DEMAND FOR TEA IS GROWING IN THE UAE.

▪ Tea has grown 3% retail value and 1% retail volume. Perceived health and immunity benefits fuel further demand for tea.

▪ Unilever retains dominance with a 50% retail value share, with other big players active.

▪ Retail sales are predicted to record a 4% value CAGR and a 3% volume CAGR.

MOST DEMAND IN THE UAE COMES FROM SOUTH ASIAN COMMUNITIES.

▪ Indians and Pakistanis are majority of tea consumers, owing to their population among a high ratio of expats in the region, and culturally engrained tea-drinking behaviour.

▪ There’s a preference for loose black tea, and its flavour and aroma.

PROJECT CHAIWALA, A SMALL LOCALLY HOMEGROWN TEA BRAND AND STORE, AMIDST TEA GIANTS, NEEDED TO GROW BY EARNING SHARE-OF-WALLET WITH INDIAN AND PAKISTANI COMMUNITIES.

We were briefed to create an activation to create buzz and earn share-of-heart to earn share-of-wallet.

Despite their rivalry, India and Pakistan have centuries of history and culture in common. And the one thing that perfectly captures this shared culture is their love of chai.

So, we turned this cup of chai into a symbol of unity by creating a new blend of tea made by combining tea leaves from the plantations of Darjeeling, India and Mansehra, Pakistan.

We collaborated with Sanjay Sethi – renowned tea taster with over 39 years of experience – to perfectly balance the flavour characteristics of the two tea leaves with completely different soil origins, taste densities and compositional structures. After multiple rounds of trials, we finally achieved the perfect balance with Milaap (Hindi and Urdu word for ‘unity’).

It was launched to our chai-loving audience during the match – so as rivalries between fans of two nations peaked, Milaap reminded them that what unites them is stronger than what divide

Indians and Pakistanis form up to 60% of the UAE’s population – and Project Chaiwala’s core target audience.

Our strategy was to directly reach them in our stores and through social media content – with the story of Milaap.

The idea of a chai made by combining tea leaves from the two nations was sure to tug at heartstrings of our audience, and it did.

We found real stories of people from India and Pakistan, who share more in common they know, and turned them into hand-crafted illustrations made in collaboration between two artists – one from India and one from Pakistan.

Sarfraz in India and Sarfraz in Pakistan. Both barbers. And both chai-lovers.

Wassim in Mumbai. Wassim in Islamabad. Both cobblers. Both, also chai-lovers.

And so on, five unique illustrations featuring street sign painters, rickshaw pullers, and even chaiwalas (chai sellers).

Along with a specially created multi-lingual logo (Urdu, Hindi and English), each of the illustrations was featured on new packaging, ranging from delivery flasks and metallic kettles to takeaway tea tins – which was made available for sale in our stores as well

In-store collateral also featured the illustrations – from disposable cups and serving trays to on-site posters that explained the story behind each illustration.

Project Chaiwala sold more than 53,000 on the day of launch, and over 208,000 cups through online orders within the first 72 hours of launch.

With only US$ 23,000 spent, we earned a media value of over US$ 390,000, and searches for Project Chaiwala increased by 260%.