Dilmah

Dilmah is a Sri Lankan tea brand and beverage company best known for internationally marketed Ceylon tea. The business was founded by Merrill J. Fernando, a Sri Lankan tea taster and entrepreneur who sought to change the way tea from Sri Lanka was produced, branded, and monetised. Fernando believed that tea grown and processed in Sri Lanka was too often exported as a relatively undifferentiated raw material, while blending, packaging, branding, and much of the commercial value were handled by companies in Europe and the United Kingdom. Dilmah was created to keep more of that value in the country of origin and to present Ceylon tea under its own brand. Fernando began working in the tea trade after training in London’s Mincing Lane, historically an important centre of the international tea business. His experience there reinforced his concern that teas of different origins could be mixed and sold with limited transparency about their composition. Before launching Dilmah, he established tea-exporting businesses, including Ceylon Tea Services Company in 1962, and later developed Ceylon Tea Services Ltd, which became a public company listed on the Colombo Stock Exchange. These earlier ventures gave him experience in sourcing, tasting, exporting, and managing tea businesses. The Dilmah name was introduced in 1985 and was formed from the first names of Fernando’s sons, Dilhan and Malik. The brand’s commercial breakthrough came in Australia. Fernando had difficulty persuading retailers to list a new Sri Lankan consumer brand, but eventually secured placement with Coles. A Melbourne Coles store began stocking Dilmah, followed by expansion to additional Coles stores in Victoria and later to Woolworths. The brand then expanded into New Zealand, Europe, North America, and other international markets. Australia became an important market; according to the cited reference material, it represented 10 percent of Dilmah’s global annual retail sales in 2013, while Dilmah was reported as New Zealand’s top-selling tea brand that year. Dilmah’s core proposition is based on Ceylon tea, single-origin sourcing, and control over a large portion of the value chain. The wider group has been described as owning or operating tea plantations, factories, printing and packaging facilities, export operations, and related tea-industry businesses. Associated enterprises include Kahawatte Plantations, MJF Exports, and Forbes & Walker Tea Brokers. This structure supports the brand’s emphasis on moving tea from garden and factory through packaging and distribution rather than treating the product solely as an anonymously sourced ingredient. The portfolio includes black, green, white, and oolong teas, as well as herbal and other specialty infusions. Dilmah has positioned these products in the premium and quality-focused segment, with emphasis on the character of Ceylon tea, freshness, origin, and traditional tea craftsmanship. Its communications have also connected the brand with social purpose. Dilmah Conservation was established in 2007 to support environmental protection, including the conservation of Sri Lankan forests, while the founder’s stated commercial ambition included using business to assist poor and underprivileged people. Merrill J. Fernando became a recognisable public face of the brand through television advertising, including commercials featuring his “Do Try It” catchphrase. Australian advertising also featured singer and television personality Kamahl in 1988. As of 2023, the reference material describes Dilmah as the world’s tenth-largest tea brand. Dilmah remains associated with Sri Lankan-origin tea, international retail distribution, vertically integrated operations, and a business model that combines premium consumer branding with environmental and social initiatives.

Merrill J. Fernando was born in 1930 in Negombo, in what was then British Ceylon. He moved to Colombo and entered the tea trade, later training as a tea taster at Mincing Lane in London. His exposure to the international tea business shaped the philosophy that would eventually underpin Dilmah. Fernando observed that teas from different sources were frequently blended and marketed with limited distinction, while tea produced in Sri Lanka was commonly treated as an inexpensive raw material. Branding, packaging, and much of the commercial margin were often controlled outside the producing country. In 1962, Fernando established the Ceylon Tea Services Company and later that year formed Merrill J. Fernando Company. These enterprises exported loose tea to markets including North America and Australasia. In 1982, he established Ceylon Tea Services Ltd, which became one of the early tea-related companies to be listed as a public company on the Colombo Stock Exchange. The experience provided a foundation in tea procurement, tasting, export, and corporate management. Fernando introduced the Dilmah name in 1985. The name combined the first names of his sons, Dilhan and Malik. His objective was not simply to sell another packaged tea, but to create a consumer brand that retained a closer relationship with the tea’s country of origin and allowed more value to be captured in Sri Lanka. He also linked the enterprise to a broader social purpose, including assistance for poor and disadvantaged people. The first important retail breakthrough occurred in Australia. Fernando initially had to persuade supermarket buyers to give shelf space to a new Sri Lankan brand. Coles eventually agreed to stock Dilmah in a Melbourne store. The product then expanded to 35 additional Coles stores in Victoria, followed by distribution through Woolworths. The company was formally established in 1988, and its Australian presence became the platform for later international expansion. Dilmah subsequently entered New Zealand and markets in Europe, North America, and elsewhere. The brand’s proposition centred on Ceylon tea sold under a named origin brand, rather than being presented merely as a component of a multinational blend. Its range expanded beyond conventional black tea to include green, white, oolong, herbal, and specialty products. The company also developed a vertically integrated structure encompassing plantations, factories, printing and packaging, exports, and related tea-industry activities. The wider MJF group includes businesses such as Kahawatte Plantations, MJF Exports, and Forbes & Walker Tea Brokers. Environmental and social initiatives became a further part of the group’s identity. Dilmah Conservation was founded in 2007, with forest protection in Sri Lanka among its stated objectives. The brand also invested in founder-led communications. Fernando appeared in television advertising and became associated with the phrase “Do Try It,” while Australian advertising in 1988 featured singer and television personality Kamahl. The reference material reports that Dilmah was New Zealand’s top-selling tea brand in 2013 and that Australia represented 10 percent of its global annual retail sales in that year. It also describes Dilmah as the tenth-largest tea brand worldwide in 2023. The brand’s continuing identity rests on Sri Lankan provenance, premium positioning, control over production and packaging, and the integration of commercial activity with environmental and social-purpose programmes.

