Brand Update : Vespa slashes prices but is it enough ?

According to newsreports, Vespa has slashed the prices of its newly launched scooter by around Rs 6700. Vespa was launched as a premium scooter which is according to the company is  ageless, iconic and timeless. The arrogance that Vespa globally is considered an icon was reflected in the pricing. Vespa launched its 125 cc scooter with a price of Rs 66,600 which was way above the average category price range of  Rs 40,000-50,000.

One would expect that with high price will come all the high-end features but Vespa decided that the premium is for the brand and nothing else.So what was offered to the Indian market was an ordinary scooter with excellent looks, funky colors and a brand.

Despite the high price and ordinary features, Indian consumers gave a warm response to the offer. Newsreports suggest that Vespa was able to sell around 30,000 odd scooters after the launch.

Then came the price cut. Vespa has cited operational efficiency as a reason for the price decrease. The price cut amounts to around 10% and still the scooter is the most expensive in the market . 

Although I don't disbelieve the clam of operational efficiency for the price-cut, I think there is an inherent confusion in the brand regarding its approach to the Indian market. There are also rumours of a mass-market launch from Vespa  aimed at volume. If that is the case, then how will the brand justify the premium for the current offering which is not feature packed.

India is a market where the utilitarian point of view of consumers are very high. Even if consumers splurge crores of money in luxury , the mental accounting regarding the value proposition is very strong. In this information age, it is surprising that Vespa overlooked the value proposition. 

The current price rationalization is not enough to excite the consumers because the value proposition of competitive offerings are more compelling. Ofcourse there is a niche segment who look for exclusivity but going by the noises made by the brand, it looks at volume rather than niche.

Having said that, the current launch can also be viewed as a test dose ( an expensive one) for gauging consumer response to a Vespa offering . The brand can take solace that consumers have viewed the brand in a positive light and has showed genuine interest in  what is being offered. The positioning based on the brand's iconic global status has also well received. May be the brand will reduce its arrogance and offer a better value proposition in future.

Related story

Vespa 

Odomos : Play it Safe

Brand : Odomos
Company : Dabur

Brand Analysis Count : 519

Odomos is a 40 year old brand which has a generic status in the mosquito repellent cream market in India. The brand which was originally from Balsara came into Dabur's fold after the acquisition  of Balsara Hygiene Products  in 2005. 

The household insecticide market in India is worth around Rs 1600 crore. The smallest of the segment in this market is the mosquito repellent cream segment which is of size Rs 50 crore. The largest segment of the insecticide market is that of mosquito coil which is worth Rs 900 crore. Odomos has a virtual monopoly in the cream market.

The small size of the mosquito repellent cream market is the problem that the brand faces. The major challenge is to make the segment grow. Having said that, creams have found lukewarm response from the consumer. The major reason being the questions regarding the efficacy and safety of the product which needs to be directly applied to the skin. 

As a consumer , I too had these questions regarding Odomos. But should say from my experience that Odomos is very effective. But mosquitoes are smarter lot and they know to search and bite on places where Odomos cream is not applied. 

Odomos as a brand has  tried to address this safety issue by getting endorsement from medical associations. The brand prominently displays the message of  being "Skin Friendly " in their packs. Another bold step that the brand took was to target kids. The move is risky because parents would think twice before using Odomos regularly on kids because the perceived risk is too high.

Odoms now has product forms of Cream, Lotin and Oil. Odomos mosquito repellent oil was created to target rural market because oil product form has more acceptance in that market. More over oil applies better on the skin and is more effective in the job.

The brand owners have invested consistently on the brand. The distribution reach is very good for this product. Earlier, one inhibiting factor was the price which has now being resolved. Odomos have come out with smaller packs of Rs 5 and Rs 10 which I would say will encourage more buys.

The challenge for the brand is to make consumer consider Odomos as the primary defense option against mosquitoes. The product  is has maximum utility outside the house and that is why the brand is promoting it for kids who wants to play outside. The brand is also trying to promote its safety aspect through a variant Odomos Naturals which contains Aloe Vera. 

As a user of this brand, these questions are still  there regarding safety. Odomos despite running so many campaigns so far has still not convinced me that it is safe for regular use. The dilemma for the brand is that it cannot harp too much that it is safe because consumers then will think that it is mild and hence may not be effective .

In times where mosquitoes are now immune to coils and vaporizers , Odomos has proven to be a best bet for a good night sleep. 

Brand Update : Gems wants you to Raho Umarless

Gems Surprise launched in 2010 is a poor cousin of Kinder Joy. The variant launched to fight the Kinder Joy  became a poor second cousin because of unimaginative gifts and poor campaigns.Last week my daughter demanded she wants a Gems Surprise but I flatly refused saying that the toy that comes with it may not be attractive  and we settled for Kinder Joy for Girls.

Now Gems Surprise has corrected the mistake by launching a new set of toys featuring the Panda which has been  the main character in Gem's campaign.
The variant is currently running a TVC featuring adults in line with the brand's strategy of targeting adults .

Watch the campaign here : Gems Umarless

The TVC is well made but one wonders whether there is some confusion regarding the targeting part of STP.

As I understand, Gems Surprise is fighting against Kinder Joy which is targeting kids. Now Gems Surprise wants adults to buy the brand and collect the toys. Now that is ridiculous. Expecting that adults would indulge in a product like Gems Surprise is imagination running wild. Now if the brand expects the kids to buy Gems Surprise by seeing the campaign is also a highly optimistic thought since the ad is appeals to adults rather than kids.

