Ain’t no slumdawg—just a billionaire: Tata Motors comes to Phl

MANILA, Philippines - The first great civilization of South Asia was that of the Indus Valley, and it was located in the Northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Truth be told, the land of India has indeed become the birthplace of many great things...and in the contemporary context, it also happens to be the land to conceive a great brand which would resonate the world over—the brand of Tata.

To tell you quite frankly, when I first learned that Pilipinas Taj Autogroup, Inc. (TAJ)—the official importer and distributor of Tata vehicles in the country—was flying out a group of motoring journalists to see the Tata assembly plant, first hand, in Pune, India, I had initially underestimated the significance of flying over to ground zero to completely understand and internalize what the brand is all about.

It turns out, Tata the trademark is just legendary—not only is it one of the most respected corporate houses of India that has had presence for the last 145 years, it is also a multi-billion-dollar group of companies (approximately $96.79B in 2012-2013) that employs 540,000 people worldwide. And true enough, there was no better way to wrap our heads around it than to actually fly to India and see the real-life conditions and demands that eventually birthed the brand and its vehicles. Thus, seeing the country, its people, acknowledging its needs, and chatting with the executives and key personnel of Tata were all necessary for us to thoroughly tell the story of why it’s such a big deal that Tata is coming to town.

Contrary to what many might think, the word Tata does not really mean something in Indian (like the way tata would mean ‘father’ in Spanish). Instead, it is simply a surname, best referring to its founder Jamsetji Tata, who first set up the company inspired by the spirit of nationalism. Jamsetji pioneered several industries in India which were of national relevance during its time: steel, power, hospitality and airlines. It was only later on in 1945 that the subsidiary Tata Motors came to being; and the company was recognized for building India’s very first indigenously-developed car—the Indica. Of late, Tata Motors has also received international acclaim for building the world’s least expensive car—the Nano. Marketed as its own ‘people’s car’, the Nano was truly a charmer and instantly became a crowd sweetheart, creating a certain degree of global resonance, especially in social media.

Tata is now the fourth largest vehicle manufacturer in the world—it has secured its place as a Fortune 500 company, is listed in the New York Stock Exchange, and is now the world’s fifth largest truck manufacturer and fourth largest in bus manufacturing.

Perhaps what is most important to realize is that Tata Motors is merely a limb of a global giant—the Tata Group—that now comprises over 100 operating companies in seven main business sectors, namely: communications and information technology, engineering, materials, services, energy, consumer products and chemicals. All or part of the Tata Group is now present in every continent except Antarctica; and its group revenue has increased by nearly 11 times in the last 11 years. In 2008, they acquired iconic British car brands Jaguar and Land Rover; and interestingly, the group has gone as far as admitting that the benefit of technology-transfer within products of these shared brands has been since inevitable.

“Conceptualizing breakthroughs is our strength,” remarked RT Wasan, head of the commercial vehicle unit of Tata’s International Business department, during a meet and greet with the Philippine media. He expounded on how their products bring extra value to the table by focusing on operating economics, class-leading comfort and fuel efficiency. Furthermore, Passenger Vehicles Business Unit president Ranjit Yadav pointed out another strength. “We are fuel agnostic,” he declared, expounding on how their existing technologies not only focused on products that ran on diesel and petrol, but also on CNG (compressed natural gas).

While RT Wasan emphasized that unfortunately, “Nanos are focused primarily for the Indian market.” and will thus not make its debut on Philippine roads anytime soon, his key message was that for all the products that will be made available in the Philippine market, he would like Filipino customers to remember them for the overall ownership experience, fuel efficiency, comfort and the after-sales experience.

When asked about the possibility of bringing in hybrid or electric vehicles, Yadav was quick to answer “When the economics of these make sense, we will then start manufacturing them for your country,” further pointing out that they already have such vehicles available in Europe.

Nicky Mariano is now the General Manager of Pilipinas Taj Autogroup, Inc., and he shares the exciting parade of Tata vehicles that will soon be made available in the Philippine market: the Vista, Indica, Manza, Indigo, Xenon, Ace and Super Ace. The car brand will officially break ground in the Philippines at the upcoming MIAS (Manila International Auto Show) this April, where Taj will officially launch the initial lineup, specifically the: Manza petrol; Vista petrol; Xenon pickup 4x4 (XT) & 4x2; and present a showcase of the Ace and Super Ace multicabs. By July, the rest of the diesel models are projected to come in: the Manza, Indigo, Indica, Super Ace – all in diesel, and the Ace in petrol only.

It is worth mentioning that the Ace mini truck was a roaring success in India when it was first launched back in 2005. Prior to that time, India had no existing vehicle of that type locally available, and Tata Motors fondly refers to the birth of this model as a classic example of the company “conceiving products that bring people long-term value.”  Marketed as an intra-city light truck – or simply referred to as a multicab here in the Philippines – this vehicle has obvious local superstar potential as it is a multi-purpose vehicle model intended to replace the second-hand multicabs running the streets of the country. You may not be aware that there are currently no brand new multicabs available for purchase domestically, and that it has always been a local market of second-hand units passed down from neighboring countries such as Japan.

Lastly, I would like to share an important mental note that I took home with me – a huge part of what makes the Tata Group exceptional is its mantra: “Leadership with Trust.” Every Tata enterprise matter-of-factually operates independently – they each have their own board of directors and shareholders, to whom everyone is answerable; and do not cross-interfere with each other’s affairs. Impressively, the gargantuan Tata Group has no mandates; instead, it promotes the core value of having a voluntary sense of working together. Moreover, the Tata Group has always believed in giving back to the society they serve—and in fact, 2/3 of the equity of Tata Sons, the Tata promoter holding company, are in the hands of philanthropic trusts – all of which have already worked on huge projects such as creating national institutions for science & technology, medical research, social studies and the performing arts. Also beneficiaries to these trusts are selected NGO’s that are in the fields of education, healthcare and livelihood. Among the most prominent of its social welfare projects are the communities that they build around their industrial units. For example, the Tata Motors manufacturing and assembly plant that we visited in Pune, India had its own efficient community built around it for the employees. The premises included a local school, where employees could simply drop off their kids on their way to work, recreational facilities, eateries and housing, so that daily life is efficient, safe, and ‘a walk in the park’ for the people of Tata. Clearly, the traditional values of its founder are still strongly etched within the Tata badge, and the preservation of these ethics alongside its massive growth is probably the most remarkable.

Johnny Oommen, Head of the Passenger Vehicles Business Unit of Tata Motors’ international business division, said that we should “Learn from yesterday; Live for today; and Hope for tomorrow.” The Philippine automotive industry has had undeniably robust growth in the last year, and the introduction of a new, Indian badge to the highly-competitive pool of locally available, affordable cars is definitely a sign of exciting times to come. As far as Asian products are concerned, after finding our comfort zone in Japanese cars, the average Filipino has gone out to embrace Korean products and has likewise begun exploring those of the Chinese. Adding a world-class Indian option is like adding an enzyme to the formula. Exciting times indeed.