Pukka Herbs and Teas: Perfectly Sensible Branding
A Case Study produced for the Bord Bia Brand Forum 2012
© Simon Bradley 2012. The author is grateful to Alison Wilde Marketing Director Pukka Herbs and Tim Westwell
Chief Executive Officer Pukka Herbs with whom he worked in preparing this case study for purposes of the Bord
Bia Brand Forum, 2012. This case study was developed solely as the basis for class discussion. Cases are not
intended to serve as endorsement, recordation of fact, sources of primary data, or illustrations of effective or
ineffective management. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, used in a
spreadsheet, or transmitted in any form or by any means – electronic mechanical, photocopying, recording or
otherwise – without express written permission of the author.
I
Ten Years On
F
or Sebastian Pole and Tim
Westwell, co-founders of UK
based Pukka Herbs and Teas, a £10
million business producing 100%
organic foods, herbal remedies, teas
and skincare products according to
ancient Ayurvedic tradition, 2012
marked a significant milestone,
not least for selling its one billionth
teabag in February that year.
n Pole and Westwell’s view such
prospects were serendipitous and
naturally worth pursuing, just like
its recent success in the export
business. While Pukka had always
intended on exporting, it was, in part,
a change in EU legislation restricting
the herbal remedies sector that
compelled the business to make the
leap to Scandinavian, European and
American markets. But ultimately it
proved an astute decision helping to
quadruple turnover in less than five
years to 2012 with staff numbers
doubling from 22 to 50 in the same
period.
with company values, realising the
need to bed down the culture that
had epitomised the Pukka brand. As
such, the tenth anniversary was in
the words of Alison Wilde, Director
of Marketing, “a time for reflection
on where we wish to take the Pukka
brand and how we will get there”.
Pukka Serendipity
F
ounded in 2002 in Westwell’s
spare bedroom with £2,000
each, the business partners shared
a belief in the power of the 5,000
year-old Indian tradition of Ayurvedic
ith exports accounting for medicine, which used herbs and
50% of total turnover in 2012, spices to prevent and cure illnesses.
elebrating their tenth anniversary
Westwell
was convinced that figure Ayurveda – the art of living wisely
with the re-launch of three
original tea blends, Relax, Refresh would grow to 70% in the medium – focused on individual health as a
and Revitalise , the company name term as Pukka entered the US function of harmony with nature.
Pukka roughly translated as “perfect” and increased sales penetration in
Germany- a key market for organics
or “top quality” from Hindi.
and herbal teas in particular, worth
£760 million or approximately ten
times the UK herbal tea market.
While exciting, the prospect of such
phenomenal development driven by
export growth presented Pole and
Westwell with questions about supply
chain management, branding and
human resources.
C
W
A
In addition, management was also
preparing to launch Pukka’s skincare
range, Pukka Ayurvedic at the
Natural & Organic Products Europe
trade show in London in April, the
region’s largest trade fair for the
natural and organic products sectors.
Out of the blue, the opportunity then
arose to sponsor and run the show’s
café under the Pukka brand.
s
the
company
grew
internationally
its
typical
marketing and sales structure,
which leveraged direct relationships
with distributors and retailers would
necessarily change to cater to
larger, more complex and more
competitive markets. With relatively
small budgets, management had
to continue to be innovative in their
marketing initiatives and messaging
while competing with larger ‘health’
brands such as Yogi Tea as well as
indirect competition from mainstream
business. Furthermore as the team
grew, management was coming to
terms with the need to retain talented
personnel who identified strongly
Pole, with a degree in Hindi who
had studied Ayurvedic medicine
extensively, worked on the technical
side while Westwell provided the
commercial energy to market and
sell organic ayurvedic products.
Both believed there was a gap in the
market to promote ancient wisdom
as a remedy for the symptoms
of modern life among western
consumers, fatigued and stressed
from the daily grind. In essence they
wished to bring happiness to people’s
lives through the power of herbs.
T
hey chose the name Pukka,
which was a common term used
daily in UK’s multicultural society.
Furthermore it captured the essence
of their brand in terms of the ethical
business model they aspired to but
also the features and benefits their
products offered customers in terms
of taste and lasting positive effects.
