Puro Salt : How far the brand can ride the purity proposition ?

 Brand: Puro Salt
Company: Puro Wellness Pvt Ltd
Brand Analysis Count: # 621

Puro is a relatively new entrant into the Indian salt market. Indian salt market is a huge size of around INR 27Bn. India is also the world's third-largest producer of salt. The Indian salt market is dominated by Tata Salt with a market share of around 17%.

In a commodities market with very low entry and exit barriers, it would be tough for a new entrant to survive. But a company named Puro Wellness is trying its luck through its brand Puro. Puro Wellness was established in 2016 and its first product is salt. The company has tried to use the " Pure" proposition to create a space for Puro brand of salt. Pure is a well-used marketing proposition and is used extensively across various product categories. This strategy is especially used when the category is predominantly a commodity. In spices, sugar, pulses etc we have seen this strategy being used extensively.

I also remember the efforts of Parrys Sugar taking the same purity platform to create a space in the sugar market. So from a marketing strategy perspective, there is nothing new about what Puro is doing in the Indian market but the way it is executing the strategy is interesting. The brand uses a comparative advertising format not against a specific competitor but rather against the category of white salt. Pure salt is pink salt and is cleverly trying to break away from the white salt category and create a new category ( not exactly new but owning) of pink salt. The brand is saying that pink salt is better than white salt because it does not use bleach to get that white colour. The company has used celebrities such as Anil Kapoor and Keerthi Suresh to bring authenticity to the claim. If it clicks, there is a chance that many customers will switch to pink salt perceiving it to be pure. 

This has rang alarm bells in the competitors and the market leader has gone to court challenging the claim of Puro but the court did not provide any relief to the complainant. 

The company also started launching another product turmeric under the Puro brand name with the same promise of purity. The brand has the name advantage that links directly with the purity positioning. Puro salt is priced at very premium compared to ordinary salt. 

While Puro has been heavily investing in promotions, the problem with the purity proposition is that it is very difficult to own that brand proposition. If Tata Salt or any other competitor launches pink salt and calls it pure, there is nothing one can do. So here the top of the mind-share becomes the critical determinant of success which is a cash-burning strategy. On the other hand, what else a brand can do to break into a commodity market ?

Astral Pipes : Who thinks about a Pipe?

 Brand: Astral Pipes

Company: Astral Pipes Ltd

Brand Analysis Count: #608

Astral Pipes one of the leading player in the CPVC pipes category. The company has around 25% market share in this category. The plastic pipe market in India is estimated to be around Rs 21500 Crore. Astral pipes came into existence in 1998. At that time, the market was dominated by GI pipes. After many attempts, Astral pipes were able to pivot the market towards CVPC pipes which now has become a mainstream choice.

It was not an easy task for the company to change the market's preference. It found that although the engineers and supervisors were convinced about the superiority of CVPC pipes, plumbers who were the major influencers were not taken aboard. Since the CVPC pipes were expensive, the company approached this issue on two fronts. At the influencer level, it pursued an outreach program for the plumbers convincing them about the product superiority and at the product level, the company made efforts to reduce the price differential betting on the volume play. 

Then the company did the impossible, it ran a very striking branding program. Just like what Asian Paints did to the paint market by branding, Astral tried the same in the pipe category. For that, it chose two platforms- Bollywood and Cricket. Astral in a way behaved like an FMCG company trying to associate with movie stars. And success came with the product placement in the hit Salman Khan movie- Dabangg. The product placement in the movie earned the brand a nickname- Dabangg pipe. Buoyed by the success, the brand went on to associate with many Bollywood blockbusters thus increasing the awareness of the brand. Along with this, Astral pipes roped in Salman Khan to endorse the brand and there was no looking back. 

On the cricket front, Astral Pipes associated with IPL by sponsoring teams like Rajasthan Royals, Sunrisers Hyderabad which further helped the brand in building awareness. As we all know, one of the fundamental building blocks of brand equity is brand awareness and Astral Pipes were able to create a strong foundation. 

