.com/website/index.html

http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/management/Mar-No/Miles-and-Snow-Typology.html

http://www.linkageinc.com/workshops/?wid=Organization-Analysis-and-Design

http://www.strategicadvantages.net/HCA-OAD.htm

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