Brand Update : Gems Does a Kinder Joy

Gems recently launched a new variant Gems Surprise. The product is a new pack of Gems that comes with a surprise toy inside. The new variant is in the shape of a ball attractively packaged. Right now Gems Surprise will contain Ben 10 toys. The new variant is priced at Rs 30.

Gems Surprise is inspired ( copy ?) by the Kinder Surprise . Kinder Surprise has met with success in the Indian market. I do not have the figures but as a consumer, I have been a regular buyer of this product so are my friends.
The consumer acceptance of the Kinder Joy may have been the reason for the launch of Gems Surprise.

Kinder Surprise was never a competition for Gems. Kinder Surprise has created different niche where Cadbury does not have a presence. Cadbury does not want any product to rule any part of the chocolate market that easily. Through Gems Surprise, Cadbury is addressing the industry competition.

There is no product in Cadbury's brand portfolio that is similar to Kinder Surprise. Gems was chosen because it is a unique brand with lot of equity among the consumers. The form factor of Gems also made the brand worthy of being a competitor for Kinder Surprise.

Gems Surprise is going to create holes in the Parent's pockets. Gems was always affordable and right product to buy for the Kids. Gems Surprise priced at Rs 30 is an upward stretch for the brand.
The question is whether the consumer will buy Gems for Rs 30 because there is a gift free with it ? For all those customers who has been buying SKUs of Gems for Rs 5 and Rs 10 may find it difficult to justify the purchase of Gem's Surprise at Rs 30.

What I understand is that the product ( chocolate ) will be the same in Gems Surprise. What you pay more is for the toy.In the case of Kinder Surprise, consumers did not have a benchmark about the price so Rs 30 for Kinder Joy was accepted by the consumer.

Gems will definitely get lot of consumer trials and purchases .Whether the purchases will be sustainable will depend a lot on the variety of the gifts that is inside the pack. Kinder Surprise is the master in this game. Will Gems beat the master will be a fun ( expensive though) to watch.

Related Brand
Kinder Surprise

Brand Update : Tata Indica Brand Portfolio

Indica is a brand that is an epitome of persistence. Tata Motors through Indica has demonstrated how to manage product lifecycle effectively. The brand which was launched in 1998 has passed through many hurdles. The brand successfully transcended the initial flaws, bad customer /expert reviews and brickbats to become one of the largest selling cars in the Indian auto industry.

The brand survived and thrived because of the constant focus of Tata Motors to improve the product continuously. More than the product innovation, it was the value proposition that forced customers to choose Indica despite all those nagging troubles. You can see lot of Indica customers cribbing about the bad service and constant trip to the service centers but sticking to the brand because of the value proposition. You cannot get a diesel car with that much space at the price at which Indica is selling ( so far).

Tata Motors has been continuously tweaking the brand over these years sometimes making quantum leap in the quality and refinement of the product. A snapshot of the brand's evolution is given below

1998 - Indica announced
2001 - Indica V2
2004 - Rejuvenated Indica V2
2005- Indica V2 Turbo Diesel
2006- Indica Xeta
2008 - Indica Vista

The brand made a quantum leap in 2008 with the launch of Indica Vista. The entire brand personality changed with the launch of Vista. The product's looks and feel had changed completely and it was a rebirth for Indica.
The changes in the product was not limited to exteriors. Indica began sporting different types of engines from Fiat which gave a new perception of quality to the brand.

At the pricing also, Tata Motors consciously raised the Vista brand to a higher level . The Vista is pricier than the original V2 thus reducing the attractiveness of the brand to the Taxi segment. At a price range of Rs 4 - Rs 5 Lakh, Indica Vista is not a cheap diesel car. It was an upward stretch by the brand.

The Indica Brand portfolio is given below.

















The Indica brand portfolio consists now of three sub-brands V2, Vista and Xeta.

V2 is the most economical of the lot and is the original Indica. This product is retained because there is still huge demand for V2 at that price point. Within the V2 range, there are three variants which includes the Indicab which is for the Taxi segment. Price of this sub-brand ranges from Rs 3,50,000 - Rs 3,95,000

Next sub-brand is the Vista. Vista is the new generation Indica and Tata Motors would like this brand to take over the leadership position from V2 in future. The brand is targeting the discerning Indian consumer with its value proposition and good looks.Vista has lot of variants satisfying the various needs of the customer. The Indica Vista Aura is the premium range that sports many goodies that premium brands claim like ABS, Airbags etc. Vista also comes in Petrol version sporting the Saphire engine. Prices range from Rs 3,90,000 - Rs 4,90,000 ( apprx). Within the Vista range, customers are given lot of engine option including engines from Fiat.

Xeta is the petrol variant of Indica V2. I am not sure about the future of Xeta since the petrol segment is heavily competitive and compared to Maruti and Hyundai, Indica Xeta's value proposition is not that attractive as the diesel option. Prices range from Rs 2,72,000- Rs 3,00,000).

The positioning across the brand portfolio remains the same. All the brands focus on the value proposition. But these sub- brands sports different taglines

Indica V2- More car per car
Indica Vista- Changes Everything ( Surprise Yourself is the new tagline)
Indica Xeta - Makes much more car sense.

Vista recently relaunched itself with Drivetech 4 technology and is now sporting a new tagline Surprise Yourself .

Indica in a way is an example of good marketing practice. The brand continues to evolve and is a pleasure to watch.

Brand Update : Knorr

Knorr recently launched another product line extension - Soupy Noodles. The brand is currently running the campaign featuring its brand ambassador Kajol. Soupy Noodles combines both the properties of soup and noodles. The brand is promoting this variant as a new category to be carved out of Noodles .

Knorr brand was doing well in the market after the company shed all the unwarranted product extensions and concentrated on soup category alone. Knorr retained its lost brand equity and is currently the market leader in the soup market in India.Knorr later extended itself into ready to cook range to expand the portfolio.