In 2020-21, the brand has roped in Ranveer Singh as the brand ambassador. The brand is currently running a very interesting campaign themed " Who thinks about Pipes? "

What is interesting about this campaign is the thought process and the issue that the brand is trying to address. The theme " Who thinks about pipe" rightly captures the issue that Astral pipes try to address. Actually who think about pipes anyway?

For a brand, this question is a make or break for brand. If the consumer doesn't think about pipes, then the purchase will be a commodity purchase with price as the deciding factor. So the current campaign in a way urges the consumer to think about this product category. Further, the brand assures the consumer that as a company, they are constantly thinking about building excellent pipes hence the consumer can trust the brand. With a touch of humour, the ads deliver the message very effectively. 

Astral has also explored various promotional options other than ads. In 2017, it launched a much-acclaimed video #Everywomensright promoting the concept of toilets in every house.

The types of above-the-line marketing efforts are rare in a product category like pipes where the energy and investment are more on dealer relationships and margin management. Astral has paved a new path of marketing in this otherwise dull category. 

TT Asafoetida : A Heritage Brand Celebrating 125 years.

 Brand: Tasty Tasty Asafoetida
Company: Mahesh Value Group

Brand Analysis Count: # 600

The trigger to this post is a television ad of TT perungayam ( Asafoetida) I saw recently. A quick search found something interesting and new to me so thought of putting this as my 600th brand analysis. The most interesting fact about this brand is history. This brand born in 1895 is celebrating 125 years of existence and it is something to be celebrated. In this ever-changing world, how many brands, big or small can boast of such a history? 

This brand is not from a glamorous industry but from a commodity - common asafoetida which is an integral ingredient of South Indian cuisine. This brand may have survived this long because of this close connection with culture. In marketing, we learn about the interaction of culture with the choice of products. Most likely, these brands have become an integral part of the kitchen. 

It is not that the brands selling these products are not promoted. Brands like TT, LG are promoting heavily in their respective regional markets. In fact, a search for asafoetida ads can throw up a lot of brand advertisements in this category. Another interesting information was regarding the brand name TT stands for Tasty Tasty. 

Although TT as a brand is famous for asafoetida, it had launched brand extensions like appalam ( pappad) and also into the highly competitive spice masala market.

To commemorate the 125 years, the brand has recently upped its promotions across various channels. The brand is focusing on the health benefits of asafoetida as its USP. As we know about the commodities, its very difficult to find and establish a sustainable point-of-difference since the characteristics or benefits are common for all marketers of these commodities. However, TT is trying to own the health benefits platform through its claim that the product is made from the natural first extract of the latex from the plant. 

These brands will remain as long as there is a major shift in consumer preference from traditional food choices. Some brands are blended deeply with the culture which is often enduring. The challenge comes when these ingredients become a part of a package and customers need not buy these ingredients separately. Till that time, these brands will be around.

Related Brand

LG Asafoetida

Dr.Fixit : Waterproofing Ka Doctor

Brand: Dr. Fixit
Company: Pidilite

Brand Analysis Count: #577

Dr.Fixit is a classic example of how to brand a commodity. Dr.Fixit is the market leader in Rs 2500 Crore scientific waterproofing solutions market. According to Outlook Business, Dr.Fixit originally was a brand of Mahindra Engineering and was bought by Pidilite in 2000. 

Waterproofing solutions products are generally considered to be a business product and usually does not come under the radar of a consumer. Like the iconic brand Fevicol, Pidilite is trying to create a brand out of such a product category which usually is not branded. Earlier waterproofing solutions were promoted through plumbers who are basically playing the role of influencer, decider, and purchaser of such product. 

While consumers are aware of the importance of waterproofing and the perils of having a house that leaks, there is generally an apathy and laziness from the part of consumers with regard to the purchase of such products. Dr.Fixit through its promotions was intending to break that apathy. 

It is not an easy task to try to brand a product like Dr.Fixit. First, the brand has to create awareness about the need for waterproofing and then it should try to build on brand preference and purchase. The first phase of the promotion of Dr.Fixit was to create an awareness. Fixit has managed to do just that through its partnership with O&M.

