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Table of Contents
1. BRAND HISTORY ...................................................................................................................... 4
2. TARGET MARKET AND MARKET SHARE ................................................................................... 5
3. BRAND INVENTORY .................................................................................................................. 6
3.1. Brand Awareness/Salience ............................................................................................... 6
3.2. Brand performance ........................................................................................................... 6
3.3. Brand feelings, judgements and resonance ...................................................................... 7
3.4. Brand Elements ................................................................................................................ 9
3.5. Brand Positioning ............................................................................................................. 9
3.5.1. Points of Parity vs Points of Differences .................................................................... 10
3.5.2. Lipton’s Brand Mantra ............................................................................................... 11
4. BRAND EXPLORATORY ........................................................................................................... 12
4.1. Qualitative Analysis ....................................................................................................... 12
4.1.1. Focus Group Insights ................................................................................................. 12
4.1.2. Sentiments in the Survey ............................................................................................. 13
4.2. Quantitative Analysis ..................................................................................................... 14
4.2.1. Demographics of the Data .......................................................................................... 14
4.2.2. Brand Awareness ........................................................................................................ 16
4.2.3. Brand Resonance ........................................................................................................ 21
4.2.4. Brand Judgements ...................................................................................................... 23
4.2.5. Brand Performance .................................................................................................... 27
4.2.6. Brand Imagery ............................................................................................................ 29
4.2.7. Brand Feeling ............................................................................................................. 31
4.2.8. Competitor Analysis ................................................................................................... 33
5. RECOMMENDATIONS .............................................................................................................. 34
5.1. Social Media................................................................................................................... 34
5.2. TVC. ............................................................................................................................... 35
5.3. CSR and Health .............................................................................................................. 36
5.4. Market Share .................................................................................................................. 38
APPENDIX ...................................................................................................................................... 40
BIBLIOGRAPHY .............................................................................................................................. 49
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Table of contents

1. Brand History
2. Target Market and Market Share
3. Brand Inventory
3.1. Brand Awareness/Salience
3.2. Brand Performance
3.3. Brand Feelings, Judgements and Resonance
3.4. Brand Elements
3.5. Brand Positioning
3.5.1. Points of Parity and Points of Difference
3.5.2. Brand Mantra
4. Brand Exploratory
4.1. Qualitative Analysis
4.1.1. Focus Group Insights
4.1.2. Sentiments in the survey
4.2. Quantitative Analysis
4.2.1. Demographics of the data
4.2.2. Brand Awareness
4.2.3. Brand Resonance
4.2.4. Brand Judgements
4.2.5. Brand Performance
4.2.6. Brand Imagery
4.2.7. Brand Feelings
4.2.8. Competitor Analysis
5. Recommendations
5.1. Social Media
5.2. TVC
5.3. CSR and Health
5.4. Market Share
6. Appendix
7. Bibliography
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Lipton is a brand with purpose with a prime focus on a brighter day and a brighter future. Lipton
creates a brighter day for its consumers by looking after their wellbeing, helping them relieve stress
and boosting their immune system so that they can be awake to build quality connections with
people around. Lipton also brightens up the future of all their tea farmers, consumers and the planet
by placing sustainability at the core of their tea factory. Every cup of Lipton tea is grown using
natural rain, wind and sunshine for people to enjoy their signature rich taste and aroma.

1. BRAND HISTORY

The Lipton ready-to-drink beverages are sold by Pepsi Lipton International, a company jointly
owned by Unilever and PepsiCo. Lipton’s story began over 120 years ago with the vision of one
man - Sir Thomas Lipton. Lipton was first introduced in Pakistan in 1948. During that period, tea
was sold in tin packs. The tea giant Lipton was merged with Lever Brothers that year in Pakistan,
five years after the international takeover of the Lipton Company by Unilever.

Since its inception, Lipton's focus has been on creating quality connections. Lipton believes that
in this world of indifference, pausing and taking time out to engage with others feels good and
helps to bring out the best of ourselves. It provides an opportunity to refresh, reset, rethink and re-
engage with others.

Lipton’s revitalizing taste is available in Yellow Label leaf tea, Danedar, Mega Daane, Black
Teabags and Green Teabags (Watermelon Mint, Lemon, Mint, Jasmine).
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2. TARGET MARKET AND MARKET SHARE

Like all other tea brands, Lipton targets the decision maker of tea purchases, who are generally the
housewives ranging from 18 to 35 years of age. It targets middle to upper class families who value
high quality tea leaves and believe in making quality connections with loved ones.

Lipton enjoys leadership with approximately 53% of the tea market. Tapal comes next with about
41% of the market share and is the direct competitor. Tetlay tea has approximately 6% market
share and Vital tea company has 8% of the market share. This is summarized in the picture shown
below:
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3. BRAND INVENTORY

3.1. Brand Awareness/Salience

Lipton creates brand awareness mainly through TV and the digital platform which help customers
recognize the Brand and recall it when making actual purchases. TV penetration is above 90% in
Pakistan which is why it is the most important medium that has been used to create awareness.
Coupled with TV, Lipton uses digital media to increase recognition about specific tea variants or
product benefits for a specified segment of the market. Digital media has allowed better
segmentation and thus, Lipton's various products are promoted to the target market which is most
relevant. In other words, multiple facets of the product are promoted to maximize overall brand
awareness.

