Parry's Sugar : Branding A Commodity

Brand : Parry's Sugar
Company: EID Parry
Agency: JWT

Brand Count : 152

Indian sugar industry is worth a whopping Rs 25000 crore. Although India is the second largest producer of sugar in the world, the percapita consumption is low at 18 kg.Unlike the Salt industry which saw many successful branded players, the branded sugars were not that successful.

Sugar branding was initiated around 6 years ago by players like Mawana sugars and Dhampur sugars. The first movers got the advantage and these players now have a 30 percent market share in the branded sugar segment. November 2004 saw EID Parrys launching their brand Parry's Sugar in TamilNadu which is traditionally a big market for sugar.

Although the market size of sugar industry is large, 75% of the sugar is consumed by large buyers like bakeries, Soft drink manufacturers and confectionery players. Hence most of the marketing is business to business.

The sugar industry has two types of pricing models. One is the free market pricing and the other regulated pricing through public distribution systems. The sugar prices are monitored by the government which sometimes intervene in the market and regulate prices through imports ( if the price increases )

Sugar is viewed by consumers as a commodity and there has not been any initiative from the part of sugar companies to create a differentiation compared to what marketers have done with Salts. Parry's has launced its branded sugar with focus on its quality and purity. It is known fact that the best way to brand a commodity is to focus of these two attributes. Parry's claims to be better refined and pure than the unbranded sugar. Packed in attractive pet bottles, the brand sells at a premium of Rs 4- 6 over the unbranded ones.

The market for sugar is a highly price sensitive one. While in the case of salt, the presence of Iodine was a sufficient differentiation for establishing the brand. The Iodine deficiency could cause thyroid and customers were educated by the government and the salt marketers to prefer iodised salt . But in the case of sugar, those differentiation opportunities were absent. According to a report in Business Today there are different factors that caused the slow start of branded sugars . They are
a.Seasonality : sugar production is seasonal and the entire years productions should be completed within 5-6 months. Hence there is no time for product or process innovations.

b. The sugar play is high volume low margin game. Hence whether marketers are interested in exploring the value added game is another factor that slows down the growth of branded sugar market. While branding involves promotional costs, it will be a tough tradeoff since margin pressure will prevent aggressive brand promotions.
c. The large format retailers have also started selling packed sugar with a premium of 50 paise to Rs 1 making the consumers think that the packed sugars are better refined than the other one.

The main factor behind the branded sugar becoming less popular is the lack of differentiation. The reasons are not compelling for consumers to shell out a premium for branded sugars. Even though Quality and Purity is an issue with the unbranded sugars, even affluent consumers are shying away from paying a premium for branded sugars. More over some branded sugars use sulphur dioxide to refine which is harmful and this type of refining is banned in European countries. It is said that in the west, marketers try to value add this commodity by enriching it with vitamins .
Branding a commodity always has been a challenging task for marketers. Parry's Sugar is a brand to watch and it will be interesting to see how this brand breaks into the consumer psyche.

source:magindia,eidparry,businesstoday,chennaionline,jimtrade,agencyfaqs

Garden : Creating A New Woman

Brand : Garden
Company: Garden Silks
Agency: Ambience Publicis

Brand Count : 151

Garden sari is one of the oldest sari brand in India. Garden Silk Mills was incorporated in 1979 as a public limited company. Garden Saree have unique place in the Indian consumer's mind. Garden and Garden vareli were household names during the eighties and nineties.

The Indian women's wear market is estimated to be around Rs 28500 crore. While the ethnic wears constitute around Rs 17000 crores, the branded saree market is estimated to be around Rs7000 crore.

Garden faced a crisis in the late nineties because it failed to change with the changing psychographics of the Indian consumer. In eighties to nineties, this brand was enjoying a cult status among the upper middle class Indian consumer segment. Garden sari was the choice of the working women in the nineties. The brand was built on quality , affordability and style.
Garden brand was a well nurtured brand and the brand owners were never hesitant in spending on brand building. The ads of Garden were famous for its design and models. Famous models like Meher and Lisa Ray have featured in the campaigns.
But somewhere Garden lost its magic. The brand was not able to foresee the changing lifestyle of its TG. Saree was slowly becoming less popular among the modern Indian women.