Just like Fevicol, Fixit also uses humor to the maximum. In 2016, Pidilite roped in Amitabh Bachchan as the brand ambassador for Dr.Fixit. That was a very bold move from the brand and a symbol of commitment from Pidilite to grow the Fixit to greater heights. 

One of the main reason for choosing Big B was to build authority to the brand. Dr.Fixit was positioned as an Expert in waterproofing solutions. Hence the brand needs to project that expertise or authority to the consumers through its campaign. One way to build authority is to use a celebrity who commands the trait of authority. Big B is known to convey such a trait. So there was a celebrity-brand positioning match in this case. 

O&M cleverly used Big B in the ads by having one set of ads where Big B uses his real persona to deliver the brand message of preventive waterproofing. The role of BigB is huge for such a brand message because a consumer will invest in a preventive solution only if he is fully convinced about the consequences of not waterproofing. So an authoritative figure talking about perils of leakage will drive home the point. 

In another series, Big B was used in a humorous manner. The aim of such a campaign is to create brand awareness.

Dr.Fixit is positioned as a Waterproofing Expert. In advertisements, the brand uses the tagline " Waterproofing Ka Doctor". 

Along with the promotions, Pidilite also invests heavily in R&D for this category. The company has created an Institute of Structural Protection and Rehabilitation where scientists work towards finding better solutions for this sector. Dr.Fixit now has around 50 products under it offering a wide range of waterproofing solutions. The brand also has Dr.Fixit experience centers where the influencers like plumbers and consumers can learn more about effective waterproofing solutions. 

Dr.Fixit is a complete marketing package which shows how a brand can be created in a less glamorous product category through innovation, creativity and sustained brand building investments. 

Roma Switches : India's Largest Selling Modular Switches

Brand : Roma
Company : Anchor ( Panasonic)

Brand Analysis Count : 516

Indian switch market is estimated to be around INR1800 crore and is dominated by Anchor with a share of 50%. Anchor Electricals which is one of India's largest electrical  products company was formed in 1963 and virtually created the branded electrical accessory market in India. The company effectively filled the need for quality and reliable electrical products in a market dominated by unorganized players.

In 1976, the company launched India's first Piano type switch with the sub-brand Roma. The product was highly successful and Roma became India's largest selling modular switch. ( Source : superbrand). In 2007, Anchor was taken over by Panasonic and now is a subsidiary of the global giant.

Roma is the market leader in the INR 800 crore modular switch market. The brand was earlier promoted as a sub-brand of Anchor ( Anchor Roma) and was heavily supported by the company interms of its brand building efforts.

Anchor should be very much appreciated for building a brand in a boring product category like switches. The brand was able to change consumer's perception about products like modular switches. One has to take into account that consumers where not considering switches as style statements but as a functional product.

Roma was promoted by Anchor by highlighting its aesthetics and reliability. The brand earlier had the tagline " Zindagi Khubsoorat Banaye "  Watch the ad here : Anchor Roma 

After the acquisition by Panasonic ,  Roma was elevated as an individual brand endorsed by "  Anchor by Panasonic " . Roma also launched its premium range branded as Romoa Viola and promoted by a hyperbole type ad.

Roma is again in the consumer's mindspace because of the new campaign revolving around the brand's claim of being the " Largest selling modular switch brand in India". In positioning parlance, the brand has taken on Category Positioning .
Watch the ads here : Roma Butterfly ad
                                Roma Marble Ad
The ads are created for only one purpose i.e to highlight the fact that Roma is the best selling switches in the country. The brand also have the tagline " India's largest selling modular switches ". This is a straight textbook strategy of owning up the category and positioning as the category leader.
The basic premise of the campaign is that consumers are not aware of the leadership position and the brand wants to remind them so as to assure that they are buying the market leading brand. Although the theme of the ad, its setting has a total disconnect with the product, the campaign however drives the message to the mind of the consumer.
I remember Orpat and Ajanta brands positioning on the platform of being the " Largest ". Being the largest, biggest, etc give some kind of an assurance to the consumers regarding the quality, reliablity , support etc.
Although being the " Largest " has its own set of  advantages, Roma needs to cover its flanks because lot of brands like Legrand, Havell etc were able carve out mindspace by positioning on aesthetics , reliability etc.Harping on being " The Largest " may not be enough.