3.2. Brand performance

Lipton’s brand performance could be understood in terms of specific product attributes and
benefits coupled with strong, favorable and unique associations created with the customers.
Lipton’s functional attributes include the unmatched quality of their tea, the strong taste and the
aroma that goes with it. These attributes benefit customers by providing them with an energized
start of the day filled with optimism and hope coupled with an opportunity connect with their loved
ones. In other words, these benefits are physical as well as emotional and provide a unique platform
to differentiate from other brands. Moreover, because of these unparalleled attributes and benefits,
customers are willing to pay a small premium when buying Lipton’s products as compared to other
available alternatives. Over time, Lipton has created strong and unique associations with its
customers. As a result of these associations, customers have come to expect a certain level of
quality from a higher priced brand like Lipton, and its unique selling points like strong, rich taste
and aroma reinforce their image of quality.
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3.3. Brand feelings, judgements and resonance

Lipton has tried to create positive feelings and


consumer judgments about the Brand using various
promotional techniques. Essentially, they ran multiple
advertising campaigns to reinforce their message of
retaining valuable connections. This in turn created
resonance by providing consumers a sense of
attachment and loyalty. Lipton's recent TVC
campaigns have dramatically portrayed user and usage imagery, brand personality, emotions and
other brand intangibles. The campaign called “Be awake to quality connections” or ‘Jaagien un
kay liye jo waqai ahem hain’ shows a father daughter relationship to appeal to the audience’s
emotional side. The portrayed father-daughter relationship pointed towards how in today’s day
and age, the key relationships are being compromised due to an influx of technology and work.
Lipton entered the stage by providing a solution to the problem using a cup of tea. It was made
evident through a sip of the warm Lipton tea which reminded him of his fatherly duties and hence
compelled him to hug his daughter. It beautifully gave a message about realizing the importance
of maintaining strong connections with the family which is in line with Lipton’s underlying brand
image.

Along with that, the functional attributes of their product such as strong color and taste are aptly
highlighted. This TVC was praised throughout the country
because everyone could relate to the scenario. In this way,
Lipton used transformational and motivational creative
strategy to portray its brand image while appealing to
consumers’ emotions.

Lipton also relied on online tools to create resonance. In this


regard, Lipton’s primary focus has been on social media. This
focus was intensified during the Covid19 pandemic when they
successfully established a prominent presence on the Web. To
market their green tea blends, they started consumer
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promotional campaign of 'to stay in stay fit' which had exponential reach. They had fitness trainers
give tips and customized lessons on social media channels when people were stuck at home. This
campaign complemented and reinforced their brand image of health synonymous with their green
tea product. It helped promote innovation for the Brand while staying relevant to the market
conditions.

Lipton has also been involved in event marketing by partnering with PSL and cricketers such as
Ramiz Raja. This was done to identify themselves with a new segment of sports lovers and
facilitated in creating brand recall.

Through all the communication channels Lipton’s strategy remained the same. It consisted of two
things: higher product benefits and a need to give back to the community. This in turn helped
create strong brand associations.

The customer-based brand equity pyramid below summarizes the brand inventory Lipton has:
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3.4. Brand Elements

Lipton's key brand elements have stayed


consistent since the Brand's conception and
have facilitated in creating equity. Since its
early years, Lipton has been creating its logos
in one and the same color palette — yellow
and red, a representation of warmth, love, and
joy, a combination, evoking smile and a
sense of stability. The simple elegance of the
Lipton logo made its badge iconic and
instantly recognizable.

Lipton's brand image is synonymous with its iconic Yellow Label product. Color Scheme of
Yellow Label is such that it includes the sunshine element i.e. the bright yellow. Even their
packaging and TVCs are in line with that image. Through this association Lipton invokes the
yellow color in the memory structure of customers' mind when they recall the Brand.

3.5. Brand Positioning

Lipton positions itself keeping in view the tea competitors in the market. In this regard, points of
parity and points of differences are given due importance. The table below summarizes some of
Lipton’s key competitors:
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3.5.1. Points of Parity vs Points of Differences

Points of Parity: Lipton’s points of parity include having strong and flavorsome black tea patti.
Since the general public consumes tea as a pick-me-up, the taste of a Lipton tea matches those of
the average consumer and makes them feel rejuvenated. Moreover, Lipton’s tea is packaged in
different sizes such as tea bags, 450 grams, and 1 kg packs.

Secondly, with the rise in health consciousness, Lipton has expanded its product offerings to green
tea as well. Lipton’s green tea is enhanced by flavours such as lemon, mint, and even fruity flavors.
They are usually in tea bag form.
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Points of Differences: As compared to the product offerings of rivals, Lipton has an added range
of ice teas, which have not been emulated by local brands which is an important point of
differentiation.

With regards to their marketing campaigns, aside from the commonly aired ads, Lipton performs
localized on-ground activities like sampling in areas such as KPK to be relatable and ensure brand
recall. Lipton targets different customer segments and divides the market on geographical grounds.
With such a segmentation, it is easier for Lipton to deliver its products by choosing a variety of
distribution channels. Finally, while Lipton’s product (chai patti) itself may be similar to other
competitors’, the unique image Lipton presents to each of its segments considers consumer
perceptions about the role chai plays in their lives which in turn makes it sufficiently different
from other brands.

3.5.2. Lipton’s Brand Mantra

Lipton does not have an official brand mantra that can be quoted but “brighter days, quality
connections and wellbeing” can serve as a suitable brand mantra. This can be justified on the basis
of values Lipton promotes and the extensive focus on creating quality connections.
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4. BRAND EXPLORATORY

Qualitative and quantitative research methods helped track Lipton’s brand equity as part of brand
exploration. Qualitative data was collected in the form of a focus group which consisted of 6
participants. Quantitative data was collected through an online survey which had 120 respondents
and targeted the key decision makers of tea purchases. The complete transcript for the focus group
along with the link to our online survey can be found in the appendix.

4.1. Qualitative Analysis

4.1.1. Focus Group Insights

A qualitative analysis of consumer perception was done in the form of a focus group. It consisted
of 6 participants, out of which all were homemakers. Since housewives/homemakers are the
decision-makers for buying tea, it was a representative group to get some relevant insights.

A good majority of them were avid tea drinkers and typical times for all to consume tea were
morning and evening. Some of them also preferred having tea after dinner.