The rapid urbanisation and the influence of western wear contributed a shift in the dressing habit of Indian women . Saree had its share of product problems. Working ladies began to look for dresses that are more convenient and easy to wear. Since the urban working class travel long distance to work , slowly Salwar and western dresses began to take the place of the traditional sari. This was not anticipated by Garden. The brand was losing relevance to the new generation which had new lifestyle priorities.
When we look at the new TG for this brand , the working women, the dressing habits especially in the metros and mini metros have changed drastically. Salwar has become the norm and sari has been restricted to occasions. Although this change is yet to trickle down to the larger part of the country, the brand like Garden was affected most. I am not forgetting the fact that majority of Indians live in small towns and villages.

At the lower segment, Garden faced intense competition from the unbranded sari and at the top end from the designer wears. Garden was not able to position itself in the changing market. During this stage, the spend on the promotions were also reduced which further eroded the equity of this brand.During this time brands like Kunwar Ajay and Poonam took the market away from Garden

2006 saw the rejuvenation of Garden in a new form.The brand is making noises in the media and is keeping its old flashy style that made this a big brand. The brand is now trying to create its equity in the young generation. The ads are positioning this brand as a youthful and flashy designer range of womenwear. Reports suggest that this brand is also extending into readywear segment. The introduction of ranges like Cenza has created some excitement among the consumers. At the retail end also this brand is being increasingly noticed by customers. This is a good move by the brand because womenwear segment is dominated by retail brands rather than manufacturer brands. Hence there is a space for a national brand in this segment.
Challenges are plenty for Garden because it has lost touch with the new gen. Hence the brand has to spend more on ads and also keep the brand more exciting by
a. launching new varieties
b. associating with events and
c. creating designer labels

Garden is on its way to rejuvenite and retake its past glory. To transform from " MY Mother's Sari Brand " to My brand is a tough task.

Garden : Creating a New Brand.

Source : economictimes,businessline, agencyfaqs.

Sugarfree : Freedom From Calories

Brand : Sugarfree
Company: Zydus Cadilla
Agency : Rediffusion

Brand Count : 150

Sugarfree is the market leader in the emerging category of Sugar substitutes. The sugar substitute market in India is estimated to be of Rs 60 crore growing at 15%. The market is expected to grow even faster because of the changing lifestyle of Indian elite. Sugarfree has around 70% market share in this segment.
The category will be of interest to marketing practitioners because of its potential. Primarily marketed as a sugar substitute for diabetic patients and diabetic prone middleaged Indians, the market is witnessing a change in the positioning of this products.

The major players in this markets are Sugarfree, Equal and the new aggressive entrant Zero from Alembic. These products are now targeted at the more " Proactive " consumers who are health conscious and non diabetic. This is a risk that the marketers are taking. The rationale is that these proactive consumers have seen their friends and relatives suffering from the consequences of diabetics . Hence will be looking for options to substitute sugar in their daily diet. Hence the product is positioned as a substitute for sugar ( to a certain extent). The rationale behind this positioning is to create a positive image about this category. If these brands are marketed as sugar substitute for diabetic patients, the consumers will hesitant to publicly buy this product. But when these products are marketed as a healthy option to stay fit, there is a positive perception towards this category.

The segmentation for this category will be SEC A1-A2 aged between 30-40. Although marketing campaigns are trying to position this as a healthy alternative to sugar, I feel that the actual buyers will be those who have been diagnosed with diabetics or youth in the risk category who have diabetic parents .

Since this product category is new, the task of the marketers are manifold. The consumers has to be educated about this product. Since the TG is not diabetic patients, the task is more difficult because the competition will be with ordinaryl sugar. Another task is to make the consumer to try the product. Then comes the price, these products are priced at a premium and hence it will be a tough task to convince the value conscious Indian consumer.