Additionally, Pukka was easy to
say, meaningful and memorable
and could even transcend language
barriers, while its business ethos
created a sort of conversation
opportunity for brand ambassadors
representing the company. The logo
and marketing assets developed for
Pukka evoked its herbal heritage
as well as health benefits such as
vitality, energy and stress free living.
Using such high-grade ingredients
including extracts from essential
oils did however present technical
challenges. This meant that a close
cooperative relationship with its teapackaging supplier in the UK was
vital to quality control and product
development. This dynamic of trust
and shared vision with all partners
in the value chain fit snugly with the
Pukka brand ethos.
stand out on the shelf and represent
the Ayurvedic ethos underpinning
Pukka. Inside the boxes, teabags
were individually packaged to seal
in flavours and aromas. Later, during
a rebranding, emphasis was placed
on its online presence as a valuable
resource for customers interested in
learning more about the Ayurvedic
tradition and related topics on
healthy living.
B
y 2012, the company employed 50
people in its Bristol headquarters,
producing 23 premium herbal tea
t epitomised a new era in food lines, 75 food supplements and
marketing because it was 11 skincare products. Committed
characterised by its sense of cause; to environmental and community
An Ethical Brand
its commitment to investing in its sustainability the company worked
supply chain and its transition closely with its suppliers, paying them
ukka was an ethical and
from health food shop curiosity to above market average prices for
sustainable brand skilled at
mainstream tea-company due to their herbs, while re-investing profits
blending ancient philosophy with
great branding at the corporate in community development schemes
modern branding. The founders had
and product levels. Due to that consolidated the commercial
identified a gap in the market, tapped
limited resources, management relationship. This ethos also paid
into emerging trends ahead of the
concentrated on tastings and word off in the longer-term, insuring
mainstream, successfully charging
of mouth, exploiting the ‘talkability’ Pukka against rising prices and by
a premium for their products. This
of the Pukka story by targeting eliminating intermediaries, improving
price premium was justified however
customers who they assumed were efficiencies in the supply chain.
due to their commitment to using
predisposed to ethical product Meanwhile, company personnel
the best quality ingredients, paying
marketing, specifically health food were hired based on talent but also
suppliers a fair price and using the
shop customers. This allowed them their affinity to the Pukka ethos while
greenest production methods they
build a relationship with the retailers management policies encouraged
could find.
and customers who identified quality of life work balance for team
strongly with many of the values the members such as cycling to work
or example, to ensure product
brand represented.
and a relaxed but productive work
efficacy, Pukka only used
atmosphere.
medicinal grade herbs in its teas
o support the premium price point
while other companies tended
and communicate the quality of n addition Pukka planted over 20
to use food grade herbs and by
ingredients, packaging and design million plants and trees annually
anecdote, the cheaper ‘fannings’, or
used warm colours and attractive as well as working on reforestation
herb dust leftovers from processing.
floral patterns to make the products projects in India through its partner
I
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Climate Care. All marketing
materials including packaging used
Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)
recyclable materials to further
reduce the company’s environmental
impact. All these activities became
part of the brand story in corporate
communications such as Press
Releases and online community
engagement, not because they gave
a good impression, but because the
founders believed it was the right
business model to support their
brand values.
consumers. But as the unregulated
herbal remedies sector boomed, EU
legislation - driven by incumbents
in the pharmaceutical medicines
market – emerged in 2008 to
restrict the health claims made by
competitor ‘natural’ products.
raw ingredients sources, contributing
the remainder. Consequently,
management decided to expand
distribution in the domestic market,
approaching supermarket chains
like Sainsbury’s and Morrison’s
while also pursuing export channels.
U
nder the new law, all herbal
remedies would have to undergo
a costly registration process
priced at £50,000 for each active
ingredient. With 30 products on
sales, several of which containing
multiple active ingredients, Pukka
faced a licensing bill running into
hundreds of thousands of pounds
sterling, at a time when total
turnover was approaching just £3
million per annum. Essentially the
legislation would cut the number of
claims a herbal or natural remedy
product could make from 2,500 to
225, effectively killing off the sector
and threatening numerous SMEs
like Pukka Herbs.