So this is another brand which got confused because of its own actions. The brand should have left this variant to kids. Infact my feeling is that Gems is beginning to alienate the kids and is not making right noises to get adults on board. 

Ideally the brand should have found some universal message that has appeal across age groups. Cadburys has done that with Dairy Milk. In the case of Gems, the brand is just saying that it is Umarless ( Ageless) but not saying Why ?. What Gems needs is the universal brand mantra that appeals to everyone regardless of age.

Related post

Cadbury Gems : changes segment

Brand Update : Can SRK save Lux ?

SRK is once again featuring in the ad of Lux. It was in 2005 that SRK stunned brand watchers in an ad for Lux. At that time Lux was celebrating 75 years of stardom. Circa 2012, Shah Rukh Khan again stars in Lux ad  not for  celebration of any milestone but a desperate attempt to rejuvenate the brand.

Lux which always centered around celebrities has been struggling for the last few years.Reports suggest that Lux is witnessing a de-growth thanks to competition from the likes of Santoor. Lux over the years has been facing a positioning problem which I have highlighted in my previous posts about the brand. Too many variants shifted the HUL's focus from strengthening the core brand to leveraging or rather squeeze the brand equity. This virtually made the core Lux brand vulnerable to competition. The commoditization of celebrity endorsement further diluted the celebrity-focused positioning of Lux. Virtually the differentiation of Lux was no longer existing. 

Lux is now in an un-enviable position. The core positioning of Lux- beauty soap of stars is virtually being killed by competition. Celebrities now are no longer differentiators. Lux also cannot risk going for a heavy repositioning sans celebrities because of its connection with Stars for over 75 years. The brand is in deep trouble.

With SRK, the brand is attempting another come back. Last year, Lux successfully leveraged Abhishek and Aishwarya and smartly took the platform of  ' Beauty'. 

The current campaign features SRK with the current Lux Diva Katrina Kaif. The brand completely changed its beauty based positioning ( benefit)  and decided to focus on fragrance (product feature ).The brand is pitching that  it contains international quality fragrances. From  benefit to  feature based positioning is a step backward for the brand. Usually brands start with feature based positioning and later graduate to higher -order attributes ( Laddering). Here Lux chose itself to downgrade from a higher -order positioning to basic stuff.The brand is absolutely confused about its future direction. 

Lux in the new campaign has the tagline : "Bas Zara Sa Lux " roughly translated to " Just need a little Lux" . The tagline is ideally suited for a detergent rather than a beauty soap. The treatment of the ad is below average with zero creativity and usual theme. No wonder the brand is on a downward spiral.

Watch the ad here : Lux SRK

What Lux right now needs is a thorough clarity about its brand manthra and its positioning.No amount of celebrity endorsement will work if the brand is confused about its positioning. It had earlier focused on beauty oil and now it is saying that fragrance is the key USP. This confusion is only going to kill this brand unless the marketing brains of HUL sit together and decide on the brand manthra for Lux. Other wise we are going to see the slow death of an iconic brand.

Brand Update : Kinder Joy sharpens its Offering

Despite its higher price, Kinder Joy has found lot of popularity among the consumers. Recently Kinder Joy sharpened its product offering by launching a variant - Kinder Joy for Girls. This is a very significant and smart move by the brand . As a regular purchaser of the brand for my  girl child, often I find that the toy, that is the main attraction for kids, is usually more skewed towards boys. The cars and other characters appeal more to the boys than girls . Most of the time, my kid is not enthused by the toy but she keeps  hoping for a toy she could play with.

I was surprised to see when the shopkeeper gave me the option of choosing Kinder Joy for girls. And my girl was thrilled when she got a Barbie bracelet from the egg.

Now Kinder has made life easier for parents of girl child but if you have a boy and a girl, then you are in for trouble.

The move by Kinder offer lot of challenges in the distribution side, Firstly it needs to convince the retailer to stock these two SKUs . So more shelf space means more effort by the sales team. Since one cannot expect that both these SKU will move in the same way. So it will take some time for Kinder to get a grip on the demand of these two SKUs.

The launch of Kinder Joy for girls is an example of brand listening to customer needs and proactively addressing the needs. 

Related Brand

Kinder Joy : Surprise Inside

Brand Update : RIP Tata Tion ( 2009-2011)

Tata Tion- the non-carbonated beverage drink from Tata Beverages has bite the dust. The brand which was derived from tea extracts and the differentiator was the presence of Ginseng which gave the drink a healthy proposition was discontinued merely after one year of existence . 

Although the product had good intentions, consumers gave it a lukewarm reception. Two factors may have affected the life of the brand a) Taste b) Price . Tion's taste may have acted as a big downer and it never appealed to the masses. Second factor is the price. Tion was very expensive and even though Tata launched a smaller SKU, the quantity was never enough to quench the thirst. That was also the first impression when I tried out the brand. 

Another issue was the segmentation. Tion was not able to clearly focus on its TG. Who would actually buy a product like Tion ? Tion infact tried to cater to every one hence the brand positioned itself very loosely. The tagline " Why Let Go " is a result of such a unfocused positioning. The brand at best would appeal to the set of consumers who wanted a healthier alternative to softdrinks and that is definitely not youngsters.

Tion was bit too early in targeting the mass using the health proposition. Although many experts harp on the trend towards healthy foods, the idea is still in the utopian stage and has not translated into purchases . 

Related Brand 

Tata Tion - Why Let Go