Should you spent so much money in repositioning this category away from diabetic patients? The reason for this question lies in the fact that India will have large number of diabetic patients owing to the changing psychographics. It takes minimum effort to convince the diabetic patients to take this product .( I am not sure whether diabetic patients can take this product, correct me if I am mistaken). I feel that there is a good market for a brand that targets this diabetic patients rather than beating around the bush and spending hell lot of money on repositioning. Hence " Enjoy life with Diabetics " will sell more than " freedom from calories".

Sugarfree has the ingredient of Aspartame which is a low calorie sugar substitute. The competitor Zero is having sucrose based sugar substitute.Sugarfree has recently ran into trouble because of some health issues regarding its ingredient Aspartame.

Sugarfree is positioned on its " Low Calorie" attribute and the campaigns promote this brand as a healthy option for consumers who have less time for exercise and targeting mainly at the SEC A category. Lack of product awareness and high price will limit this product category to a niche ( a profitable one) .

Source: agencyfaqs,timesfood,businessline

Mysore Sandal Soap: Pure Sandal

Brand : Mysore Sandal Soap
Company: Karnataka Soaps &Detergents Ltd
Agency: MC&A

Brand Count : 149

Mysore Sandal Soap has a unique place in the Indian Soap market. This soap with a history dating from 1918 has survived in a market which is witnessing cut throat competition. Mysore Sandal Soap is manufactured by the Public sector company : Karnataka Soaps &Detergents ltd ( KSDL). Although this is a product from public sector, the brand has been able to create a unique place in the Indian consumer's mind.

Mysore Sandal Soap is made from pure sandal oil distilled in the state government's factory and the soap is devoid of any animal fat. Mysore sandal has the distinction of being the world's only soap with pure and real sandal oil. The sandal range has four products : super premium gold,baby soap,Winter version the normal sandal soap.

In the Rs 4500 crore Indian soap market, this brand has a minuscule share of only 80 crore ie 2%. The brand can be said to be a niche brand in the premium soap category.

According to the media reports, even the company officials feel that the brand has the potential to be a Rs 400 crore brand but since the resources for brand building and some laidbacknes has limited the growth of this brand.The TG of this brand is right now 40 year olds with majority of consumers in the southern state of TamilNadu.

The brand typically faces the problem that all heritage brands faces, that is to stay relevant to the new generation.Mysore Sandal is facing the issue that its loyal users are getting older and the new generations are moving to more visible brands.

2006 saw a very surprising move from KSDL. It roped in an unusual brand ambassador MS Dhoni to endorse the soap. The purpose was to make the brand attractive to the new generation. But whether Dhoni and Mysore sandal will fit is something to be seen. It will take some innovative marketing campaigns to merge the two different personalities: one the brand which is traditional and the model which is so modern and flamboyant. The current campaigns are ordinary which just shows Dhoni endorsing the brand.

This is a brand that does not need a model to endorse but what it needs is tonnes of marketing support interms of advertising campaigns ( in other words lots of money).The brand has a huge brand equity and recall. Those who have used this brand will vouch for its quality and fragrance.I would say that the potential of brand is such that it should look for extensions into perfumes and Deos. The brand is primarily seen a south Indian brand and to have a pan Indian presence calls for some serious investment. I feel that with a superior product like this , every penny spent on this brand will be worthwhile.

source: hindubusinessline,agencyfaqs

Manjal Soap: Essence of Turmeric

Brand : Manjal
Company: Marico
Agency : Bates

Brand Count : 148

In one of my earlier posts on Vicco I had talked about the virtue of Turmeric and the failure of Vicco in capturing the essence of this ingredient. Here is a brand that rose to fame just because of the turmeric essence. Manjal is an interesting brand.The brand was launched in Kerala in 2005 by SD pharmacy which is a traditional ayurvedic pharmaceutical company. SD launched Manjal without much hope of making this brand a blockbuster one because of the fact that the market is highly competitive with brands like Medimix and Chandrika ruling the Southern markets.
But the company was surprised at the reception Manjal got from the public. Manjal is the Malayalam of the word Turmeric.

Manjal's launch was a soft one with the company focusing on inducing trial purchase . The company liberally gave sample packs with leading magazines together with placing the product attractively at the shops. The smart packaging and the simple message captured the attention of the consumers .At the super markets, the customers were prompted to smell the brand to feel the essence of turmeric in the soap. These initiatives together with the name Manjal ensured remarkable trial usage by the TG.The product which is of high quality ensures that customers are satisfied with their usage experience.