Pukka Goes International
R
eflecting on Pukka’s export drive,
Westwell commented, “ever
since we started in 2002, we have
been interested in export and saw
the potential. After going through
a rebrand in 2004 that gave us a
ut of the crisis, management more consistent, extendable brand
identified a new strategic image, we began to look overseas,
direction and divined the longer- starting with Scandinavia in 2005”.
term opportunity was in teas. In all cases, the company focused
Opportunity in Crisis
Herbal remedies accounted for a on similar channels including health
riginally selling its herbal significant 25% of total turnover but food shops, supermarkets and cafes
remedies and teas via local more so represented the heart and primarily, historically using trusted
health food shops and cafes in the soul of the business. It would be local distributors to develop the
Bristol area, Pukka received a boost difficult to simply walk away from markets. Entering export markets,
when Tesco’s supermarkets agreed herbal remedies upon which Pukka Pukka began with teas figuring that
to carry their tea ranges. Trade was founded so instead, Pole and tea was a relatively simple product
via health-food shops remained Westwell resolved to reduce their and low-risk purchase with which it
its core route to market however, number of product lines to 20, could build relationships for longerusing herbal practitioners to engage maintain their presence in the sector term business development.
with and educate distributors and through distribution partnerships
aving identified a suitable
retailers who could then promote the with established retailers like Holland
distributor who shared their
brand among interested customers. & Barrett, chemist chains and
vision
for the Pukka brand and the
With a revamped re-branding supermarkets and refocus energies
in 2004, the tea business really on boosting tea sales via extensive general vision of ethical sustainable
brands, management gave the
took off while Pole and Westwell distribution and export sales.
Swedish business full responsibility
remained dedicated to the herbal
t the time sales from teas for developing the Scandinavian
remedies side of the business,
accounted for about half of total market. With good take-up from
eager to promote the health benefits
of an Ayurvedic lifestyle to western turnover with other products like consumers and commercial queries
massage oils, derived from the same coming into head office from other
O
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A
countries, it seemed the only barrier
to international expansion was the
marketing spend required to gain
market traction.
presence as well as Pukka’s online
marketing activities centered around
the company’s website, newsletter and
community oriented communications.
By 2012, Pukka’s marketing team had
s Pukka entered new European increased to four, while export sales
markets such as Holland, Belgium had grown 85% annually since 2008
and Germany it adopted other models to account for 50% of total revenues
including the use of sales agents in a business turning over almost £10
who could represent the brand when million in total sales.
working with clients. More recently
management hired an in-house
xporting did however present
sales person to gain penetration in
product management challenges.
the massive German market. This Differing national legislation made
approach which afforded Pukka control some herbs illegal in one country while
over the brand story in new markets perfectly legal in others, such as Tulsi,
was also the method used in the US, which was banned in Denmark but
which it entered in 2010. In the case of approved in other EU markets. These
the US context, the sales agent was legislative differences combined with
vital to accessing the complicated retail packaging and language requirements
purchasing system, involving brokers, made
portfolio
and
product
distributors and buyers. Similarly the management relatively complicated as
sales agent system seemed optimal the business expanded across Europe
to dealing with the cultural nuances and beyond.
of penetrating the Japanese market.
Later as Pukka prepared to launch
its skincare range in Holland, it hired Extending the Pukka Brand
a dedicated sales person because of
the relative complexity of the skincare
hile it was evident there
sector. This person could then support
remained scope for growth
skincare development in other in the domestic and international
continental markets.
markets, management also believed
the business was ready to extend
the brand into new but related
areas. Ayurvedic skincare products
represented a credible and exciting
value added market opportunity that
leveraged existing brand associations
and raw materials.
A
refined and tweaked brand assets to
create a stand-alone product line that
could leverage the health associations
built into the Pukka name and logo over
ten years while differentiating itself
successfully from the food dimension.
E
W
U
ltimately, senior management
believed that, constrained by a
limited marketing budget, hiring the
right local person to represent the brand
aunched in September 2011, the
offered the best way to develop lasting
range featured creams, lotions,
sales relationships, albeit a slow burn serums, oils and balms using highly
approach. Direct sales in this way was concentrated forms of herbal extracts.
supported by tastings and trade show To extend the brand credibly, Pukka
L
P
ackaging for these products
followed a more clinical and
classical skincare design using
predominantly white featuring its
own abstract design not featured on
Pukka’s herbs or tea ranges. With its
Firming Face Oil winning the Natural
Health Awards 2012 product of the
year, it was hoped the high profile
marketing and launch at the London
Organic Food Fair would generate
awareness and sales locally and
internationally.