Brand Update : Parachute Advansed Owns World's Best Hair

In an absolutely fabulous positioning initiative, Parachute Advansed has owned up the " World's Best Hair" proposition. I would term it as one of the smartest positioning move in 2012 so far. Parachute Advansed which is the line- extension of Parachute Coconut Oil brand takes care of all the value- added coconut personal care products. Under the Advansed sub-brand, Parachute has products like Ayurvedic hair oil, hair gel for men, cooling oil etc.

This year , brand has decided to own the most important positioning platform " World's Best Hair". The campaign featuring the celebrity endorser  Deepika Padukone is on air in most of the channels.

Watch the ad here : Parachute Advansed
The campaign which includes digital ( in a big way) is based on a research finding that users of Parachute Advansed hair oil has better hair than the non-users of hair oils ( source ).

It is not the research but the positioning platform which is an absolutely wonderful and powerful one. By taking the ownership of " world's best hair" and backing it up with a research ( which will be ignored by skeptics), Parachute Advansed moved a notch up interms of positioning. The ad agency did a smart job in passing the message in a beautiful manner.

" The world's best hair " campaign is one of the very thoughtful and powerful campaign in recent times. The brand has put itself into a powerful position and will force the competitor to negate this aggressive stance.As for the consumer is concerned, the current campaign will reinforce their choice of using hair oil for hair protection and may prompt non-users ( of category) to try out this brand.

Related brand
Parachute   

Binani Cement : Sadiyon Ke Liye

Corporate Brand : Binani Cement
Agency : By Design India Pvt Ltd

Brand Analysis Count : 436

Binani Cement is one of the mid-sized cement brands in the highly competitive Indian cement industry . Binani cements belongs to to Braj Binani group. The group ventured into cement manufacturing in 1997 . Binani Cements is now a 1900 crore company with significant presence in states like Rajasthan ,Delhi, Punjab , Haryana and Gujarat. The company also has presence in foreign countries like Middle East and China.

Indian cement marketers has long been trying to brand this commodity. Binani is one such player who has taken up branding in a serious manner. The brand is relying on the celebrity power to build its equity. Binani Cement used the cricketing master Sunil Gavaskar to promote its brand during the launch phase in 1997. After a long period of silence, the brand began to invest heavily in brand promotion from 2007.

The brand chose the ever green Amitabh Bachchan as the brand ambassador in 2007. There was lot of buzz during the time big B was chosen to endorse a cement brand.

Binani Cement started using Big B in the television commercials in a dignified manner. This is one of those brands that tried to make use of Bachchan's charisma to the brand's advantage. The ads were laden with subtle humor and according to the reports, Binani cement's sales surged during these campaigns.

Watch the campaigns here : Binani Cement 1, Binani Cement 2

The brand did a smart move by taking advantage of the fact that both the brand and the brand ambassador name starts with B. The cement brand began to call itself Big B. While the brand gains by the association, there were many critics who argued that now Big B will be associated with cement rather than celebrity.

Binani cement has the tagline " Sadiyon Ke liye" which means " for centuries ".

Although the ads featuring Bachchan was well made, I felt that it lacked a punch. The brand lacked a powerful message . I would even say that the brand is not able to convey its brand manthra to the consumers. That may be the reason why those ads did not stick with the consumers.

When trying to brand a commodity, the brand should stand for something significant. It should be either strength , quality , trust , heritage, etc. Although Binani Cement has a good tagline, the emphasis was not there on any significant USP. The brand could have done much better if it had focused on a key strength of the brand and used the celebrity to emphasis that strength. For example Gujarat Ambuja has owned the USP of Strength and Ultratech is taking the positioning as Engineers Choice. So when comparing with these competitors, Binani Cement does not have a clarity in its positioning. It seems that it is trying to derive some strength through association with a celebrity. Such a celebrity dependent positioning strategy is not advisable for the brand . Ideally Binani could have identified its strength and used celebrity to highlight that strength.

To be fair to the brand, it has to be highly appreciated to venture into investing money in building a brand in the commodity space.
Related Brands
Ultratech
Gujarat Ambuja

Ambuja Cements : Branding a Commodity

Corporate Brand : Ambuja Cements

Company : Ambuja Cements Ltd ( Holcim Group Company)
Agency : Grey

Brand Analysis Count : 423

Ambuja Cements formerly Gujarat Ambuja is one of India's largest cement brands. The company came into existence in 1984. Ambuja Cements is a classic example of a successful commodity branding.
Indian cement market is different from the rest of the world because the largest segment of buyers of cement in India is the individual home owners rather than the institutions. Although this scenario is witnessing a change due to the boom in the organized realty sector, individual home owners form a significant segment that no cement marketers can ignore.
Although these individuals shell out the money to purchase cement, they are not the decision makers in the buying process.

The intermediaries like the contractors , masons etc take up the role of the influencer/decision makers in the purchase of this product. Since the consumers view this product as a commodity, the involvement of ordinary home owners in the purchase .

Ambuja Cements is one of the companies that realized the potential of brand as a differentiator. Even in the eighties, Ambuja cements started its activities for building the brand. Infact according to Superbrands report, Ambuja cements is the first cement brand to start advertising in television. Ambuja Cements also used the outdoors extensively to reinforce the brand image and enhance brand recall.
Ambuja Cements also focused on influencing the other players in the business like the contractors/masons and engineers through camps and meets.

These initiatives helped Ambuja to charge a premium over other brands. With the competition hotting up from Grasim + Ultratech, Ambuja Cements could hold on to its share because of the brand equity it had created over these years.

While branding the cement commodity,Ambuja Cements concentrated on its core brand promise of " Strength ". All through its campaigns, the brand was very consistent on reinforcing its positioning as the " Strongest " cement . The brand was also very clever in selecting a unique logo.

Commodities are boring products . But for smart marketers, this is also an opportunity to make a difference. Ambuja cements bought in lot of humor to this ( otherwise) boring product. Most of its campaigns are humorous which makes the consumers stick to the advertisements . The ad which I like most is the ad where the brothers ( Boman Irani) try to break the wall which they put up to separate their houses when they were fighting with each other.

Some other ads here : Ambuja 1,
Ambuja 2

These ads reinforce the core positioning of Ambuja as a strong cement. Strength is a very highly relevant attribute as far as customer is concerned.

While branding a commodity, the critical question is whether these ads can influence the consumers to change their commodity mindset towards this category. The answer is definitely affirmative. I have noticed many home owners directly procuring these products for their home construction because they don't trust the contractors. In these scenarios, high brand recall will give the edge for the brands.

Branding can change the perception of consumers towards commodity. The point is to create a compelling reason to do so.

Related Post
Ultratech

Brand Update : La Opala

It has been a long time since I wrote an update on La Opala. There was nothing special that was happening about this brand till recently. The brand has been very consistent in its brand promotion focusing mainly on the print media.

Recently La Opala has roped in the Bollywood Diva Bipasha Basu to endorse its premium range of Opalware " Diva " . The brand is currently running a TVC featuring the brand ambassador. Diva is a brand for those consumers who are aware of the need to add style to their kitchenware. The brand has the tagline " Fine Art of Dining".

Watch the TVC here : La Opala

This is the first time that a crockery brand has roped in a brand ambassador. The new range " Diva " is a light weight crockery targeting the SEC A & B segment.( Source)

La Opala as a brand is trying to position itself as a lifestyle product rather than plain crockery ware. All its brand communications has been focusing on the " Style " factor. This has made La Opala ,a leader in the Rs 500 crore luxury crockery market. According to news reports, La Opala has around 25% share in the crockery market. Crockery accounts for about 25% of the Rs 2000 crore luxury utensils market.

The presence of a celebrity will definitely increase the brand recall for La Opala. The brand is operating in a market which is dominated by unorganized players and also cheap imports. In such a scenario, any investment in increasing brand recall and share of mind will not go waste.

Related Brand

La Opala

Revive : Creating a Category

Brand : Revive
Company : Marico
Agency : Publicis


Brand Analysis Count : 409

Revive is an interesting brand. This is a brand which created the instant starch market in India. Revive can be considered as a classic example of branding a commodity.
Revive was launched in 1993. The brand was received very well by the consumer community. Revive targeted the urban middle and upper households which was willing to pay a premium for convenience.

Revive is also an example of a product that was developed to satisfy a unmet need. Indian households traditionally used starch to stiffen their clothes,especially cotton clothes. The process of making starch and using them was a tedious process for the homemaker. The homemade starch was quite messy and used to leave patches in clothes. It used to smell bad and was not suitable for color clothes.

Revive solved these issues at one go. The brand was initially launched in the powder form. The homemaker could make starch easy by just mixing the powder with water. It offered convenience and saved a lot of time. Another significant advantage of Revive was that it could be used in cold water. Traditional starch needed warm water. Revive also can be used in color clothes which was again a big advantage for the consumers.

It is difficult for the consumer to ignore a product that offers solution to their problems . Revive was successful because it made the life of homemaker little more easier. Revive too had its share of disadvantages. The problem was with the product form and the price. Revive was premium priced compared to the virtually "free" homemade starch. Hence convincing consumers to sample the product was tough. Since the product was in the powder form, consumers was confused about the quantity of powder that should be used.

The real challenge for Revive came when Jyothi Lab launched Stiff & Shine. Stiff & Shine was a liquid stiffener which was much convenient than the powder Revive. Jyothi Lab was trying the same strategy which it used to dethrone Robin powder blue.

But Marico reacted very fast to the challenge posed by Stiff & Shine. It launched the liquid version of Revive very fast and backed it with a heavy dose of campaign.
Revive is focusing on three main attributes in its campaigns- instant starch ( convenience),better stiffness for clothes and no patches.
The fight between Stiff & Shine and Revive is still raging with both brands now linking confidence and social acceptability . Both the brands are running similar campaigns ( using kids) claiming that clothes that are well ironed and shining will earn you self-respect and social acceptance.

Recently Marico took the fight to a new level by launching the liquid blue extension of Revive. I was surprised to see the ad of Revive liquid blue. No further details about this extension is available in the public domain .

Revive is a brand which is promoted heavily by Marico. The instant starch market is still very small and the task of the marketer is to increase the market size rather than to fight for the market share. The recent campaigns connecting the brand and social acceptance is targeted at non-users of this category motivating them to use the product.

The instant starch category has a great market potential and the brands should focus on increasing the category size. There is lot of room for growth for these brands when the category grows . Revive should resist the temptation of extension because the brand will reap rich rewards if it focuses on the category it created.

Related Brand
Ujala

Pearlpet : Har Dil Ka Pet

Brand : Pearlpet
Company : Pearl Polymers
Agency : Imagine

Brand Analysis Count : 396

Pearlpet is a highly successful brand. So successful that the brand has become generic to the category. This is a brand that transformed the Indian kitchenware market. I still remember times where my mother used to store those curry powders in the Horlicks Glass bottles. Now a look the row of plastic containers in the kitchen speaks about the change that this brand has made to the Indian households.

PET stands for Poly Ethylene Terephthelate. PET bottles offered a very convenient safe storage solution for both the industry and households .

PET storage solutions have application in both industry and consumer segments. The pet bottles are used for packaging in various business like Softdrinks, Confectionery etc.

Pearlpet is a brand which was very popular at the home segment.The brand replaced the glass bottles and became the choicest storage solution for the households.
Pearlpet infact satisfied a need for a safe durable storage solution. Glass bottles were very good but had an inherent disadvantage of being unsafe and breakable.

PET jar offered a solution for this.The bottles were looking good, came in convenient sizes and shapes, was unbreakable and priced reasonable.

Pearpet was the first one to create a brand in this emerging category. Pearlpet was introduced in the Indian market in 1984. During those days, the brand advertised heavily and reports say that Malaika Arora was a model for this brand.

On the industrial market segment, the increasing number of brands in the fmcg ,softdrinks and confectionary segment increased the scope of PET products. Pharmaceutical segment also was a huge opportunity for such packaging solutions.

Pearlpet faces competition from two fronts. The greatest threat was from the unorganized local manufacturers. Since consumers do not significantly see a difference between branded and unbranded products, they choose the low priced unbranded bottles and packs. Chinese products also give a huge competition for Pearlpet.

At the higher end of the market, direct marketing giants like Tupperware and international brands like Rubbermaid has carved a niche for itself. They are giving competition at the premium end of the market.

In this highly competitive scenario,Pearlpet however is not aggressive in taking on the competition. The brand is still resting on its laurels. I do not remember seeing any ads/promos of this brand in recent times.Consumers now do not see much difference between Pearlpet and other unbranded ones. This is akin to leaving the entire market open for all competitors.

Pearlpet is missing out opportunities of grabbing maximum from a market which it had created. The brand still have a huge equity which it should nourish and invest . Although reports suggest that the brand have a larger share, the lack of brand promotion can be the Achilles Heel for this brand.

Kohler : The Bold Look

Brand : Kohler
Company : Kohler India


Brand Analysis Count : 375

Kohler is a global brand which has a unique position as a designer kitchen and bathroom accessory brand. This American brand has a rich history dating back to 1883.

Kohler was launched in India in 2006. The company is in the business of power systems , kitchen and bath accessories. Indian bathroom accessory market is worth around Rs 2500 crore and Kohler is aiming the premium segment of the market.

The brand came into my notice when I saw the advertisement of Kohler, where the lady asks the famous architect to build a house around a faucet.

Watch the commercial here : Kohler Architect

I frankly did not like the ad. What in the world one would imagine such a situation where you fall in love with a faucet or a closet ? I thought it as absurd when a person wants the architect to build a house matching a bloody tap.

Infact that lousy ad prompted me to go and search for this brand. And surprisingly now I am impressed.Impressed because Kohler wants people to fall in love with their products. Impressed because of the kind of innovation that the company try to bring into a product like bathroom fittings, taps and closets.

It would not be an exaggaration to say that Kohler has an iconic status in this segment. The brand is in the forefront of innovation and some of the products are really mind-blowing.

For example, Kohler has a brand - Purist Hatbox toilet which is a one piece tankless toilet .It has electronic actuation and Quiet close toilet seats. The design is totally unique and minimalistic.

The brand hence want to be a desire- object. Another interesting thing about this brand is its commercials. It is sad that Kohler chose its worst commercial for India.

Actually Kohler is famous for some of their commercials. One such campaign is known as " As I See it " .
In this campaign, Kohler partners with nationally recognized artists and photographers and create ads . The artists are free to use Kohler products to create the imagery. This campaign has won several awards for the brand. The campaign was launched in 2002 and is executed by the brand's ad agency GSD&M Idea City. Kohler launched the campaign in India in 2008.

Kohler globally has been positioned as an object of desire, unconventional and bold. The brand has the tagline " The Bold Look " . The " Bold Look" campaign originated in 1960 when the brand tried to experiment with bold , unconventional designs. The Bold Look later bacame the reflection of the culture and attitude of the company. If you closely look at most of their products, the brand has tried to break away from the conventional mould.

Kohler is trying to create a new perception about bath fittings and accessories. The brand is targeting the upwardly mobile Indian consumer segment who would like to have the best of all worlds. More over , bathroom fittings and faucets have become lifestyle products. Indian consumers are now mimicking the west for their home designs. People now want " dry " bathrooms , bathrooms which look like " living rooms "....