Manjal Brand name had the magic that created a 9 crore brand within 8 months of its launch.With such a blockbuster name, there was no need for further explaining the benefits of the soap. The product was promoted in media as a natural herbal soap.

The success of Manjal had its share of problems for its owners. SD was not able to cope with the growing demand of the soap because FMCG is a different ballgame altogether. Thus stepped in Marico as a suitor.Marico acquired Manjal in January 2006. Marico was looking for a brand in the soap category and Manjal was a high potential brand in the southern states.

Manjal was repositioned by Marico giving more importance to the essence of turmeric rather than as a family soap. The TVC features the use of soap replacing the traditional bath using turmeric powder which is often messy. The ad targets the young girls rather than the early TG of family.

Manjal is a brand that has a potential to be an important niche brand in the herbal soap category. The brand name and the product attributes has impressed the consumers. With an accomplished Marketer like Marico to support this brand, it is sure to go places.

source: economictimes,agencyfaqs.

Nivea : Gentle Care

Brand : Nivea
Company : Beirsdorf AG (JL Morrison in India)
Agency: TBWA

Brand Count : 147

Nivea is a German brand marketed in India by JL Morrison. This brand has a history of around 96 years. Nivea came into existence in the year 1911. The brand has derived its name from the Latin word Nivius meaning "Snow White".

Nivea has been in Indian market for more than 30 years. But this brand which is truly a global brand has not met with success in India. Nivea globally is the brand that has its presence in around 20 product categories in more than 50 countries. But in the 1300 crore Indian skin care market, the presence of Nivea don't justify its rich heritage.

Nivea is famous worldwide for its face cream. Nivea Creme created by Dermatologists was launched in 1911 . The brand is considered to be the first to take the skin care category from the elite class to the masses. The brand worldwide is known for its Trust, Reliability and Accessibility. Globally this brand is positioned in the platform of "Gentle Care" and " Wellness". The brand has its elements of Color embedded firmly in the minds of the customers. Nivea took its "Blue and White" color as its brand element as early as 1924. From there onwards, this color scheme has been a brand identity for Nivea.

In India, the brand is known for its skin cream. Nivea cream is but perceived as a winter cream because of its thickness and oily consistency. While in other parts of the world, Nivea has successfully came out of this narrow perception, in India, the marketers were not able to effectively take the brand forward. With most of Indian stated do not have severe winter, the market for winter cream is very limited.Nivea has a market share of 19% in the Rs 108 crore skin cream market which is dominated by Ponds.Now Ponds hold the position which Nivea could have taken had it been more aggressive in the market.

Although JL Morrison tried to extend the brand to soaps, the extension has not been successful because of the halfhearted effort. With salespromotion now being used to promote this brand of soaps,further dilution of the brand equity is inevitable.

Nivea face serious marketing issues in India. The brand has not been aggressive enough in this market which is crowded with established brands. Nivea was never bothered about strengthening its positioning as a skin care leader. While Ponds successfully extended itself to other product categories, Nivea is stuck with its cream.This is a brand that failed because of marketing laziness. Nivea have huge brand recall and equity. It has the global parentage, successful positioning opportunity but was not able to leverage the strength because the Indian marketers didnot want to invest in the brand. The problem is that when the brand is licensed to a marketer in a country, the objective of the brand manager will be to milk maximum out of the brand rather than invest in longterm brand building. Every ads and campaigns will be weighed interms of the ROI and sales growth. Successful brands required longterm investment that will yeild results over a period of time. But in the case of Nivea, no such brand building efforts were to be seen.

The potential of the brand is evident from the fact that in the Grey market, the brand is sold well. There is also significant difference in the quality of imported Nivea and the local one. It is said that Nivea Deo is the best selling product in the grey market.

Nivea is sad story of a brand that failed to succeed inspite of having all essential Brand qualities. If failed because of marketing laziness.

source:rediff,brandweek,businesstoday,nivea.com