Lipton was thought of as a quality tea brand, which energized the respondents with its freshness
and taste. This represented the Brand's positive image. Furthermore, Lipton also brought back
happy memories for the respondents, including meaningful connections over a cup of tea. In terms
of brand recall, respondents were asked to think of any of Lipton's ad campaigns and interestingly,
5 out 6 recalled the Lipton advertisement with the jingle 'chai chahiye, kon si janaab, Lipton hi
tou hai, hmm lajawaab’ and one respondent recalled the ad with the ‘Jugni.’song. Although both
these advertisements are relatively old, respondents were able to recall them regardless indicating
how well Lipton has positioned itself in their minds.

With respect to brand resonance, most of the respondents agreed that they felt a deeper connection
with the Brand and would miss it if it went away. Physical attributes that created such a resonance
included bright and consistent product packaging and a variety of green tea flavors. Long lasting
relationships with the Brand and dissatisfaction with other tea brands constituted the intangible
attributes that created resonance.
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Similarly, Lipton’s favorability can be judged by the fact that people found it very likable because
of its availability, good advertisements, the bright color of the packaging along with great color,
taste and aroma of the tea itself. However, it was disliked because of unexpected variation in the
quality of tea at times and lack of round tea bags like Tapal which are more convenient. Some
respondents said that Lipton had room for improving its aroma and tea strength.

Finally, the focus group revealed that respondents generally did not follow the Brand's recent
developments or engagements on social media. Surprisingly, while some of them were not aware
of the Brand's social media campaigns, others had no interest in learning more about Lipton
through its social media engagement.

4.1.2. Sentiments in the Survey

Consumer sentiments were collected in our online survey. Respondents were asked to describe
Lipton in one word. Their responses are summarized in the word cloud below where “yellow” and
“good” were the most common ones.
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The following brand associations can be derived from this word cloud:

● Personality - Classic, Aromatic


● Accessibility - Common, Standard, Familiar
● Credibility - Trustworthy, Habit, Popular
● Performance - Karak, Nasha, Refreshing, Jaago apne liye
● Taste - Delicious, Nice, Good, Excellent, La jawab, Mazedar, Yum
● Advertisements - Chai chahye, Good advertisements
● Loyalty - Ishq, Love, One and only, Aik aala ehsaas

4.2. Quantitative Analysis


Quantitative assessment of the brand equity was done using an online survey with 120 responses.
Various analysis techniques were used including Pivot tables in Excel, cross tabulations in SPSS
and regression models in STATA. Our survey was divided into demographic and psychographic
questions and collected data from both Lipton as well as non-Lipton users. This was done to ensure
completeness of our research. Our sample was representative of the target population and included
females between the age of 18 and 35.

Following is the link to our online survey: https://forms.gle/Eon3Uimwh3UE8jep9

4.2.1. Demographics of the Data

The survey results revealed important


demographic details about our sample. About
75% of our respondents were female. It is
representative of the population as Lipton's
main target market includes women who
make the purchase decision of buying tea.
Secondly, although we have a lot of
respondents between the age of 18 to 25, the
spread of respondents is relatively similar for
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other age groups. Approximately 20 respondents lie in the 46-55 age group while 11 respondents
are in the 26-35 age group. Finally, with regards to monthly household income, a great majority
of the respondents have monthly income between the PKR 100,000 and PKR300,000. The

remaining respondents are equally spread


between other income groups.

A regression analysis was run to gauge the consumption of Lipton's Brand with respect to gender,
age and income. The results are given below:

Elaborating onto these results, while keeping every other aspect constant, the chance of females
consuming Lipton tea is 24.3% higher than that of males. Similarly, if we look at age, it is divided
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into five brackets: 18-25, 26-35, 36-45, 46-55 and 55 above. With every increase in the age bracket,
the probability of consuming Lipton tea increases by 5.46%. Income was divided into four
categories: under PKR 100,000, PKR 100,000 – 300,000, PKR 300,000 – 500,000 and more than
PKR 500,000. With each change from lower to higher income bracket, the probability of Lipton
tea consumption decreases by 2.06%.

4.2.2. Brand Awareness


When assessing brand awareness, we found that approximately 98% of our respondents knew
about Lipton indicating high brand awareness. Tapal was the immediate competitor with
awareness of 95%. This is indicated in the output below:
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Similarly, we measured the number of respondents who had tried Lipton. In this context, out of
120 respondents, about 96.7 % had tried Lipton. In other words, Lipton was the most tried Brand.
It is important to note that some of these respondents had tried other tea brands as well indicating
an overlap. These results have been depicted below:

In the context of awareness, we also assessed the tea consumption patterns of our respondents to
find out for what consumption patterns people are choosing Lipton. Greater the consumption of
tea, higher the purchases. The result for daily tea consumption was combined with data on age to
see which group consumed tea the most. In this regard, people across all age groups consumed on
average 2 to 4 cups of tea in a day indicating that it is a significant part of their daily routine. These
results have been summarized below:
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Our questionnaire also revealed results in terms of brand recall. This data was combined with
monthly income to see what tea brands come to minds of people with different incomes. The chart
below reveals interesting results. People from all 4 income groups recall Lipton when asked to
think about a tea brand. The graph also reveals Tapal as a strong competitor. Moreover, only people
with incomes greater than PKR 300,000 think of Tetley perhaps owing to the Brand's high price.
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Brand Recall was also combined with gender. Females thought of Lipton more than the males
which reiterates the fact that females are the main target market of the Brand. Once again, Tapal
was the strongest competitor.

Similarly, to assess awareness about Lipton's ad campaigns, people were asked about their
knowledge of the Brand's campaigns. Interestingly, a 75% majority had no idea about them while
only 18% of people claimed to have knowledge about their campaigns.
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This was then tested against age brackets. Although people in the bracket of 18-25 are the most
active on social media and watching TVCs, surprisingly, they are unaware of Lipton’s campaigns.

