Raymond Whites : 100 Styles, One Color

Raymond, the premier textile brand, has launched a very interesting marketing move- launching of Raymond Whites. Raymond Whites is a collection of  white shirts and the brand has smartly made it a very interesting proposition. ( Hat tip - blog from my colleague Prof. Padmanabhan).

Now every formal menswear brand has a collection of white shirts. White is a preferred formal wear color and is in every executive's wardrobe. What Raymond has done is to make it a talking point for the brand. The brand has done it by launching the collection with an astounding proposition - 100 styles. Can you believe it ? 100 styles of one color !!  It is not difficult but Raymond has smartly marketed ( and owned) it. 

Now I am not saying that this is going to be a game changer move. But for Raymond, this campaign would help in many ways. 

Primarily this collection and campaign will reinforce the position of Raymond as a very Stylish Corporate wear brand.The emphasis of 100 styles will also project Raymond as a brand which is innovative and stylish - both these traits are very critical in this business. 

The Raymond brand is facing stiff competition from Madura Fashions The competing brands like Van Heusen and Louis Philippe are moving ahead with a focus on innovation. Van Heusen is focussing on innovation and Louis Philippe is positioned as Perfect Shirt. So Raymond has to up the ante. 

The Raymond Whites has definitely succeeded in capturing the attention of consumers. The launch campaign is well made and creates a premium feel for the collection.

 Watch the TVC here : Raymond Whites ad

With a price range of Rs 2500, Raymond Whites is well set to own a very important color in the corporate work wear category. 

Brand Update : Thums Up in a Celebrity Trap

Thums Up which is one of the most resilient brands in the Indian market was in the news recently when the parent Coca-Cola decided to drop Salman Khan as the brand ambassador. ( source). The reports also suggest that the brand is in talks with actor Ranveer Singh

to replace the Khan. That points  to a celebrity trap which this brand has fallen into.

It is true that Thums Up has always been promoted using a celebrity, be it Akshay Kumar or Salman Khan, but the fact is that Thums Up has moved into a position where it cannot think of a promotional strategy sans a celebrity. That is why the news report announcing  Salman's exit also suggest the search for new celebrity.

Soft drink brands are always after celebrity as if there is no existence without a famous personality endorsing it. While there are a lot of advantages of using a celebrity, the fact remains that slowly but surely, the brand and the brand manager loses confidence to go without the support of celebrity. 

It is sad to see the same thing happening for Thums Up. The brand doesn't need a celebrity. In the brand's early years, the equity of the brand was built  from within. Now the brand is trying to find a celebrity so that it can depend on the celebrity for equity which, at least theoretically, is bad for the brand. Thums Up has the innate strength which made it overcome the existential crisis when the owners decided to kill it. That strength was not from any celebrity endorsement but the image of a rough resilient brand. Coca-Cola should at least try making the brand stand on its own rather than going the easy way out. 

Colgate Pain Out : Crafting a New Segment

Indian oral hygiene market is huge with a market size of Rs 7000 crore. Colgate dominates the market with a share of over 55%. The market is witnessing a new wave of competition with the entry of Patanjali brand.

Although the market is live with competition, not much action is happening with respect to product innovation. Except for  some incremental innovations like new flavors/variants, nothing much has happened in terms of new product development.

In this context, the launch of Pain Out stands out. Colgate Pain Out is a new product that aims at express pain relief from sudden tooth pain. The product is a gel form which has ingredients like camphor, Eugenol, and menthol. The product gives a symptomatic relief from tooth pain. 

The brand is interesting because it aims to satisfy an unfulfilled need in the market. Tooth pain comes unexpected and often the fear of going to a dentist forces people to suffer the pain till it becomes unbearable. Then they try using home remedies, then paracetamol and if everything fails , then they go to a dentist. 

So it makes sense to have a product that gives instant relief to pain. The challenge for the brand is to create brand salience where consumers remember the brand when there is a need. It would be optimistic to believe that consumers would stock this product in anticipation of a toothache. So the natural communication choice would be to have top of mind recall which is a costly proposition. 

The brand is currently running the launch ad which focuses on its USP of express relief . Watch the ad here : Colgate Pain Out , The silver line is that the incidence of a toothache is very high and a powerful relief would be welcomed by the consumers.