Hot tea in cold weather

Where are the days of COVID, when tea sales were booming? The market is currently in decline, and Balázs Rádi, CEO of Herbária Zrt. analyses the background of this negative trend:

Balázs Rádi
CEO
Herbária

“The two main reasons for the sales drop are that from a tea sales perspective the weather became even worse than in the previous year, as there are fewer cool, rainy periods, and that the general plunge in the retail sector in terms of consumer spending is unfortunately also affecting the tea market”.

Regrettably, profitability is further hampered by rising costs, growing wages, raw materials and packaging prices. In the classic tea category private labels are gaining ground.

Feedback from the specialist shop network

Herbária is present in both the classic and the herbal segments – brand loyalty among herbal tea consumers is a strong base on which the company can build. In the herbal tea segment functionality is clearly the key. Herbária is in the lucky situation of receiving constant feedback on customer expectations from the Herbária franchise network of specialist shops. This makes it easier to define product innovation directions. The company is working on a new herbal tea range in premium packaging, with which they would like to appeal to customers not only with the design but also with the taste.

Premium brand at a more affordable price

As the weather turns cooler, the season for hot, healing teas begins. More and more people are now aware of the health benefits of black and green teas due to their high antioxidant content and many are also drinking tea made from real tea leaves as a preventative measure.

Zsófia Somlai
brand manager
G.I.F.T.

“Dilmah tea offers a wide range of hand-picked, fresh tea leaves, with delicious black, green and fruity flavours. Consumers are loyal to the brand, as anyone who tries Dilmah products will taste the true taste of quality fresh tea”, says Zsófia Somlai, brand manager of G.I.F.T. Kft.

The price difference between premium Dilmah teas and the more mediocre products has decreased in recent years, so today it is an easier buying decision to choose Dilmah quality for a slightly higher price than 2-3 years ago. In 2024 the packaging and recipe of Dilmah’s fruit-flavoured black teas have also been revamped.

Activities based on market research

The Twinings brand has managed to expand its distribution channels: Twinings products were already available in discount supermarkets last year.

Anett Monori
brand manager
Maresi Foodbroker

“The in/out activity was so successful that by the next day there were almost no standing in-store displays in any of the discount stores, as the supplied volume was sold out within 24 hours”,

says Anett Monori, brand manager of Maresi Foodbroker Kft. In the summer Twinings did some market research for the tea category in a few selected countries, including Hungary. In addition to own products, they also monitored the reactions to the products of competitors, which provided the company with very interesting and important information for future activities. //