The launch of soupy noodles can be looked upon as just another interesting variant of soup product line or as a planned foray into Noodles segment. If the soupy noodles remain as a variant in the soup product line, the brand has done the right move in creating excitement in the market. Soupy Noodles will be attractive to the kids who has now the option of best of both worlds. Having said that Soupy noodles is not entirely an innovation since a similar version called Curry Noodles exists in the market.

The second scenario is where Soupy Noodles is a first step of Knorr into extending itself into noodles. If that is the case, then Knorr has not learned from its previous mistakes. Extension of Knorr brand to noodles will make the brand lose its generic status on the soup category. Of course the brand can point out the case of Maggi extending itself to various other categories. But Knorr had a bad history of extension failures and brand name confusion unlike Maggi.

I think soon Maggi will also launch its version of soupy noodles. If the taste is good, Indian market will see the emergence of a new category of soup + noodles.

Related Brand
Knorr
Maggi

Brand Update : Santoor

This season, Santoor has launched another brand extension - Santoor Deodorant. The brand now has a wide range of products under its brand portfolio. Now Santoor has soap, talc, face wash and now deodorant.

The brand is slowly but steadily moving in the direction of becoming a personal care brand rather than a soap brand. This 600+ crore brand was on a roll last year becoming one of the largest selling soap brands in India. The brand consistently invested in brand building and never shied away from spending in advertising.

The new extension is to cash in on the opportunity for a deo brand for ladies. Although there are many deo brands for the female segment, the market is growing and opportunity exists for new brands also.

I raise the issue of brand dilution when ever I see brand extensions. Although I am a critic of brand extensions, this strategy is inevitable for many reasons. In the case of Santoor, these extensions are a part of Wipro's strategy to make Santoor a family brand for personal care products. Brands like Pond's , Lakme , Vaseline have successfully metamorphosed into Family Brands.

The talking point about Santoor is the positioning. For over 25 years, the brand has been talking about the concept of " For a Younger Looking Skin". All the campaigns were reinforcing that message consistently and powerfully. When the brand moved into talcum powder, it had to deviate from "younger looking" to "freshness". In the case of deo also, the brand is talking about freshness.

Now if Santoor aspire to be an umbrella brand , it may have to dilute or change the core brand positioning of " Younger looking skin " and include brand value like Freshness . This is relevant for products like Deo and Talc . For other products like facewash or creams , the classic positioning will work for the brand.

Another factor is that Santoor soap derives its strength from Turmeric and Sandal . The brand even derives the name from these two ingredients. The positioning also derives strength from these two ingredients. Now when the brand expands its product portfolio, it has to look beyond these two ingredients. Hence if at all the brand wants to expand its horizon, it may have to find other sources of strength.

Related Post
Santoor

Brand Update : Titan

Titan Industries has ventured into the prescription eyewear category with the brand Titan Eye+. The launch was pilot tested in 2007 and now is on the advanced stage of national roll out.The Indian prescription eyewear market is worth around Rs 1800 crore and is dominated by the unorganized sector.

Titan Industries is trying to corner a big pie in this huge untapped market. Titan Eye+ is currently running a campaign across the various channels,

Watch the TVC here : Titan Eye+

There is no question about the opportunity that Titan Industries is trying to tap. Organized eye wear market offers excellent potential for a company like Titan. There is a latent need in the consumers for a trust worthy branded outlet.

The question here is whether Titan Industries made a branding mistake in extending Titan brand into this product category. Does this brand extension augur well for the parent brand Titan or will it erode the intrinsic brand value of Titan ?.

I am always wary about brands extending themselves to unrelated categories. How ever large the potential may be, these brand extensions run the risk of diluting the brand value of their parent brand's equity.

Titan Industries had the opportunity to build a new brand in this category. It could have launched Eye+ as the standalone independent brand rather than launching Eye+ as a sub-brand of Titan.

The only one reason for launching Eye+ as a sub-brand of Titan is to gather the initial momentum in terms of acceptance . Eye+ wants to ride on the huge brand equity of Titan. And it will. As a consumer, I will naturally be tempted to opt for a Titan Eye+ showroom rather than a local store. So without spending huge amounts of money, Eye + will quickly gain acceptance in the market.

Another argument in favor of such brand extension is that over a period of time, the sub-brand will gain independence from the parent brand. Like the Fastrack brand which was launched as a sub-brand of Titan now has an independent status. So over a period of time Titan Eye+ will also be a standalone brand.

What about the parent Titan brand ?

Does this brand extension add value to the Titan watch brand ? Does it support the core positioning of Titan ?

Looking at the launch campaign, the ad is neutral in terms of the effect on the parent brand. The agency had tried to put in the " Jingle" of Original Titan brand in the Eye+ ad. The similarity ends there.

Eye+ is being positioned as a style enhancer .The brand follows the basic positioning that wearing Eye+ makes you attractive. Compared to the brand laddering of Titan ( Be More campaign) the positioning of Eye+ is nothing but very very basic. Eye+ has the tagline " Kuch To Hua Hai" meaning " Something (new) has happened to you".

This is the issue with brand extensions. What ever the ad agency do, the extensions seems to drift away from the core positioning of the parent brand. Titan with the endorsement of Aamir is perceived as a premium brand . Eye+ cannot afford to concentrate on the premium positioning as of now since it will repel many consumers and create a negative perception of " over- pricing".

Is it not a better option if Titan Industries launched Eye + as an standalone brand endorsed by Tata rather than Titan ? That would have given Eye+ lot of room for its promotional strategy. It could easily move across various price ranges. More than that , Eye + could afford to have its own positioning rather than being constrained by the parent brand. About the equity, endorsement by Tata could have been equally good in terms of bringing in consumers.

Eye + has lost a chance of creating a place for itself .The brand will have to move through a series of promotional experiments before gaining independence from Titan. With in the constraints of the parent brand, Eye + needs to prove itself successful in order to gain freedom.