1. 2023Global ranking reported

   Dilmah was described in the reference material as the world's tenth-largest tea brand.

   Source
2. 2013International market position reported

   Reference material reported Dilmah as New Zealand's top-selling tea brand and stated that Australia contributed 10 percent of global annual retail sales.

   Source
3. 2007Dilmah Conservation founded

   Dilmah Conservation was established with a focus that included protecting Sri Lankan forests.

   Source
4. 1988Australian retail launch

   A Melbourne Coles store began stocking Dilmah, followed by expansion to other Coles stores and later Woolworths.

   Source
5. 1985Dilmah name launched

   The Dilmah brand name was introduced, combining the first names of Fernando's sons, Dilhan and Malik.

   Source
6. 1982Ceylon Tea Services Ltd established

   Fernando established Ceylon Tea Services Ltd, which later became one of the early public tea companies on the Colombo Stock Exchange.

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7. 1962Ceylon Tea Services Company founded

   Fernando established Ceylon Tea Services Company and began building an export-oriented tea business.

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8. 1930Birth of Merrill J. Fernando

   Merrill J. Fernando was born in Negombo in British Ceylon and later became the founder of Dilmah.

   Source

Premium, origin-led Ceylon tea with an emphasis on quality, authenticity, vertical integration, and social and environmental purpose.

• Single-estate Ceylon teaBlack tea

  Single-estate Ceylon teas are positioned around the distinctive character of tea from a particular Sri Lankan estate or growing area. The offering reflects Dilmah's broader emphasis on origin, traceability, and the idea that tea should be sold under the identity of its producing country rather than treated only as an anonymous blending ingredient.

• Premium Ceylon teaBlack tea1985

  Premium Ceylon tea is Dilmah's core branded proposition: packaged Sri Lankan tea intended for international retail and food-service consumption. The line represents the brand's focus on traditional Ceylon tea quality, freshness, and direct brand presentation from a producing-country company.

• Green teaGreen tea

  Dilmah's green-tea range extends the brand beyond its traditional black-tea base. It is part of the broader portfolio of teas marketed internationally under the Dilmah name and retains the company's emphasis on tea origin and premium presentation.

• White teaWhite tea

  White tea is included among Dilmah's specialty tea offerings. The product category supports the brand's premium positioning by presenting less conventional tea styles alongside its principal Ceylon black-tea products.

• Oolong teaOolong tea

  Oolong tea forms part of Dilmah's wider specialty portfolio. Its inclusion gives the brand a broader tea selection while maintaining the common presentation of packaged tea under a Sri Lankan-origin brand.

• Herbal and specialty infusionsHerbal tea and infusions

  Herbal teas and specialty infusions broaden Dilmah's range beyond traditionally processed tea leaves. They serve consumers seeking varied flavours and caffeine alternatives while remaining within the brand's premium beverage portfolio.

• 1988Do Try It

  Australia · International markets

  Television advertising featuring Merrill J. Fernando helped make the founder a recognisable public face of Dilmah. The campaign was associated with Fernando's “Do Try It” catchphrase and supported the brand's early retail expansion.

  Outcome. The advertising contributed to the brand's public identity and became a notable part of its Australian-market communications.

  Source
• 1988Australian launch advertising featuring Kamahl

  Australia

  Singer and television personality Kamahl appeared in Dilmah's Australian television commercials during the period of the brand's initial supermarket expansion.

  Outcome. The campaign supported early awareness in an important launch market.

  Source

• 2007Add an environmental conservation programmeStrategy

  The brand's social-purpose identity extended beyond tea production and commercial activity.

  What changed. Dilmah Conservation was established, with protection of Sri Lankan forests among its stated objectives.

  Aftermath. Environmental conservation became an identifiable component of Dilmah's broader corporate-purpose profile.

  Source
• 1988Enter Australian supermarketsStrategy

  The new brand needed a major retail foothold outside Sri Lanka, and Fernando initially faced resistance from supermarket buyers.

  What changed. Dilmah secured an initial listing in a Melbourne Coles store and subsequently expanded to other Coles stores in Victoria and Woolworths.

  Aftermath. Australia became a major international market and a platform for later expansion into New Zealand, Europe, North America, and other regions.

  Source
• 1985Create a branded, origin-led Ceylon tea businessStrategy

  Fernando believed Sri Lankan tea producers received too little of the value generated after tea was exported as a raw material and branded elsewhere.

  What changed. He introduced Dilmah as a consumer brand focused on Ceylon tea and on retaining more production, branding, and commercial value in Sri Lanka.

  Aftermath. The strategy became the foundation of Dilmah's premium positioning and international retail expansion.

  Source

• 2023Dilmah was described as the world's tenth-largest tea brand

  Reference material associated with the Dilmah article described the brand as the tenth-largest tea brand globally in 2023.

  Other
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• 2013Dilmah's international retail expansion continued after its Australian launch

  The reference material identified New Zealand as Dilmah's top-selling market in that year and stated that Australia accounted for 10 percent of global annual retail sales.

  Other
  Source
• 2007Dilmah Conservation was established to support environmental protection

  Dilmah created Dilmah Conservation, with protection of Sri Lankan forests identified as one of its principal aims.

  Other
  Source

1. Dilmah
2. Dilmah official website