Brand Update : Is Santoor testing a new positioning ?

Santoor, one of India's largest brand has been on a roll these days. Recently, the brand became the second largest selling soap by volume, toppling HUL's Lux ( Source). The success of the brand is attributed to the consistency and focus in brand building.

Recently an interesting twist has happened in the brand's approach to positioning. The brand relaunched its Santoor Gold in a new avatar. Santoor Gold was launched in 2015 as a premium variant differentiated by the presence of Sakura extracts and saffron as the ingredient. The product was launched initially in the southern states like AP. Three years later, the variant is relaunched. This time the sakura extract is missing and prominence are given to the saffron and sandal ingredient.
More importantly, the ad of this variant does not follow the core positioning of the parent brand - the mistaken identity.

This is a drastic change in terms of the brand's positioning strategy.

Watch the old ad of santoor gold here










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The earlier campaign of Santoor Gold followed the mistaken identity theme. The question remains as to why the brand chose to tread a new path for its variant? One scenario is that the brand is testing a new positioning different from the age-old one with the new variant. The second scenario is that the brand chose to have a new positioning for the variant targeting a much younger crowd.
However, theoretically, it is always better to have the variants following the positioning theme of the parent brand otherwise the synergy of the brand-line promotions will be lost.

Prepair : Be Prepared

Brand: Prepair
Company: Vini Cosmetics

Brand Analysis Count: #585

Recently Vini Cosmetics Ltd, which is famous for the Fogg brand, launched a new brand Prepair ant-ageing segment. The Indian anti-aging market is worth around Rs 1500 crore ( as per Business Standard) and around Rs 2600 crore as per IIFL. The market is at a nascent stage but is expected to grow owing to the aging population and expansion of the category by marketers. 

The market already has seen global brands like Olay in the past. However, Olay was skimming the market with its premium positioning. Later the market witnessed the entry of HUL with Ponds Age Miracle range and Nivea with Q10 Plus. But these global brands tried their luck in the premium space of the segment. 

Vini Cosmetics has probably spotted the gap in the market and has launched the brand Prepair aiming at the larger pie of the segment at a lower price point. Prepair is created as a family brand endorsing multiple products in the anti-aging segment. The company has launched Prepair regenerating skin cream for women as Prepair 4050. For men, the company has launched Prepair 40+; probably men won't mind if the brand says openly that it is for the age group of 40 above. The brand name is a compound brand name or Lexical brand name combining Prepare and Repair. The tagline is Be Prepared. 

The brand is launched with ads that are aimed at category development. The ads are plain-vanilla informative in its execution. 

There are separate campaigns for male and female segments.
The large FMCG market in India offers a lot of opportunities for niche products. The Indian market is such that these niche markets often grew to become large segments. Vini Cosmetics is betting on the anti-aging personal care segment as one which has the potential to grow big.

Too Yumm! : Eat Guilt-Free

Brand: Too Yumm!
Company: Guilt Free Industries ( Sanjiv Goenka Group)

Brand Analysis Count :# 584

Too Yumm! is a brand which created a lot of interest during the IPL 2018. This is a new brand from the RP-Sanjiv Goenka group. It's for a long time such a big ticket launch is happening in the FMCG space. 

Indian salted snacks market is worth Rs 23000crore as per Economic Times. The salty snacks market is further divided into following sub-segments; India namkeens valued at Rs 9500 crore, Potato Chips valued at Rs 5500 Crore, Extruded snacks valued at Rs 4300 crores and Bridges valued at Rs 3400 crore. (Read the ET report here)

Too Yumm! is positioned as a healthy alternative to the existing potato-based chips dominated by Lays. As India moves towards more healthy snack options, the new brand aims to take advantage of this trend. 

Since Too Yumm! is fighting the giants like Pepsico, the brand has taken an aggressive stance. It has roped in the Indian cricket team captain Virat Kohli as the brand ambassador. Virat was recently in news for declining to renew the Pepsi contract. He has taken a stance that he would endorse only products which are promoting good health. (Source: NDTV). So getting Virat to endorse Too Yumm! is a big coup of sorts. 

The brand is positioned as a guilt-free healthy tasty snack. The introductory advertisement was very loud in conveying the message of a guilt-free snack. 

The brand uses the tagline " Eat Lot, Fikar Not"  and the terms " Fikar Not" is retained in the subsequent campaigns which means worry not. The brand later followed up with the launch of multi-grain chips which has the proposition of baked not fried benefit. 