Related Brand

Titan

Essilor

Fastrack

Brand Update : Alpenliebe

Yet again another subbrand taking a personality on its own. The brand in question is Creamfills Alpenliebe. The brand launched as a subbrand is now famous because of some smart creatives.

Creamfills Alpenliebe was launched in 2006 specifically for the Indian market. The product idea and the brand name was devised in India. The brand became a huge success and is now exported to China , Poland and other countries ( Source).

Creamfills Alpenliebe although a candy is a different product when compared to Alpenliebe. While Alpenliebe is a hard candy, Creamfills comes with a creamy core.

The brand came into limelight with some very smart advertisements. One such campaign I like was the " Daddy Khar Main " ad

Watch the ad here : Creamfills Daddy ad

The ad smartly communicated the core positioning of the brand. Creamfills is positioned as a candy with a " surprise cream core " inside. The ad had the tagline " Kuch Alag Achanak " translated to "Suddenly Something surprising ". The brand uses the " Surprise " angle to convey the creamy core of the product. The ad was a big hit so was the product.

Last year, Creamfills launched another campaign . The ad was one of the best I saw in recent times.

Watch the ad here : Creamfills Lions Ad

Like the earlier ad, the new TVC reinforced the positioning of the brand of the surprise core. The ad seems to be expensive but worth all the money spent on the animation. ( read an interesting story about the tvc here).

What I liked about the ad most is that it is never boring. I have watched it many times but still it is enjoyable and the message is conveyed spot on.This brand is an example of the power of a good idea backed by smart creative execution.

The natural question that comes to my mind is whether Perfetti missed the opportunity to create a new brand rather than launching a sub-brand of Alpenliebe. Creamfills shares most of the brand elements of Alpenliebe like the color of packaging . But the positioning of Creamfills is entirely different from that of Alpenliebe. Although the parent Alpenliebe brand is not going to be significantly affected by this different positioning, I feel that Perfetti could have given Creamfills an independent role rather than being tied up to another brand.

Related Brand

Alpenliebe

Brand Update : Horlicks

I was shocked to see an ad in todays newspaper announcing the launch of a noodles brand by Horlicks. I was wondering how can a company like GSK mess up a power brand like Horlicksby launching a totally unrelated extension ?

Horlicks has launched a new extension in the noodles category . The extension has the brand name Foodles and is endorsed by Horlicks. Foodles is positioned as a healthy noodles. The brand has launched two variants of noodles. - Regular and Multi-grain The main USP of Foodles is the " Health Maker" sachet which comes along with the noodles pack. The health maker sachet contains the essentials of 5 vitamins.

Frankly , this is one brand extension which I cannot understand.Theoretically Foodles by Horlicks cannot be termed as a brand extension. In this case Foodles is the main brand and Horlicks is the endorser brand. But for all practical purposes, Foodles is going to impact Horlicks just like any other brand extension.

Horlicks off late has been on a extension spree. It recently launched the Nutribar snack bar with an aim of transforming Horlicks in to an umbrella brand for launching health related food products.

My first contact with Foodles happened last week when my wife tried to trick me with Foodles instead of Maggi. I hated the taste of it and wondered whether Maggi changed the taste of its noodles again. It is only then my wife revealed that she tried to make me eat " healthy " noodles.


What can be the possible logic behind Horlicks trying its hand into launching a noodles brand ?

One reason or argument can be that Horlicks is only an endorser brand . Once the brand is accepted in the market, Foodles can remain as a standalone brand.

If that is the logic, then has the marketers thought about the brand equity dilution of parent brand? Horlicks in no way can be associated with noodles category. Noodles is perceived to be unhealthy , junk food and by associating with this category, Horlicks is definitely going to dilute its core positioning of a health drink.

Secondly, why should a multinational giant like GSK launch a brand with an endorsement from its power brand ? What is restricting the company from launching a new standalone brand ? Only reason seems to be the lack of confidence of the marketer or the search of a short cut to market acceptance.

Has the company thought of the impact of Horlicks if Foodles fail ? If Foodles succeed, does it add value to Horlicks brand or will it dilute the core proposition of a health drink ?
What is Horlicks now - a health drink for kids, health drink for adults, health drink for women, a snack brand, a biscuit brand and a noodles brand .... where is the connection.

Foodles is not going to revolutionize noodles market in India. All the noodles brands are now on the health plank and having a vitamin sachet is not going to do big things for Foodles.

Earlier, my students used to ask me about my favorite brand and I would tell them it is Horlicks because of the focus and smart marketing moves. Now I would say that Horlicks 'used' to be my favorite brand.

Brand Update : Parachute

Parachute Advansed Starz has got a new tagline. The brand is currently running a campaign with the new tagline " Choose your avatar " . There is something interesting about the new campaign. When the brand was launched, it was speaking to the mother trying to educate her about the need for a specialized shampoo for kids.

Watch the commercial here : Kya Hoga Mera Avatar

Now the brand is directly talking to the user i.e the kids. And the brand has narrowed its TG to the Tweens and Teens rather than the very young ones.

Starz also has been aggressively promoted across the media. The brand is a pioneer in the Kid's shampoo market and is trying to capitalize on the lack of competition. Starz also is coming out with new products - the latest being the chocolate- shampoo. That signifies the fact that Starz is moving away from its earlier focus on the " Strawberry " ingredient.

The tagline seems to be catchy and focus on fun with hairstyles. The brand has realized that young girls of the new generation likes to experiment with their hairstyles and is trying to provide a healthy solution.

There is something happening for Parachute Aftershower brand too. The sub-brand has launched another extension in the form of a dandruff hair oil. The brand is running a campaign featuring its brand ambassador Yuvraj Singh.

Marico has been extending the Parachute brand too much. Hope that this extension strategy is backed by some clear longterm brand strategy.

Related Brand

Parachute

Brand Update

Brand Update : Horlicks

Yet again , another brand extension from Horlicks. Horlicks has recently launched a ready to drink flavored milk product branded Horlicks Chill Dood.

The product category is reported to be worth around Rs 250 crore. Dairy based products are now seeing more action these days owing to the shift of consumers to healthier products. Amul is the most visible in this segment with its Kool drink.

Horlicks ChillDood comes in attractive flavors like chocolate and the product is targeting kids. Animated ads are now on air to promote this product.

2009 has seen this brand undertaking aggressive extensions into un/related categories like energy bars and now dairy products.
Horlicks is one of my favorite brands. I liked it because the brand was very flexible in adopting to changing competitive environment and proactive in launching new products in new segments .
But one gets jittery when the brand becomes too ambitious. Horlicks has always been associated with health drinks and it was highly focused on that category.The result was obvious, the brand has been a market leader for long time.
The current extension gave me a feeling that the brand is taking too much far by extending itself into categories like energy bar and milk. All these new launches will get a positive initial acceptance by the consumers because of the huge brand equity of Horlicks but all these launches has the potential to dilute the core brand.
The silver lining is that all these launches are in the health related products and thus cater to the emerging trend among the consumers.

Related Brand

Horlicks

Grappo Fizz : Another Cool Drink To Hang Out With

Brand : Grappo Fizz
Company : Parle Agro
Agency : Creativeland Asia


Brand Analysis Count : 398

Parle Agro has launched a " new brand " Grappo Fizz . Grappo Fizz is a sparkling grape drink similar to the successful Appy Fizz.

Grappo Fizz is launched as a cousin of Appy Fizz. Appy Fizz had created a successful niche for itself among the young consumers. The drink has a unique taste, look and also interesting positioning as a Cool Drink.Parle Agro is trying to replicate the success of Appy with the new grape drink.

I have a little confusion in the branding of Grappo Fizz. Should Grappo be considered as a brand extension or is it a new brand.

Theoretically , brand extension is where the company uses an existing brand name for new products. But Grappo Fizz is a new brand name which has significant association with Appy Fizz. Both these brands share a common term Fizz in their brand names.

Another similar case occured when Perfetti launched a brand called ChocoLiebe which has the same association with Alpenliebe.

Technically Grappo Fizz should be considered as a new brand . Then it become a unique case where two brands share common brand elements like packaging and even positioning. I would consider this as a new brand for theoretical purpose. For all practical purpose, Grappo is an extension of Appy. ( confusing isnt it?)

Marketing is more of a historical subject describing the past actions of marketers.So when the marketers devise new strategies, marketing academicians find it difficult to explain those with existing terms,concepts and jargons. Hence we come out with new jargons to explain the new practices. I would invent a new jargon - Association Extension to describe brands which are launched with significant associations with an existing brands.

Coming back to Grappo Fizz, the company considers this brand as an extension of Appy Fizz. In an interview with Business Standard , the CMO describes this brand as a product extension of Appy Fizz ( Read Here)

Grappo Fizz is trying to create another niche like its cousin. Grape is a neglected flavor in the Indian market. There are virtually no grape based drink in India except for some 100% fruit juice brands. Grappo is trying to fill in such a gap.

Like Apple drink, Grapes may not become a mainstay beverage but it will be a welcome option for those users who would like to have something different. I have observed that people tend to like grape juices, but seldom this flavor is marketed.

Grappo shares every branding element with its cousin . The packaging is the same , the nature of the drink is the same and the positioning is also the same.

Watch the launch commercial here : Grappo Fizz

Like Appy Fizz,Grappo also has a personality. The brand has a interesting CV which you can see in the packaging. He is a ex- call center employee who has lost his job because of recession. Grappo is a rap lover and loves rhyming.

The brand is targeting the same segment which Appy Fizz is targeting - The Youth.

Grappo shares the same positioning of Appy . Now the brands come together in ads and the tagline is " Two cool drinks to hang out with ".

I am a person who fears brand extension. So the same fear appears when I see both Appy and Grappo sharing a common positioning platform.

A few question arises in my mind.

I love Appy Fizz, so the fear is whether Grappo dilutes the positioning of Appy Fizz ?

Why should Grappo share the same tagline as Appy ? Will they always be together in ads ? If so then what is the differentiation of Appy ?

My personal opinion is that Grappo sharing the positioning will dilute the equity of Appy. When two brands say that they are cool, the question arises who is the coolest ?

My apprehension was deepened when I saw another campaign where Grappo outsmarted Appy . So is Grappo more cooler than Appy ?

Since the tagline is " Two cool drinks to hang out with " , has Appy lost is individuality ? Will we ever see an ad featuring Appy alone ?

Is there a chance of more drinks coming like Orange Fizz, Guava Fizz with the same positioning ?

Alries and Jack Trout always argues against extensions. Their argument was that by extension, the brand will lose its unique position in the mind of the consumer. It is true also. There was only one cool drink - Appy Fizz. Now there is two.. So Appy Fizz definitely is going to get affected interm of positioning.

In the company perspective, it makes sense to put these brands together because the cost of building a new brand is huge. Grappo could easily ride on the popularity of Appy. Since these brands are niche without much competition, the consumers will stay with these drinks switching between Appy and Grappo. Marketing costs will come down because one ad will sell both.

On a branding perspective, I would have loved the brand Grappo if it had an individual positioning. Appy Fizz should be the ultimate cool drink and no other brand even if it is the cousin should be allowed to take that mind space.

So which is the cool drink to hang out with ?




Related Brand

Appy Fizz

Brand Update : Horlicks NutriBar

Horlicks has launched a new product - Horlicks Nutribar. The Horlicks brand has gone in for a category extension with this launch. The earlier category extension for Horlicks was into buscuits.
Nutribar is a cereal bar which contains cereals and multi-grains.Nutribar does not belong to the confectionery segment ( chocolates) but belong to an emerging category called functional foods.

Functional foods are those health foods like energy drinks ,cereals and cereal bars which contains health promoting ingredients. These products are also known as nutriceauticals.
The market for functional foods in India is estimated to be around Rs 1700 crores and is growing very fast.