This is an important point to consider for Lipton.

Furthermore, a regression was run for consumers' ability to recall the Brand against the Brand's
ongoing advertisements and social media campaigns. As shown in the summary below, people
who knew about the Brand's campaigns were 40.2% more likely to recall Lipton when they thought
of a tea brand as opposed to the ones who were not aware.
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4.2.3. Brand Resonance

Brand resonance was measured for Lipton by consumers’ loyalty and their willingness to go out
of the way to purchase it.

Brand loyalty was first tested against price. Respondents were asked if they would continue to buy
Lipton tea if its price was slightly increased. The regression results below show that loyal
consumers have a 71.7% higher chance of continuing to buy Lipton tea if its price was increased.

Loyalty was plotted against income levels as well. With the exception of the under PKR 100,000
level, majority of people in all the income brackets agreed to being loyal to Lipton. It can be
inferred that people in the lower income bracket prefer to opt for a brand that is more affordable.
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To get further insights, purchase with price increase was plotted with income levels. People in the
under PKR 100,000 bracket are somewhat price sensitive as they would not buy at a higher price.
Above this bracket, price sensitivity decreases as the majority would still purchase it.

There is also a significant number of people that are undecided if they will keep buying. This could
be because the price increase increment had not been specified.

Loyalty was also tested by asking if people would be willing to go to another location to purchase
Lipton. A great majority of 69% would not face that inconvenience, but 31% would. This minority
can be dubbed as true Lipton loyalists.
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4.2.4. Brand Judgements

Brand judgements were measured through testing preferences of Lipton with the perspective of
gender and income levels. Then, preferences for black and green tea were tested on attributes such
as taste, aroma, grain size, and strength.

Preference for Lipton over other brands was measured. This was a Yes or No question about Lipton
preference.

Preference for Lipton was also matched with income. For income between PKR 100,000 and PKR
300,000 Lipton was a preferred brand. However, for other income groups, tea preference was
almost equally divided. Therefore, it can be said that Lipton does not enjoy significant advantage
over other brands in terms of preference.

We asked all participants for their preference of brands for both black tea and green tea. This is
shown in the graphs below:
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Brand judgements were also analyzed on the basis of taste, grain size and aroma for Lipton-users
vs Tapal users.

With regards to black tea, taste is more important for people who drink Lipton compared to those
who do not. Numerous people have rated it as highly important.

Secondly, as can be seen from the following graph, grain size is not a significantly important
attribute as the majority of the respondents are indifferent.
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Similarly, the strength of black tea is something that Tapal drinkers hold more dearly when
compared to Lipton. However, the skewed graph to the left for Lipton shows that this is also
relatively important for Lipton black tea drinkers,

The following graph regarding black tea’s aroma shows an opposite picture than Strength. For
Lipton Black tea drinkers, Aroma is far more important than for the people who drink Tapal.
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An analysis for the green tea was also conducted. That can be found in the appendix

Finally, while assessing brand judgement, respondents were asked if they would recommend
Lipton to their friends and family. An 81% majority replied they would indicate a fairly positive
judgement regarding the Brand.

Brand judgement was assessed by non-Lipton users as well. It can be seen in the results below that
around 52% of people do not prefer Lipton due to its taste. Around 30% of the people do not
appreciate Lipton tea's aroma and colour while also pointing out that its prices are high.
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4.2.5. Brand Performance

The regression analysis below captures the elements of taste, aroma, grain size, colour, price,
packaging and advertisements while considering the decision to consume Lipton tea. So, if a
person likes the taste of Lipton tea then they are 63.8% more likely to opt for Lipton versus
someone who did not like the taste. Similar to taste, this applies to aroma, grain size, colour and
advertisements too except that the probability of buying Lipton tea for them is 4.5%, 2.7%, 16.4%
and 1.7% respectively. On the other side, the consumer who liked price and packaging, has 5.7%
and 19.4% less chance of consuming Lipton respectively (it is important to note that the
percentages solely depend on the respective differentiating factor). It is safe to say that the taste of
the Lipton tea is the most important factor when it comes to the decision of choosing the Brand.
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To further get a sense of how the Brand is performing, people were asked about how they see
Lipton as a brand and a good 79% found Lipton as a very likeable brand. The reasons chosen by
the majority of upto 88% involved the tea’s aroma, colour and taste. Lipton's green tea and its
flavors along with price, packaging and grain size also added on to the likeness of the Brand as it
can be seen below.
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4.2.6. Brand Imagery

This aspect was measured by asking Lipton users questions that portrayed the Brand's image in
their mind and by asking non-lipton users if they would be willing to switch to Lipton considering
it starts fulfilling their requirements.

The table below reflects the perception of Lipton in the mind of its consumers. The 2nd column is
relevant for our analysis and the given percentages sum up to greater than 100 as respondents could
choose more than one option. Around 79% chose Lipton as ‘Likeable’ which reflects a pleasant
image. Less than 20% thought of Lipton as a brand concerned for community, customers’ health
and consumers in general. It's important here to note that around 16% of consumers responded
with having none of these perceptions in mind. A graphical representation is also given below.
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Next, we asked the non-Lipton respondents whether they would switch to Lipton if the price, taste,
and aroma were improved. About 47% said yes, 7% said no while 46% said maybe. It was
interesting to note that less than half of the non-Lipton users said yes. From the other half, most
were uncertain which shows their reluctance even after they have been told that the Brand would
improve on its shortcomings. If they had a better perception, they would have been certain to
switch.

On further analysis of this data we found out that people with income between PKR 100,000 and
PKR 300, 000 were most likely to switch. It is worthy to note that the same income group was
most uncertain about switching. The variation in image in the minds of an important segment is
important to note here.
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Finally, we asked non-Lipton users if they knew people who used Lipton. We can infer that in
their close circles, a significant number of people do use Lipton.