The ads also had some shock value with a fitness icon like Virat endorsing chips and also the visuals showing him non-stop munching. In the later part of the ads, the endorser clarifies on the healthy nature of the product. 

In a marketer's perspective, the brand has ticked all the right boxes. The company has enough cash to burn in promotions. The brand has chosen the right brand ambassador and the positioning is also relevant in this environment. The brand is also priced at par with the going rate. Currently, the brand is available only in select cities. 

The challenge for the brand is to sustain the differentiation. The proposition of a healthy snack is not defendable since the competitor can easily launch their own versions. Secondly, the momentum contributed by the high profile brand ambassador is also not a long-term solution. 

Too Yumm! is all poised to ride the healthy snack food trend for now. 

Brand Update : Patanjali is making Colgate Confused !

Patanjali's Dant Kanti has really made the market leader Colgate in a tight spot. The aggressive promotions and the positioning based on Ayurveda has slightly dented the market share of Colgate. More than the market share, the Ayurveda push may shift the parameters on which the consumers decide on the toothpaste purchase. 

During the initial phase, Colgate tried to counter the Dant Kanti's challenge by strengthening the existing variant  Colgate Herbal and Colgate Salt. But that did not make an impact on the forward march of Dant Kanti. 

Colgate then used the flanker brand Cibaca to fight the challenger. Earlier, when the price warriors like Anchor and Babool challenged Colgate, the market leader used Cibaca to neutralize the threat effectively. This time, the same strategy was used by launching Cibaca Vedshakti which boasted of the natural content. The flanker brand was priced at almost 30% lower than Dant Kanti. 

The strategy seemed to have failed. Recently Colgate launched another variant Colgate Swarna Vedshakti in the Ayurveda space. This time the market leader is launching a direct attack on the competitor with the flagship brand. 

The variant is priced at a premium to the challenger brand. The new variant is positioned as a toothpaste that combines traditional with modern. 

The ads follow the testimonials from mothers to build authenticity to the brand. The current campaign is aimed at increasing the adoption of the brand. 

Now Colgate has two variants with the similar brand name ( or part)- Colgate Cibaca Vedshakti and Colgate Swarna Vedshakti with different prices. My hunch is that Colgate is migrating Vedshakti to the parent brand and may discontinue Cibaca Vedshakti in near future.

Colgate has realized that Dant Kanti is not about fighting on price. Patanjali is making the Ayurveda segment of the toothpaste market which was a niche in to a mainstream segment. If such a shift happens then Colgate's leadership position will be under threat. Colgate probably had done the right thing by fighting Dant Kanti with its flagship brand. 

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Kaytra : Interesting case of co-branding

Brand: Kaytra
Company: AVA Group

Brand Analysis Count: #583

Kaytra is an interesting brand story. The brand is from the AVA Group which is the owner of the famed Ayurvedic brand Medimix. Kaytra is a brand jointly created by AVA Group and the celebrity hairstylist and makeup artist Ambika Pillai. 

This is an example of co-branding and if you observe the logo, you can see the name of Ambika Pillai along with the Kaytra brand. It is not a unique case since Indian market has witnessed many such co-branding exercises. 

As a professional, Ambika Pillai commands a lot of respect in the market. Kaytra's brand promise is that it is created using the expertise of Ambika Pillai. The brand is positioned as a premium product with the personal endorsement from the celebrity hairstylist. 

The brand is now testing the waters in the Kerala market and according to media reports, the brand will be launched in other markets soon. Having said that, I have not seen the products in any of the supermarkets so far. Probably the brand is very selective in the distribution.

The advantage of Kaytra is that AVA Group has expertise in FMCG market and through Medimix has sufficient distribution reach. The second factor is that Ambika Pillai is personally vouching for the brand which adds a lot of power to the authenticity of the brand. The source of the brand equity for Kaytra is Ambika Pillai and her reputation.
On the promotion side, the creator has been able to get the endorsement from many of her celebrity clients and the brand is generating content about personal care in social media. Ads featuring Ambika Pillai is also aired on various television channels.

According to the brand website, Kaytra is the Sutra of good skin and good hair. Interestingly there is no tagline for this brand.

For a product in the hair-care space, the survival of the product solely lies on the tangible performance. Hope that the brand will live up to the expectations set by the creator. 

T-Shine : 100% Organic

Brand: T-Shine
Company: Jyothy Laboratories Pvt Ltd

Brand Analysis Count: 582



In 2017, Jyothy Laboratories ( JLL) launched a new product in the small but growing toilet cleaner market in India. Branded as T-shine, which probably is shortened version of Toilet-Shine, JLL is entering into a market dominated by Harpic.

JLL always launches the products with some uniqueness which has helped its brand beat large competitors. It launched Ujala in the liquid form, Exo with anti-bacterial properties which forced the market leaders to scramble for points of parity.
In the case of T-shine also, the USP of the brand is that it claims to be 100% organic. The Point of Difference is based on the allegation that the existing players in the toilet cleaner market use harmful acids which can cause respiratory issues.


 T-Shine claims that since it is 100% organic, it is safe. The market leader Harpic's USP is the cleaning capability. Harpic has been effective in communicating that to the consumer. Having a sparkling toilet is something of pride - as per the brand communication. Domex, the other major player has been focusing on killing germs. T-Shine is trying to create a separate identity focusing on the organic nature of the product.
With Patanjali also aggressively entering the space, we will see a slew of organic variant launches in this segment.                                                         

Brand Update : Thums Up has a variant Thums Up Charged

In a surprising move, Coca-Cola launched a new variant for Thums Up celebrating 40 years of glorious challenging existence. The new variant is named Thums Up Charged. According to the company, the brand has more thunder in it compared to the parent product. 

Thums Up Charged is currently running the launch campaign featuring the brand ambassador Ranveer Singh. As we know, Ranveer Singh replaced Salman Khan in 2016. With the new brand ambassador, the brand had also changed the narrative. While Thums Up always had the theme of the protagonist chasing the product and doing what it takes to get hold of the product, the new theme completely destroys the core promotional theme by making the protagonist a superhero with the brand as a sidekick. 

The new variant also follows the same theme of the hero doing unbelievable stunts and brand is positioned as an enabler. The current ad is hyperbole at its worst and one wonders what the brand is trying to communicate. 

The act of racing in reverse gear is something I cannot comprehend even in my dreams. While the earlier campaigns featuring Salman or Akshay, there was hyperbole but in those ads, the fact that the stunts are done for getting the brand made sense. There Thums Up was the hero, not anymore. 

The logic of launching Thums Up Charged is also intriguing. What can be the possible reasons?

The stated reason is to expand the brand and fuel growth. Often brands use product-line extensions as tools for growth.  But the question is whether a brand like Thums Up needs a variant for growth. My understanding is that Coca-Cola never aggressively pushed for growth for Thums Up. The brand is so strong that it doesn't need a variant for growth, only focused efforts from the company are needed. 

A conspiracy theory from my side is that the company may be trying for a taste change for the brand. According to newspaper reports, the Thums Up Charged have a higher amount of caffeine which gives it more punch compared to the original one. The new variant will test the new taste and if the consumers accept the new taste, then slowly the variant will replace the original one in future. 

The performance of Thums Up Charged would be an interesting thing to watch for months to come. This summer would decide the fate of this variant and the future of original Thums Up. 

However, here is wishing a Happy 40th Birthday to Thums Up. 

Veeba : Aaj Kya Khaoge

Brand: Veeba
Company: Veeba Food Service

Brand Analysis Count: # 581

Veeba is an excellent example of  forward integration. The company which is one of the major suppliers of salad dressings and sauces deciding to enter into consumer retail. The company is a major supplier for brands like KFC. 

In 2015, the company decided to enter into the consumer retailing of its wide range of sauces, dressings etc and in December 2107, Veeba made an aggressive marketing campaign across the various media.

 Indian food industry is worth $48 billion (source: Livemint) and is witnessing a lot of action owing to the changing demographic profile and a shift in consumer behavior. The relevance of a brand like Veeba is enhanced because of the shift in consumer behavior. According to this interesting piece from Best Media, Indian consumers are becoming foodies. Not only that there is a trend of experimental cooking at home but in that consumers look for convenience. 

The interest in the food is not new in the Indian market. However, we are also seeing an influence of West in the food habits which is also reflected in the home cooking part. Veeba tries to capitalize on this trend and one of the news report calls the products of Veeba as " enabler" which is a very good description of the brand. 

The brand campaign by Veeba correctly captures the value proposition of the brand. 

The ad highlights two main value proposition of Veeba - Convenience and Variety. The brand has the tagline " Aaj Kya Khaoge " which translates to  " What will you eat today " gels well with the brand's value proposition. 

  I feel that as a brand, Veeba has hit the right notes to capture the attention of the consumers. The brand is also priced quite competently and is available in many supermarkets although the distribution is yet to reach its required intensity at least in my city ( Cochin). 

The brand's major challenge is competition. It is interesting that the owners of Veeba created the brand Fun Foods which was sold to the German company Oetker which is also in the same line of business. If you go to a supermarket, we can see a lot of brands jostling for space in this category. While Veeba has essentially created an attractive value proposition and brand awareness, the sustainability of this will be crucial to brand's success in future. 

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Bajaj Dominar : Go Hyperriding

Brand: Dominar
Company: Bajaj Auto

Brand Analysis Count: #580

In December 2016, Bajaj Auto launched a new product line under the brand Dominar. Dominar was Bajaj Auto's challenger for the market leader in the 250- 500 cc premium motorcycle segment  - Royal Enfield. Royal Enfield commands almost 96% share in this segment. According to reports, Royal Enfield managed to sell 3500 - 4500 units every month. 

And Dominar arrived in style. The launch was marked by a campaign which made fun of the market leader. 

The advertisement had two objectives. First is obviously to create attention and it does with perfection. The second objective is more subtle. The objective is to establish a competitive frame of reference in the mind of the consumer. Dominar doesn't want to be seen as a sports bike in the same class of the best selling Pulsar. If the customer categorizes Dominar in the same category as Pulsar, it can lead to cannibalization. Hence Dominar wants the consumer to consider the brand as a competitor for Enfield even though the brand looks very different from the market leader. 

Another objective is the create a comparison with the exemplar - in this case, Enfield, and thus make the consumer compare the brand with the market leader thus making an entry into the choice set of the consumer. 

Dominar is positioned on the performance platform. The brand is positioned as a bike which is fast and powerful. The launch campaign " Not for Babies"  was intended to position the brand as the fastest of the lot. 

The results during the launch were very good for Dominar. It even closed the gap with the market leader in some months, but later the sales plummetted which prompted Bajaj to refresh the product line with new launches. Some decline is attributed to the GST effect. 

Although the initial advertisement campaign was superb, the brand failed to sustain the creative onslaught. Dominar's current campaign " Dominar vs Social Media " is IMHO a dud campaign. 

The campaign totally looks unbelievable and kiddish. From comparison with Enfield, the brand started its comparison with Social Media ?? This hyperbole not only misses the mark but also dilutes the positioning and image built around challenging Enfield. Probably this lack of creativeness caused the decline in the sales of the brand. 

As per the news reports, Enfield continues the dominance in the segment. In a market where one player holds substantial share, there is always room for other players. But whether Dominar will be able to dominate the segment would largely depend on how the brand is consistently positioned against the competitor. 

Brand Update : Is India Post missing out of e-commerce boom ?

Indian e-commerce industry is on a song these days with Big Billion Days and Great Indian Festivals and products flying off from the web-shelves. According to KPMG, on an average, there are 1-1.2 million transactions happening in India every day. Indian e-commerce industry had done business worth $12 billion GMV in 2016. Analysts paint a bright future for this industry in years to come. 

The backbone of the e-commerce boom is the logistics. According to KPMG report (Link), the logistics industry driving the e-commerce is worth $ 0.46 Bn and expected to touch $2.2bn in 2020. 

With all these actions happening, our very own India Post seems to be taking a backseat in the whole festival. While Flipkart and Amazon have already built their own logistics arm, there are scores of entrepreneurs who want a reliable logistics partner who can reach the nook and corner of a vast country like ours.  

Look at India Post, no one can beat the reach and equity of this institution. At the same time, the institution is also not in good shape financially. One year back the department has scaled down its post offices and closed down a lot of unviable post offices. In a country where last-mile connectivity is a bottleneck for many firms, India Post scales down its reach to become financially viable. Irony. 

 According to this report in ET (link) India Post is taking actions to reap the benefits of this e-commerce boom but not enough. By this time, it could have been the largest beneficiary of the boom. But sadly the institution failed to capitalize the opportunity. It could have geared up the infrastructure and technology to match the speed of the market. I think the game is not over yet with many new formats are being explored in the Indian market and lot of small shops are getting on the bandwagon. Hope that India Post can become the preferred partner for those firms who desperately need a reliable last-mile partner. 

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