Nutribar is being launched now as an extension of Horlicks. I am considering this product as a category extension because this brand is heavily supported and endorsed by Horlicks brand. So Horlicks has become the endorser brand for Nutribar. This is essential because the product is trying to create a new category.

Once the Nutribar brand becomes popular, the company may make it an individual brand without being endorsed by Horlicks. Now NutriBar is the primary brand and Horlicks is the endorser brand.

Nutribar is being positioned as a healthy solution to hunger. The brand is targeting the health conscious young generation. Reports suggest that this is a product specifically made for Indian market.

The brand is currently running a television commercial : Watch it here
Nutribar contains wheat, rice, oats and honey . The brand is claiming to have 11 nutrients and offers a convenient healthy snack.
Globally , functional foods have become a high growth market because of the health and convenience factors. India too has seen following such a trend.
It is interesting to see how Nutribar will be able to create and rule this category. It all depends on the support and investment that the company puts in behind this brand.

Related Brand

Horlicks

Brand Update : Fastrack

Youth brand Fastrack is expanding itself into retail business by starting exclusive Fastrack showrooms across the country. Together with the retail foray, the brand is also extending itself into accessories like belts,bags,wallets and wristbands.

My first reaction was that " Is this brand crazy ? "

Why should a brand like Fastrack enter into retail business when the entire retail industry is facing a downturn ?

Personally I am a bit scary about the concept of Brand Extension. Fastrack which is predominantly a watch brand has earlier extended to sunglasses. That extension worked well because there was a significant gap existing which was tapped through that extension.

Let us take a look at the two major decisions taken by Fastrack.

The first decision is the extension towards accessories like belts, bags and wristband. The logic behind this extension is that the target market uses these products and all these categories are dominated by unbranded products.

It is true that there are no national brands in these categories except for the bags where there are players like VIP and Samsonite. But there is no brand targeting the youth even in the bag segment. Regarding the belts and wrist band, there are no known players. So the brand managers may have thought that Fastrack can tap these markets by leveraging its brand equity among the youth.

But do Fastrack have the competence and expertise to make and market these products ? Obviously the brand will outsource the production and act as the marketer. But selling bags and belts are different from selling watches. Both are different product categories which need differen expertise. By extending itself into categories which are not even related will defenitely dilute the Fastrack brand.

Another reason for this extensions is to develop Fastrack as an accessory brand rather than restricting itself to watches and sunglasses. Although it sounds good, my concern is whether Fastrack has sufficient equity that support such an extension. I feel that the brand is moving too fast without developing a proper foundation.

No doubt that the brand is popular among the youth but the brand has not reached the pinnacle from where it could confidently extend itself. It has not reached the level of Nike or Reebok from where they could leverage the equity to unrelated categories.

The second decision of the brand is to enter the retailing business. This is the most alarming part of the brand's latest moves. From a product brand to a retailing brand is not a wise decision at all. I was initially wondering why a brand should do a forward integration like entering retailing.

For Fastrack, I think there are two reasons.

The first reason is the brand's decision to diversify into accessories. Fastrack's accessories cannot be sold through opticians and watch showrooms. Hence the decision to retail venture is largely driven by the brand extension rather than marketing sense.

Another minor reason is that exclusive retail stores acts as brand building tools since the brand will be able to showcase all the products and marketing tools at its stores.

But I strongly think that Fastrack will lose its focus through these decisions. Retailing is a different business that requires different skill sets. It is an expensive venture that needs different management skillsets. and lot of financial commitments. Fastrack will have to spent lot of its management time in developing and maintaining these stores which should have been used by it for developing its core business

Fastrack have not learned from the Peter England brand's foray into retailing. Peter England had started a retail venture - Peter England People with the same objectives. Now reports say that the company is rethinking this venture because it has not taken off as expected.

Related Brand
Fastrack

Hyundai Accent : What Dreams Drive

Brand : Accent
Company : Hyundai Motors India
Agency : Innocean

Brand Analysis Count : 366

Accent is one of the highly successful long serving car brand in India. Launched in 1999 , this brand is now on its 10 th year in India. The simple fact that this brand has survived the highly competitive market in India speaks volume about the success of this brand.

Accent, when launched competed with the highly successful Maruti Esteem in luxury sedan market. While Esteem perished, Hyundai Accent is still managing its product lifecycle.

Accent is a brand which has survived only because of the product performance and quality. Frankly there is nothing to write about the marketing or branding strategy for this brand. Accent was a highly performing work-horse which was well designed quality product that offered excellent value for money. The company was able to make enough changes in the price which enabled the brand to ride the PLC effectively.

Accent now belongs to the entry level sedan market. When launched it was a premium car. Accent was an instant success because of its product quality and the rub-off from the success of Santro.

The company managed the product lifecycle of Accent using variants. Hyundai regularly updated Accent by launching different variants in line with the changing consumer expectations. There were four variants for Accent in 2002 which were GLS,GLX,GVS Tornado and Viva.

One of the most successful variants was the Accent Viva. VIVA launched in 2002 was positioned as a sporty sedan. The engine was tweaked to give more power and the variant was styled to give it a sporty look. Accent Viva was priced at a premium and was a successful niche variant.

In 2002 , the company launched the first diesel variant of Accent. The brand was the first one to launch the CRDI Diesel engine . Although the CRDI gained lot of interest, there was lot of problems for the diesel variants. Ultimately the diesel version was phased out in 2007.

Accent started losing in the segment when Ford launched Ikon . Later the segment became crowded with lot of product launches by the competitors.

At the branding front , except for the marketing of Santro, Hyundai in my opinion is a lousy advertiser. I don't remember any highly creative campaigns from them for any of their products be it i10, verna or Terracan. The quality of creatives for Santro also have come down drastically. They have always built their brands on the product performance.

For Accent also I don't remember any highy creative or good campaigns. But I remember some lousy ads of Accent trying to position it as a aspirational product. In those campaigns Accent had the tagline " Respect comes naturally ".

Accent had tried out different taglines during its different stages. The frequent changes in the tagline have really messed up the positioning of the brand. Accent is confused about whether it should focus on performance or image. The taglines of Accents were

Sheer Pleasure
Expect More
The Next Step
The Power to Excite
What dreams drive

Although the taglines were more performance oriented, the ads especially the television commercials was unfocused. The agency failed to understand that the core brand value for Accent was its product performance and value for money proposition.

Even in 2008 , Accent topped the segment in customer satisfaction in a survey done by TNS.

There were many rumors about the phasing out of Accent. But like Maruthi, Hyundai also does not believe in phasing out old brands. Auto analysts was predicting the phase out primarily because the brand was considered dated. It has been around for 10 years and consumers have become bored by the brand.
The rumor was further fueled with the launch of another mid size sedan Verna. In global markets Verna is sold as the new generation Accent . And in USA , Accent ( Verna) is one of the largest selling economy sedan.

With the launch of Verna, Hyundai reduced the number of variants for Accent. Now Accent has only one variant.

But Hyundai had other plans for Accent. In 2008 Accent was launched in CNG version. The CNG version is expected to boost the sagging sales of this brand. The launch also is an indication that Hyundai is not going to phase out this brand. This year, Accent was relaunched as Accent Executive with spruced up interiors.

One of the strong points for Accent is its design. Accent is still looking great. If Hyundai plans to keep this brand alive , it should focus on the design. Accent can ride the PLC by positioning itself as a stylish brand. It should experiment with colors and graphics. The product quality is already established,what the brand needs is excitement.

At this stage of the PLC, Accent will get a boost if the brand is endorsed by a celebrity. A high profile young film star can rejuvenate the brand for sure.

Samsonite : Life is a Journey

Brand : Samsonite
Company : CVC Capital Partners
Agency : TBWA
Brand Analysis : 356

A travel from luggage to footwear and watches can be an interesting journey for a brand. Samsonite is on such a journey. The global leader in luggage is on such transformational path from suitcases to a lifestyle travel brand.

Samsonite is a heritage brand with a history of 100 years. In 2010, Samsonite will be celebrating its 100 years of existence. The brand had its origin in 1910 when Jesse Shwayder started manufacturing luggage for travelers. The company was Jesse Shwayder Trunk Manufacturing company. The company was renamed to Samsonite in 1966. According to wikipedia, the brand was named after the biblical character Samson.

Samsonite is the second largest luggage brand in India trailing behind the market leader VIP. Samsonite is known for its premium luggage with major attribute being the strength and sturdiness.

The Indian luggage market is huge with a market size of Rs 2000 crore. But majority of the market is dominated by unbranded local players. The organised luggage market is only Rs 950 crores. VIP has a commanding market share of 60 % in the organized segment and Samsonite is having around 35-40% share.

When Samsonite was launched in India, it took on the fight directly with VIP by making the brand affordable to the Indian consumer. But in 2005, the brand took a major repositioning exercise by positioning the brand as a luxury brand. The repositioning was done using a series of print campaigns in leading magazines. The product portfolio was also rejigged by the inclusion of lot of bold colors and shapes.

The brand even had a campaign featuring the iconic Sir Richard Branson highlighting his choice for Samsonite. The brand has the tagline " Life is a journey ".

Samsonite has a multibrand strategy in the Indian market. It has a very powerful brand which offers affordable luggage solutions called American Tourister. Amercian Tourister is also an international brand which was acquired by Samsonite in 1993

American Tourister is famous worldwide as a study brand. Its famous among advertising fraternity for its iconic advertising of 1970.
Watch the iconic ad of American Tourister here : American Tourister

Samsonite also ventured into premium luxury luggage market in 2006 with its brand Samsonite Black Label. Black Label is a designer type series aimed at the luxury segment. The brand is priced above Rs 20,000.

The multi-brand strategy adopted by Samsonite is also an example of targeting different through different brands.

Samsonite Black Label : Targeting the elite travelers . The price range is above Rs 20,000
Samsonite Range : Targeting premium travelers . The price range is Rs 5000-20,000
American Tourister : Rs 1,000 - Rs 20000

In 2007 the brand did something unthinkable. It extended itself to marketing shoes.. Can you believe it ?
Samsonite shoes !!!!!!

When I first saw the print ad for Samsonite Shoes in a leading business magazine, I nearly fainted. I first thought it was crazy for a luggage brand to extend itself into shoes .
I never understood the connection between shoes and luggage in the first place ( may be I am not smart enough ! ).

Then came the logic. Samsonite is transforming itself from a luggage maker to a marketer of lifestyle products associated with travel. Now I get the connection.
The brand has expanded its scope to cover all products that are associated with travel. Hence we are going to see Samsonite watches , Samsonite Eyegear in the near future. This is the global strategy adopted by Samsonite across the markets.

I am not going to predict the outcome of this brand extension ( brand dilution ? ) . But does it make sense for a luggage maker to venture into shoes marketing and then making watches ?

According to reports Samsonite shoes will retail at prices above Rs 5000. So typically it will be competing with the major brands like Florsheim, Hush Puppies and the like.
Can a brand assume that if it is successful in a travel related product, it can succeed in marketing all products that have connection to travel ?

Take the case of watches. According to reports , Samsonite is planning watches that will automatically adjust to different timezones so a traveler need not correct his watch. But my question is whether a frequent flier choose an Omega , Cartier or a Samsonite watch ?

Marketing is a domain where there are no rules. If Apple can succeed in making ipod and then replicate their success with iphone then why not Samsonite ?

I have no answers... what do you think ? Will Samsonite taste success in its latest repositioning ?

Related Brand
VIP

Brand Update : Cadbury's Dairy Milk Shots

Dairy milk has launched a new product called Dairy Milk Shots. The product is not a bar chocolate but a candy. The ball shaped candy is milk with chocolate cover. The new variant is being promoted in various television channels

Watch the TVC here : Mann Mein Laddoo


The product is being equated to Laddoo ( an Indian Sweet ) and is being promoted using the tagline " Mann main Laddoo " .

Diary Milk had earlier extended itself into Eclairs. This is another stretch for the brand which is synonymous with Bar Chocolate in India.

Cadbury's Dairy Milk Shots has already been in existence in other parts of the world. The brand is currently priced at Rs 2 for a pack of two shots.

Earlier the rival Nestle's brand Munch had launched a similar kind of product called Munch Pop Chocs.

I personally have negative opinion against too many brand extensions . But in a product category like confectioneries , one is forced to get into various extensions inorder to keep the product in the limelight. Cadbury's Dairy Milk Shots will attract those who want little doses of Chocolate and its a good one to share too.

Related Brand
Cadbury's Dairy Milk

Brand Update : Sony Vaio

After the highly popular campaign for Sony Vaio CR range of notebooks ( All Eyes on You ! ) , Vaio has launched a new series of executive laptop Viao Z series. The new series is launched with a new theme " Break the Code ".

Watch the TVC here : Break the Code

Vaio Z is a premium executive notebook with lot of features that makes the product different from the competition. The brand boasts of
Cylinder Form
Isolated Keyboard
Carbon Fibre body
Clear Tough LCD
Light Weight etc

The current campaign is an international campaign imported directly to India although with a minor cosmetic change.
The campaign message is that all laptops are the same so break the code by getting the new Vaio Z.

The campaign for Vaio CR was popular because the visuals and the song was found attractive by the TG. The success of CR range prompted many laptop manufacturers to look at aesthetics and design as a differentiator.
The new campaign is also clutter breaking with a nice song and visuals. The lyrics goes something like this
I am not you and you are not me
I look around and all I see is me
Change the code, break the code
Take the new road

Lyrics Courtesy : Gandalf

The new series is premium priced with a price range of Rs 85000 - Rs 1,25,000.

All laptop manufacturers are faced with the issue of commoditization. So there is a heavy reliance on brand as a source of differentiation. Vaio has to a certain extend has been able to resist the commoditization .

Interestingly the tagline for Vaio is " Closer to You " . But I haven't seen any ad highlighting the positioning of the core brand Vaio. Previous campaigns of Vaio also did not have this tagline.

Related Brand
Sony Vaio

Brand Update : Rin

Hindustan Unilver Ltd ( HUL ) is a master marketer. The owner of some of the iconic brands in the Indian FMCG space, I used to look at the marketing practices of this company with a sense of awe and admiration.

And at the same time, this is a company known for getting the brands & consumers into a state of utter confusion. In the name of change, HUL brand mandarins experiment with their brands and some of the strategies can drive Philip Kotler to suicide.

Take the case of Rin. Rin is a power brand in the HUL's brand portfolio. This 500 crore brand is deeply etched in the mind of the Indian consumer with its strong association with whiteness.
Then there is the iconic Surf. The brand has remained in the top slot thanks to sustained product and communication innovation.

Now in the past two years, HUL has been trying to find out how to mess up these two brands in the detergent cake market.
In April 2007 , HUL had initiated a process to migrate Rin Supreme to Surf Excel bar. The brand migration was a high profile one. The ads screamed : Rin Supreme is now Surf Excel.

After a couple of months later, ads of Rin detergent cake began to pop up in TV. Now there is a high profile campaign featuring Bomman Irani for Rin Advanced Detergent cake. So Rin detergent cake is still alive ?

The new ad talks about Sabooth ( proof ) of whiteness. Now Rin Advanced comes with a whiteness chart which will prove to the consumers that Rin offers better whiteness than other cakes.
So what about Surf Excel bar and Rin Supreme ?

Well . I suppose I need to take a lesson on brand portfolio management from HUL .

Ok Lets go back to history of this brand . During early 2000, Rin had two variants Rin Shakthi and Rin Supreme. Shakthi was a low priced detergent cake and Supreme was the premium variant ( Product line extensions ). Some where down the line, HUL dropped Rin Shakthi . Then in 2004, Rin Shakthi was relaunched as Rin Advanced.
Then in 2007 Rin Supreme was migrated to Surf Excel.

For What ? Frankly speaking I am clueless. Is it a brand rationalisation or brand confusion ?

The result of all these is visible in the Economic Times' Brand Equity Survey results for the last 4 years.
Rin was featured among top ten brands in the list during 2004,2005 & 2006. In 2004, the brand was in number 8 , in 2006 the brand was in number 3 and in 2006 the brand was in number 9.

In 2008, Rin was not even in the top 20 list , it had the rank of 21.

As a customer I walked into a super market in 2000 to buy a detergent cake. I see two variants of Rin : Supreme and Shakthi. I take Shakthi and happily walk away.

In 2004 I walk into the store to buy Rin Shakthi and I find that Rin Shakthi is not there but there is Rin Advanced and Rin Supreme. I walk away with Rin Supreme.

In 2006 I walk into the store to buy Rin Supreme , I find that now Rin Supreme is Surf Excel . I walk away with Tide detergent cake.

In 2008 , I still buy Tide.

If your strategy cannot be explained in one minute, then your strategy is not worth considering.

Related Brand
Rin Migration to surf
Rin

Brand Update : Onida

Onida has ventured into mobile phones. The brand has launched the phones in the price range of Rs 1500-8000. The brand hopes to cash in on the equity of the brand in the white goods segment.

Onida was facing the issue of rivalry between the brothers over the control of the business. At one point of time, there were reports of the brothers putting the brand on the block .Now it is said that they have reached a consensus and the focus is again on the business.

It is in this scenario, that the brand has extended to mobile phones.The power of Onida brand was visible during the recent spat between the brothers. Despite the management issues, the brand was able to hold on to double digits market share in the CTV segment. During the last year, the brand was virtually silent in terms of promotions and had messed up the positioning by constantly changing the slogans.

Onida mobiles also carry the same positioning of the parent brands . The slogan used in the print ad is " Call Your Other Side ". The brand calls itself " Wickedly tempting" which will bring the spunkier side in you.

I feel that the brand has jumped into this category too early. The brand although enjoys a good equity has not been nurtured in the past couple of years. So without nurturing the core brand, any extension is going to have a negative impact . On the other side, the extension can also bring freshness to the core brand . Onida may be hoping that the extension can rejuvenate the brand.

But the issue is that mobile phone market is a highly competitive market with Nokia ruling the game. Almost all consumer durable majors have their line of mobile phones and almost all celebrities are booked by different brands. The latest being Samsung endorsed by Aamir Khan.
Hence to get eyeballs in this category requires hell lot of investment. And I bet Onida may have to compromise on other categories if they want to seriously enter the mobile segment. The brand may be hoping that the noise made in this segment will also have an effect in other categories also.

Second is the huge investment needed in product development. The models in this segment has a shorter product lifecycle and Indian consumers are now learning the habit of changing mobiles every year. Again more money to be spent on R&D and less money on brand building .

Brand Update : TVS Scooty

In the marketing classrooms, we used to exhort the wannabe marketers to be more proactive to the changing environment. Often this discussion stems during the discussion on the concept of Marketing Myopia.

Its a well known cliche that to be No.1 is more difficult than being No.2 To sustain the market leadership position, one has to be more vigilant and proactive.

The context is relevant with the launch of TVS Scooty Teenz Electric - the first electric scooter from TVS stable. The market leader is proactive.

The electric scooter market has been making some noise in the recent past. Numerous players has entered the fray notably Hero Motors, Yo Bike , Avon etc. According to Business Standard, the market is estimated to touch a figure of 240,000 units in 2009.

The emerging category was seen as a natural choice for cycle riders esp. girls.
It was interesting to note that most of the scooter manufacturers preferred to wait and watch the movements in this category rather than plunge head on. So while Bajaj and Kinetic talked about its plan for an electric scooter variant, no prototype was coming in.

Then the inevitable happened. Indian Government decided to put the burden of higher international oil prices on its citizens and a whopping 10% price increased follow suit.
Customers were at a shock. So was the auto manufacturers.

Inevitably, the current price increase has upset the travel plans of many. Cars no longer is affordable for a daily travel to the office.Even the bikes become expensive to travel.
This has made the electric scooter an attractive option - a desperate option .

The launch of TVS Scooty Teenz Electric is in a way an acknowledgment of the fact that electric scooters are not a fad but a trend. There is only one reason - the price of the fuel.

Teenz Electric is a variant of Scooty and comes under the category of electric scooters which needs the riders to have a license. ( age 16 +). The vehicle is powered by a 800 w motor and boasts of
Larger storage space
Puncture resistant tires
Range selecter - power and economy mode
Charge indicator
and unmatched fuel efficiency and cost reduction.

The new variant is targeted at young ladies who travel 10-15 km a day.
A major reason for the luke warm response to electric scooters is the perceived lack of power of the vehicle. The manufacturers have tried to cut the power down to enhance fuel efficiency .
But for customers, fuel cost was not compelling enough to choose these type of vehicle.
More over there was issues of battery life and maintenance . Since the category was entirely new, consumers also adopted a wait and watch approach. But surely the dampener was the lack of power. The slow moving small scooter did not met many hygiene factors .

Compared to a full fledged electric scooter manufacture, the launch of Scooty Electric makes immense sense . In a way, the product line has been expanded to include an emerging category. Here the brand is taking a chance. Still the trend towards electric scooters are not concrete. The truth is that there will be many who will be checking out these vehicles but the shift in preference is not yet visible . By offering the variant, Scooty will be in a position to ride the wave when it happens. If the wave will not happen , then also the brand is not going to take a hit.

Further, the brand will also offer the complete product range to the customers. Customers will try out both versions and settle for any one with in the Scooty brand.

Park Avenue : Play the Lead

Brand : Park Avenue
Company: Raymonds
Agency : Dentsu Marcom


Brand Analysis Count : 331

Park Avenue is one of the most respected textile brand in India. The brand which was launched in 1986 redefined the ready to wear segment in India.

Park Avenue is a lifestyle brand known for its quality formal wear. The brand is also an example of a brand which was built on print media.
Park Avenue and Raymonds comes from the same company. While Raymonds catered to an older mature executives , Park Avenue focused on younger crowd who are fashion conscious but also needs to wear ultra formal wears . This was visible in the nature of the communication. This brand is for those who look for classic formal wears.

Indian menswear market is estimated to be around Rs 37,000 crore ( businessline 2007) and of which 35 % constitutes the apparels.
Park Avenue built the brand around its distribution strength . The brand is sold through a strong dealer network consisting of multi brand outlets and exclusive outlets. .

Park Avenue built its brand around the print media while Raymonds is known for its television campaigns. Park Avenue is also a brand which understood the power of using foreign models for the ad campaigns. Indian consumers has a penchant for foreign models. Further foreign models gives an upmarket image for the brand.

Besides using aggressive commercials, the brand also emphasis on innovation in style and fabric. Since the brand is a formal wear , the emphasis is on creating elegance which the brand has succeeded .
In 2007, the brand extended itself into women's wear which is Rs 2700 crore market.The brand is targeting the Rs 450 crore premium western wear market. This market is growing at a rate of 20% owing to the changing Indian demographics.

The brand has a tagline "Play the Lead ". I think that the brand is trying to attract those young corporate leaders. However, the ads does not highlight this theme. Most of the ads of Park Avenue focuses on the classic style and quality.

Park Avenue offers its customers a complete range of clothes and accessories including personal care products. Although the personal care products are not promoted, surprisingly the range is highly affordable.

As a customer , what I like about Park Avenue is the quality and the value that this brand offers. Unlike brands like Louis Phillippe or Color Plus, Park Avenue does not have a tag that shows off the brand. But wearing this brand creates a classic formal look for the customers.