4.2.7. Brand Feeling

Next up we measured the brand feeling associated with Lipton by seeing how the consumers would
respond to some of their campaign headliners. Majority of the respondents said that Lipton does
not give them a feeling of any of the above and did not respond favourably meaning that brand
feelings are not that strong in case of this Brand. On the other hand 25% of respondents chose
positivity as the feeling associated with Lipton. This falls perfectly in line with their campaign of
“Sip Positive” and thus we conclude that Lipton was able to successfully ensure brand recall and
associate the feeling with its product which it tried in its campaigns. Sense of belonging was third
on the list with 20% respondents choosing that and this was partly because of their recently
launched campaign of “quality connections”.
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4.2.8. Competitor Analysis

For non-Lipton users we asked which Brand they would go for instead of Lipton. Majority
replied with Tapal, and a few went for Tetlay and Vital.

Tapal: For the users who did not like the taste and aroma of Lipton, we can infer that for them,
Tapal has a stronger and richer taste, and a more pleasant aroma. In terms of price, Tapal is
also slightly more affordable than Lipton.
Tetlay: Since Tetlay is an imported brand and is quite expensive as compared to local brands,
it is only targeting high income groups. The elite would feel a sense of superiority with this
Brand.
Vital: Vital is also less expensive than Lipton and targets lower income groups. As it has a
stronger taste, it provides consumers with better value for money.
Others: Other preferences included brands like Supreme or referred to khulli patti available in
the market. Since these also target people at lower income levels, we consider these to be
indirect competitors to Lipton.
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5. RECOMMENDATIONS

5.1. Social Media

Our exploratory research revealed that Lipton already has sufficient brand awareness and recall.
Lipton's existing strategy of extensive advertising and promotions on television seems to be
working well. However, as evident by our qualitative and quantitative research, social media
penetration of Lipton seems to be insufficient. As highlighted by our primary research,
approximately 75% of the respondents were not aware of Lipton's ad campaigns. Although the
Brand has had very compelling and active social media campaigns, they just have not been able to
penetrate through their target segment. The campaigns thus lacked impact. The following
recommendations will help create more brand awareness that in turn will lead to increased brand
equity.

Lipton could collaborate with online content


creators/digital media brands like Teeli and start
its own online mini-series to highlight ideas
about good connections and the need to build
strong relationships. Lipton can sponsor these
web-series. Doing so will further increase brand
recognition and strong storylines will help
viewers recall Lipton whenever they recall those
stories. Similar marketing strategy was used for
Cornetto by Walls, another Unilever brand. The
web series called “Summer Love” sponsored by
Cornetto and aired on Teeli’s official Facebook
page managed to gain more than a million views. Such sponsorships on social media can create
beneficial engagements and facilitate brand awareness.

Moreover, given that we are in the middle of a pandemic, Lipton can collect entries on its social
media platforms where people including bloggers can post about how starting the day with Lipton
has been helping them with staying optimistic and power through these days, making them better
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and brighter. Web series can also include important conversations about mental health, tips to
maintain a positive headspace and emphasize on the importance of a healthy mind.

Lipton should further start a brand new “revive-a-friendship” campaign whereby it can have
customers connect with their old friends over a cup of Lipton tea and revive lost friendships. Lipton
team can moderate these meetings and conversations. These can be conducted in person or online.
People can connect with their friends within cities or beyond geographical borders. Such a
campaign will bring along an element of excitement while reinforcing the idea of maintaining
strong connections. This, in turn, will improve Lipton’s overall brand resonance. Such a campaign
can be marketed online on Lipton’s social media handles and video clips of meet-ups could be
posted there.

The campaign of bringing people together can especially be capitalized on during the current
pandemic. People can participate in fun question games over a cup of tea. Not only will these
activities be interactive for the consumers, but they will also generate a buzz. The focus could be
on the Brand's main target market, a typical housewife who amidst all household responsibilities
lost important connections along the way. These connections could then be rekindled over a
Lipton's cup of tea.

The Brand should also reach out to their younger consumers and try to create brand associations
with that segment which is currently lacking. This is essential as from our primary research the
consumers between the age of 18-25 turned out to majorly consume Lipton however they were
mostly unaware of social media campaigns. This research also showed that this segment had the
most chance of switching Brand thus winning them over is very crucial. Lipton should be asking
their brand managers the question "how will we create and ensure brand recall, association and
feelings with a previously overlooked segment." The same tactics and ideas won’t be feasible when
targeting millennials and generation Z. They should have separate and dedicated social media
campaigns catering towards this customer segment.

5.2. TVC.

In our secondary research we saw that Lipton was justifying its price premium by stating that it
had superior quality in tea leaves and tea grains. This was tested in the primary research by asking
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our participants to comment on the quality of Lipton. We received contrasting results. People
responded to Lipton as a likeable brand due to its taste and aroma but not a single participant from
the focus group or the questionnaire associated high quality with Lipton. Nor was this mentioned
by the customers in the question in which we asked the participants to describe Lipton in one word.
This contrast can partly be explained because Lipton's campaigns are not focused towards these
factors instead, they are more focused towards appealing to consumer’s emotions and building a
brand association of family with its product. Thus, there was a huge gap between what Lipton was
attempting to do versus what the customers had perceived.

We recommend Lipton to focus more explicitly on quality as Lipton products would then be
perceived as superior resulting in greater brand loyalty. This should be done by TV advertisements
as this channel is most relevant for the majority of target market who generally recalled television
ads better than online engagements. The ad narratives could focus more on the tea production
process and show quality standards being maintained throughout the value chain. That tea could
then be shown ending up in homes where it further contributes by building quality connections
amongst family members. All in all, the advertisements should focus on the quality of connections
as well as the quality of Lipton tea.

Secondly, we observed in our primary research that people remembered Lipton’s ‘Chai chahiye’
jingle quite fondly. In this regard, Lipton can attempt to revive the feelings associated with that
iconic jingle by recreating it according to today’s time. Popular singers could feature in the song
and perform a reboot of the decade old jingle to grab most attention and quickly make the new
version talk of the town. Playing this on TV would not only increase the popularity of Lipton but
it would immensely increase its brand equity.

5.3. CSR and Health

In our secondary research we interviewed Mr. Shehryar, Brand Manager Lipton, who revealed
Lipton's strategy of working on CSR projects to improve the brand image. He also specifically
mentioned the Brand's such efforts during pandemic. However, we found dissonance in our
primary research. Only 2 of Lipton consumers from 77 thought of Lipton as a brand "concerned
for the community". Adding onto this only 4 of total respondents responded favorably for Lipton's
social work efforts. Therefore, there exists an opportunity for Lipton to better market their CSR
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campaigns so that there is greater awareness about them. In this context, the following two
recommendations are provided:

Given that Lipton's main target market includes women, the Brand can build a narrative in
advertising campaigns that empowers women. Working women can be shown in settings where
they become prime examples of breaking different gender stereotypes in society. Advertisement
campaigns can highlight a cup of Lipton keeping them energized throughout the day. The need to
make healthier life-style choices is already highlighted for Lipton's green tea products. Similar
ideas can be introduced in the black tea category. Repeated promotions of such an idea on social
media and TV will enable Lipton to position itself more prominently in the minds of its target
market.

The company can as a whole try to increase the visibility of its corporate social responsibility
campaigns as well. The best way to do so is to focus on an issue that is pertinent to all of humanity
and that is climate change.
Lipton can perhaps
introduce tea packs that
come with seeds embedded
that can be planted in homes.
Sapphire did something
similar in 2018 and it
quickly became a media
sensation getting applause
from both national and
international players.

These recommendations would make the overall CSR more visible and it would propel Lipton as
the market leader in conveying an environmentally friendly approach. This would in turn increase
its popularity and spread the message that Lipton is a socially conscious brand. Thus, Lipton’s
brand equity can improve.
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5.4. Market Share

The most important competitor of Lipton is Tapal. Tetlay targets only the upper class, while
Supreme and Vital target middle to lower class. From our secondary research we inferred that both
Lipton and Tapal target middle to upper class, and recently, both have had posts on social media
revolving around creating quality connections. Thus, there exists a need for Lipton to develop
some differentiation strategies.

As Tapal has differentiated itself through its strong and flavorful Danedar tea, Lipton also requires
a point of differentiation. Our primary research concluded that 52% of people who do not drink
Lipton, do not like Lipton due to its taste, and 30% due to its aroma, price, and color. These are
improvements to note for the manufacturing team of Lipton. Also, Lipton has its own “Mega
Dane” version that consumers may not be aware of, and to rectify that, tastings can be held at large
retail stores such as Alfatah and Carrefour to increase awareness. Lipton’s Mega Dane tea fills the
gap for people who require a stronger taste. It would help in creating recognition about the new
product and create an image which is different from that of Tapal.

Another point of differentiation could be engaging university students that consume a lot of tea.
Brand ambassadors can be made specifically for Lipton inside a university, and events can be held
to promote the Brand. This would work in engaging the 18-25 age bracket as they are decision
makers in their university lives and are part of a niche market.

It is not recommended to lower price as Lipton has the image of being a high-quality brand, and a
price decrease could signal that the products are not selling well. Moreover, buyers of Lipton in
higher income brackets are not price sensitive and increases in small increments will not affect
their purchasing.

Inspired by the idea when Pepsi and Lays had secondary brand associations which in turn increased
brand equity for both brands, we recommend that Lipton do something similar. Lipton can do a
secondary brand association with a popular snack-time biscuit to increase recognition and equity.
The Brand Zeera Plus by LU in its most recent ad, portrayed the biscuit to be a 'plus' for any tea.
Zeera Plus also has sophisticated ads as compared to those by brands like Gala and Sooper. Their
narrative also fits well with the overall brand image of Lipton. Rather than referring to all tea
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brands, Lipton can capitalize on the following of Zeera Plus, and present it as an ideal tea-time
pair. Both brands can put logos of the other on their packaging with catchy slogans as Pepsi and
Lays have done. Celebrity presence in these ads can further normalize the use of the two brands
together.

Lipton’s Ice-tea is an exciting brand extension that Lipton can launch locally. It is already sold as
a B2B product and some high-end superstores also import it. Considering that, people have already
started to develop a palette for Lipton’s Ice-Tea. Furthermore, during our secondary research when
we interviewed the brand manager, Mr. Shehryar Muzammil, he talked about how it is doing good
for their B2B market and it would be a good idea if they launch it to make it a B2C product,
expanding their brand portfolio.
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Appendix

Interview Transcript

Following is the summarized transcript of the interview taken from Mr. Shehryar Muzammil,
currently working in Unilever as a senior brand manager.

Question: What is Lipton’s target Market?


Decision maker of tea buyers i-e female buyers ranging from 18-35 years of age
Question: Can you explain the attributes that the recent TVC campaign used?
Functional attributes of the product i-e waking up, quality and color of the product and emotional
angle from getting people to understand value of quality connections.
Question: What are the key Brand Elements in focus
Color Scheme of Yellow Label including the sunshine element i-e very bright, so the memory
structure is yellow in customer's mind when he recalls. There is a lot of history of Brand with
"sunshine" as in hope, optimism and positivity and that is found in all communications. Ads have
always been well lit and bright and never dark. The exact color of the cup in packaging also denotes
strength and quality of the Brand.
Question: What are the key Strategies taken up to raise brand awareness?
TV penetration in Pakistan is above 90% way above the social media platforms. Lipton usually
focuses on TV medium.
Sampling is another part of campaigns where consumption of Lipton is low.
Question: Customer’s Perception
Best cup of tea and we want them to think Lipton is doing something of the value for the society.
We want to awaken the value of connections and make consumers realize that Lipton is creating a
difference.
Question: Is your target market only focused towards upper middle class?
Its relevant to all the classes so we don’t exclude any classes. In the TVC paternal element can be
felt all the people.
Question: What are your thoughts about Pricing of your product?
Product quality is better than all the competitors, so consumers are willing to pay the premium
Question: Unique Value proposition
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Best product quality with best grains available in the market.


Question: Who are your competitors?
We analyze the competition regionally instead of focusing on the national competition. Our
advertising and on ground activities are also tailored according to the regions
Question: Do you focus on a specific segment in your Social Media Campaigns?
Execution of posts is targeted towards a specific segment who we want to send the message to and
resonate with that message.
Question: How influential is your brand name?
Amalgamation of all the memory structures consumer has around it. Perception of quality and
emotion. The image made by customers is everything which we must develop.
Question: What has Lipton done recently during pandemic?
Execution of the campaigns was focused more towards staying home and staying relevant during
the lockdown. We had a lot of ration drives and we were giving back to the society.
Question: How do you assess Lipton’s current standing?
We want to keep increasing the quality and taste. In promotional material we want to stay with the
current message and play around with it because there is a lot we can do around the same message.
Globally Lipton is talking about quality connections as an anecdote to loneliness.

Questionnaire and Focus Group

Form Link: https://forms.gle/ExaYf8ptwsPCfFEs7

Focus Group / Questions and Responses:

1. What is your current occupation?


1) Participant 1: Housewife
2) Participant 2: Housewife
3) Participant 3: Doctor by Profession and Homemaker by choice
4) Participant 4: Housewife
5) Participant 5: Housewife
6) Participant 6: Housewife
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2. Do you believe that you are an avid tea drinker?


1) Participant 1: Yes, my daughter always likes to point out that I get very moody if I do not
have tea. Plus, I feel lethargic if I do not have it.
1) Participant 2: Yes, if I don’t drink tea, I can’t wake up and even if I do, my headache
does not go away until I drink tea.
2) Participant 3: Yes i very much do so. I have something like 4 - 5 cups of tea every
day. I think it is part of my routine now. I don’t remember a day when I woke up
and didn't have tea the entire day.
3) Participant 4: Not sure how you define avid. But generally I have 2 cups a day. That
is in case it has been made properly with the right quantity of milk and tea and is
hot while I am consuming it. Otherwise, don’t mind having an additional cup.
4) Participant 5: Yes, I drink a minimum of 4 cups a day.
5) Participant 6: Yes I am

3. On what occasions do you drink tea?


1) Participant 1: Every morning with breakfast, then around 6pm before going for a walk
outside. It is also very common to have tea when visiting someone else’s home.
2) Participant 2: Every morning when I wake up, then at 3pm after getting done with all the
work at home and then finally at 8pm after dinner. Apart from my daily routine, I have tea
whenever I go to someone else’s place and look forward to it at weddings too.
3) Participant 3: It’s the first thing i do in the morning when i get up. Then i usually have
another at breakfast. Then i have one in the evening around 6ish and finally one after
dinner. And then obviously when guests are over, a cup of tea is a must.
4) Participant 4: In the morning with breakfast and then in the evening around 5.
5) Participant 5: 2 cups when I get up. The 3rd by 3PM. And then one in evening.
6) Participant 6: I drink tea before and after breakfast,lunch and dinner

The following questions will be probing to get information about Lipton.


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4. What comes to your mind when you think of lipton?


1) Participant 1: That I should feel energized enough to go about my day.
2) Participant 2: Energetic
3) Participant 3: Tea bags and it’s different flavors of green tea. I really like their green tea.
4) Participant 4: Freshness.
5) Participant 5: Quality tea.
6) Participant 6: Tea only

5. Can you recall a Lipton advertisement, if so what?


1) Participant 1: I remember the one where Arif Lohar and Meesha Shafi performed Jugni. It
is an old one but the song is still one of my favorites.
2) Participant 2: Chai chahiye, kon si janaab, Lipton hi tou hai, hmm lajawaab
3) Participant 3: As (Participant 2) mentioned, the jingle that Lipton made still runs in our
head. But that is something that was very hard to remove from the head but it has been a
long time since i heard that advertisement on the TV
4) Participant 4: Chai chahiye, kon si janaab, Lipton hi tou hai, hmm lajawaab
5) Participant 5: Same as what participant 4 said. This was back in the 90s as I remember.
When we used to watch TV regularly and that too only PTV because cable wasn’t common
so there used to be no other option but to watch advertisements.
6) I remember the old ones such as Chai Chaiye(Same as Participant 4)

6. To what extent does Lipton bring back happy memories if any (brand imagery)
1) Participant 1: Not any specific memory, but usually when you are at a friend’s place, you
have a pot of tea, samosas, and good conversation.
2) Participant 2: None
3) Participant 3: Nothing that i can think of right now, i mean tea brings back many memories
but exactly what tea i was drinking at that time wasn’t very relevant. Could have been
Tapal but i am not so sure.
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4) Participant 4: It sometimes makes me recall our tea parties that I used to have very often
with my friends at the base (referred to a military air base). We would spontaneously make
an evening plan to have tea together and catch up. I used Lipton even then so that’s the
oldest and perhaps the happiest memories that I have with lipton.
5) Participant 5: No such memories.
6) Participant 6: Not really

7. Do you connect more with people who drink Lipton (brand imagery)
1) Participant 1: Not particularly just Lipton, I generally connect more with tea drinkers. The
stronger tea they like, the better.
2) Participant 2: Not really, just with tea addicts like me.
3) Participant 3: Well you can call me a tea addict as well, but yes just like she (Participant 2)
said i really don’t have a preference of Lipton Tea drinkers or Tapal tea drinkers. Just need
tea drinkers like me
4) Participant 4: Not really. I connect with people regardless of the tea brand they use.
5) Participant 5: what participant 4 just said.
6) Participant 6: I don’t have a preference

8. I would miss Lipton if that went away. (Resonance)


1) Participant 1: I would, its boxes brighten up the shelves.
2) Participant 2: Not really
3) Participant 3: I think i would really miss the green tea and it’s numerous flavors that it is,
since we keep rotating their flavors it’s almost like a new one every day. I would certainly
miss that
4) Participant 4: That is true. I can’t even remember how long I have been using Lipton. Have
never switched since I started using it. So yes, I would most certainly miss it.
5) Participant 5: YES! I remember there was a time when Lipton did actually go away. We
then shifted to Supreme I think, but when Lipton was back in the market I started using it
again.
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6) I would not because I drink Tapal

9. What are the strongest associations you have to the Brand? (Strength)
1) Participant 1: I would say I trust Lipton. If I want to serve tea to guests at my place, I would
opt for using Lipton teabags, and know that everyone enjoys its taste.
2) Participant 2: I associate positivity with Lipton everytime it crosses my mind.
3) Participant 3: I think i link Lipton to good tea, or to strong tea but mostly with the green
tea and drinking that almost everyday
4) Participant 4: I have always associated lipton with quality. You know the fresh smell you
get when you open the jar, that reflects high quality.
5) Participant 5: the strong association is the connection that I’ve built with Lipton. And that's
just because I’ve been buying Lipton since I got married. And that was because my mother
used to use Lipton. Rather I think everyone in our family uses Lipton.
6) Participant 6: I have no associations

10. What do you like about the Brand? What do you dislike about the Brand? (Favorability)
1) Participant 1: I personally feel it could be stronger, I always have to add in extra patti. I do
like how easily available it is even at corner stores near the house.
2) Participant 2: Its advertisements are good. I feel like it can do better in terms of aroma.
3) Participant 3: The packaging and everything is very bright and colorful, attractive to the
eyes, that is something that my eyes always catch when i am grocery shopping. I think they
could introduce tea rounders or something that Tapal has already introduced for their tea.
It’s easier and more convenient.
4) Participant 4: I really like the color of the tea. Not just the tea, I find the yellow colored
box very appealing. It makes it easier to find on a superstore shelf. What i dislike is that
sometimes the tea isn’t genuine. Like although it is packed in the same lipton packet but
somehow the quality doesn’t match to what i generally expect. Not sure why that happens.
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5) Participant 5: I like Lipton’s aroma and taste.But their green tea is not good. For that I use
some chinese brand. My daughter uses tea bags for green tea but she too prefers Tapal not
Lipton.
6) Its taste can be better that’s why I like Tapal

11. What is unique about the Brand? What characteristics or features does the brand share with
other brands? (Uniqueness, POP)
1) Participant 1: I use Lipton’s green tea as well, and I think the flavors stand out from other
brands. I would say most chai ads are the same because its usually just people having tea
together.
2) Participant 2: The fact that it focuses on brighter days. The idea of connecting over a cup
of tea.
3) Participant 3: I think the packaging is unique and the flavors of greentea are unique. But i
think strong tea and black tea is something that is very similar to tea like Tapal. I would
even say that Tapal has stronger black tea bags such as Tapal tea rounders.
4) Participant 4: I find the taste very unique. I have tried Tapal as well but it just doesn’t have
the same taste.
5) Participant 5: Lipton I believe truly has a better quality. I haven’t much experimented much
with other brands but once or twice when I did try, Lipton felt better.
6) Participant 6: I think Lipton is my second choice after tapal because of its presence in
market

12. Do you think you are Interested in learning more about Lipton and its social media
campaigns (Resonance)
1) Participant 1: I do not use social media very much. I am barely on Facebook, that too which
I forget the password of my account.
2) Participant 2: Not really
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3) Participant 3: I don’t have any social media accounts. I don’t have a Facebook or Instagram.
I usually just get a few ads on Youtube but i think i would like to learn about their new
flavors if they ever introduce more. I don’t follow the social media campaigns though.
4) Participant 4: I don’t normally follow the Brand and its campaigns but yes i would be
interested to know more if they are offering something new.
5) Participant 5: Nope. Only interested in the patti.
6) Participant 6: I am not active on social Media

Green Tea Analysis:

Analysis was conducted for the green tea category. The following analysis describes how Lipton
compares to Tapal on the basis of Green Tea in terms of its product attributes.

Taste and Aroma can be inferred to be equally important to both consumer segments.
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For Strength of green tea it can be clearly seen that people who drink Lipton have a preference for
stronger green tea than those of Tapal.

This is shown in the graph as well.


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Bibliography

1. https://www.unilever.pk/brands/our-brands/lipton.html
2. https://1000logos.net/lipton-logo/
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marketing-essay.php
4. https://www.lipton.com/pk/our-purpose/the-history-of-lipton-tea.html
5. https://tribune.com.pk/story/2132872/liptons-new-thought-provoking-campaign-is-the-
highlight-of-this-new-year
6. https://www.facebook.com/183055198511663/posts/1601443443339491/?vh=e&d=n
7. https://www.facebook.com/183055198511663/posts/1597679500382552/?vh=e&d=n
8. https://www.facebook.com/183055198511663/posts/1588565931293909/?vh=e&d=n
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10. http://vitalgroup.biz
11. https://www.unilever.pk/brands/our-brands/brooke-bond-supreme.html
12. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLk5ead5qsQKIQEoKtP0SDrQecLJWB8qb8
13. https://www.oyeyeah.com/lifestyle/pakistani-brand-sapphire-introduces-biodegradable-
seed-infused-shopping-bags/

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