A Time For Reflection
C
onsidering the rapid growth and
some emerging international
marketing challenges, Wilde and
her marketing team had instigated
a number of auditing and research
initiatives to understand how
customers, employees and business
partners related to the Pukka brand.
Using focus groups and consumer
surveys generated insights not only
about customer’s relationship with
Pukka, but also shed light on how
people shared important information
such as health benefits of certain herbs
and the ethical nature of Pukka’s value
chain activities.
B
y understanding how powerful word
of mouth was among customers as
an influencer and conduit of product
knowledge, Pukka could overhaul
its website and communications to
focus on community engagement
and the brand. Up to that point, Wilde
felt, the website was more focused
on e-tail rather than community. With
a proprietary database of 85,000
customers to work with, the company
had developed strong expertise in
digital marketing via its email and
newsletters and in 2012 it had begun
working with a high-profile partner
organization on a project to bring
the core values to the consumer in a
more engaging way. It was hoped this
would open the community up while
making it more central and relevant
to customer’s daily lives, extending
beyond health food purchasing
decisions.
PR opportunity, and building a
contemporary brand in terms of logo,
packaging, communications and
values. In Alison Wilde’s estimation,
Pukka had grown because of the
integrity of the brand - a quality
embodied by the co-founders, Pole
and Westwell. In addition, Pukka was
unique in extending its brand credibly
across different product categories
while remaining true to the core ideals,
which it seemed few brands had
succeeded in doing.
Looking Ahead
L
ooking
ahead
management
wondered what other capabilities
and resources would they have
to acquire to support the next ten
years of growth for Pukka in the UK
and around the world. The brand
seemed poised for great success in
large markets like Germany and the
US if it could continue building its
team around its unique culture while
leveraging its community based online
marketing approach to out-maneuver
international competition in their own
domestic markets.
Key Learnings
P
in passionately. This is evident in their
business model and their products’
quality.
B
ecause of resource limitations and
possibly management attitudes,
marketing depended very much on
word of mouth. This actually became
a core asset, because herbal teas and
ayurvedic remedies were relatively
new to mainstream western markets,
giving Pukka the opportunity to “own
that space” as an expert, building trust
along the way.
B
uilding on that, Pukka has begun
to refine its online presence to
generate a community for customers
to share information and experiences.
W
hile word of mouth marketing
and person-to-person sales/
education style marketing suited
Pukka extremely well in the early
days. Further, packaging played an
important role in communicating brand
values and product benefits.
H
aving the right people in place in
export markets who share the vision
are critical but so too is good market
knowledge. Idiosyncrasies of different
markets such as legal issues, different
structures, competition intensity, even
tastes, values and behaviours can
influence the company’s marketing
strategy. Pukka’s product mix
changes from country to country for
these reasons, further complicating
marketing management.
ukka’s success was not just good
he ten-year anniversary was
timing as the trend toward health
proving to be a great opportunity for and wellness and natural medicines
generating new business opportunities went mainstream. Their integrity and
and increased awareness for the commitment to supporting their value
Pukka brand. The re-launch of its three chain as well as matching of product
ukka’s strategy to lead with
original tea blends in new packaging, benefits with modern ills played key
teas and introduce herbs and/
the introduction of Pukka Ayurvedic parts in their success.
or skincare later was instrumental in
skincare via the London Organic Food
it building market share and brand
Fair and the developments in the US
hat success took several years profile in European markets.
and German markets all indicated the
of working on the fringes of the
future was bright for Pukka. In addition market building up a loyal following.
Pukka’s management had laid strong Many Pukka customers keep a variety
foundations in the previous decade of teas in their cupboards!
by investing in its supply chain,
making corporate social responsibility
imilarly
to
Ella’s,
Pukka
a core activity rather than just a
championed a cause they believe
T
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Notes and Key Take Homes From Pukka Herbs: