We Indians are sometimes not aware of the origin of the products that we are using. Sometimes they look so traditional and become such an important part of our life we fail to believe the fact that actually, they are not Indian Brands! But that’s too normal! Who wakes up early morning using Colgate to brush their teeth and think whether it’s an Indian brand or not? But later when you scroll through the news feed or come to know you are in awe like really Colgate is not an Indian brand?
There are some brand products who we have spent a good part of our childhood with. Where some of them are obsolete and became a memory some still are with us helping in our day to day lives. We have our soul attached to some of these brands but don’t panic while you read that these are not domestic brands but actually foreign ones.
Here we bring to you all those brands that you actually must have thought ‘Desi’ but they actually aren’t. Check out!
1. Bata Shoes
Well, we all have worn a Bata shoe even for once in our lives! At least our school shoes! The products can make anyone believe that it’s an Indian brand but that’s actually just opposite. The Bata Shoe Company is a Czech company founded in 1894 in Zlín, Moravia by Tomáš Baťa, his brother Antonín and his sister Anna and they have their headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland. Now all your life what you have thought was a lie!
2. BSA Cycles
Don’t roll your eyes! I am not lying! The full form of BSA is the evidence. BSA’s full name is Birmingham Small Arms Company Limited. Its headquarters are in England and it previously just manufactured Military Cycles. In 2016 India’s Mahindra Group purchased it just for 3.4 million pounds. It owns a majority stake in France’s Peugeot Motorcycles. What a blow!
3. Boost
Boost is the secret of your energy and also has a secret you are not well aware of! What could have made you believe that this is not an Indian brand? From Sachin Tendulkar to Virat Kohli whose words in the ad made you believe this must be an Indian brand! But actually, it was established by UK’s Simon Gray in 2001. Boost also exports to 16 countries around the world including Sweden, Spain, Brazil, Sri Lanka and South Africa.
4. Hindustan Unilever Ltd
This company is owned by Anglo-Dutch company Unilever. It owns a 67% controlling share in HUL as of March 2015 and is the holding company of HUL. It was founded back in 1933 by Lever brothers and came to be known as Hindustan Unilever Ltd.as a result of a merger among Lever Brothers, Hindustan Vanaspati Mfg. Co. Ltd. and United Traders Ltd.
5. Colgate
I wouldn’t have myself imagined this! It falls under Colgate-Palmolive Company which is an American worldwide consumer product. The company’s corporate offices are on Park Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. They also sell veterinary products in other names.
6. Nestle
We love Nestle products since a young age! It’s actually a Swiss food and beverage company having its headquarters in Switzerland. With likes of KitKat, Maggi it has become a part of our everyday life. It was established in 1866 by brothers George and Charles Page, and Farine Lactée Henri Nestlé, founded in 1866 by Henri Nestlé (born Heinrich Nestle).
7. Star TV
The Star in Star TV has a full form and that may solve all our misconceptions. It stands for Satellite Television Asian Region. It is an Asian TV service owned by 21st Century Fox, the American multinational mass media corporation. In the early 90s, Star India included Star Plus (then an English-language entertainment channel), Prime Sports (later became Star Sports), MTV (through a tie up with Viacom), Star Movies and Zee TV (belonging to Subhash Chandra). Star TV was beamed out of Asiasat satellite.
8. Annapurna
Neither the name of the brand or the products could ever make us believe that it could be not a domestic brand. But here’s a twist the product belongs to Hindustan Unilever Ltd which is a Dutch company so though its name is inspired by a Hindu Goddess but it’s a foreign brand.
9. Tide
A household detergent name in India. It was manufactured by Procter & Gamble back in 1946. It was first introduced in the American market and then was distributed all over the world.
10. Alibaba.com
The Alibaba and forty thieves? And still, you say this is not an Indian brand. So what if the name is Indian but this e-commerce site is actually from China. It is the world’s largest retailer as of April 2016 surpassing Walmart. It operates in almost 200 countries.
Is your head swirling? We stop here but if you also know any of such brands let us know and amaze us too!