All these have created huge potential for a designer brand like Kohler.

Related Brand
Parryware

Zeiss : We Make it Visible

Brand : Zeiss
Company : Carl Zeiss India
Agency : Modern Medtech

Brand Analysis Count : 367

Carl Zeiss is a respectable name in the global lens' market. This decade old German company is named after its founder Carl Zeiss who was an optician. His company first started making lenses for microscopes and later extended his product range to cameras .

The company began its Indian operations in 1998. Although present in different verticals, the brand came into consumer space during 2005.

Carl Zeiss manufactures spectacle lenses under a joint venture with GKB Hi-Tech Lenses which is a home grown company. The spectacle lenses are sold under the brand Zeiss.

Indian spectacle lenses market is worth around $90 million ( Rs 360 Crore). Looking at the population, the potential is huge. But like many other products, this market is also dominated by unorganized sector which accounts for more than 75 % of the sales.

There are only two highly visible brands in the spectacle lenses category. One is the global major Essilor and other is Zeiss.

Zeiss has been trying to build its brand by consistently investing in media campaigns in India. It has been regularly advertising both in visual and print media.

The marketing of spectacle lenses is a difficult task because so far the category is regarded as a commodity. Consumers seldom ask for a specific brand of spectacle lenses since they are not aware of any brands neither they are aware of any specific advantages of using a branded spectacle lens.

So typically a consumer goes to the optician with his prescription and selects his spectacle frame and asks for the price of the lenses and gives the order. No where in the process , he asks for a particular brand for his lenses..
This offer tremendous opportunity for a marketer but it is not an easy task .
Zeiss has been trying to brand the commodity called spectacle lenses. But I am not impressed.

I have been watching the commercials of Zeiss for a while now. Frankly I did not knew that Zeiss was from the house of Carl Zeiss. I have heard about Carl Zeiss since the brand is famous as a camera lens. More over the latest mobiles from Sony and Nokia is now sporting Carl Zeiss lenses. Cameras which have Carl Zeiss lenses are often sold at a premium.


But the positioning strategy if Zeiss spectacle lenses is far from spectacular.

Watch the commercial here : Zeiss Spectacle lenses

The main USP of this brand is that it is branded...... Sounds funny isn't it ?

Zeiss is positioning itself as a spectacle with brand mark. For non-marketers, Brand Mark refers to the logo or symbol that the brand has.

I frankly does not understand the logic behind this positioning. Brand is defined as a name , term, symbol, logo which are used to identify and differentiate a product from the competitors .
But having a brand mark is never a differentiator. You cannot build a brand over its brand mark.....

Zeiss in their ads try to claim that " Brand nahi hai to style nahi " ( means if it is not branded, then it is not stylish ). It is true also. Consumers try to show off their brands. And successful brands are those where consumers are willing to act as living billboards.
Take Levi's or Nike, consumers are willing to show off. But not because they have brand marks.

First the company has to build a brand on certain core values or attributes . Once this is built, consumers will adopt the brand and act as the brand ambassadors. People does not buy Nike because it has the brand mark SWOOSH . But because they love the brand for its values embedded in " Celebrating authentic athleticism ". Consumers evangelize Apple not because of the brand mark but because of the innovation that is personified by the brand.

Here Zeiss has got it all wrong. Having a brand name or a logo is not suffice for consumers to love your brand. Brands should be built on strong attributes ( tangible or intangible). Brands with out brand values is at best a Label.

Zeiss thinks that its major competitors are the unbranded spectacle lenses. Hence the company feels that having a brand mark is the best differentiator. I was surprised to find that globally also the brand is positioned as a spectacle lens with laser marked brand mark.

Essilor has done a better job in promoting its brands like Transitions and Crizal. Consumers understand that these brands are having quality and certain important attributes.

Zeiss is a powerful global brand which has a reputation of being high quality manufacturer. The brand also has a powerful secondary association with the country of origin - Germany.

It should have taken some important attributes and promoted those attributes. Having a brand mark is an advantage but only after the brand is being built. People like others to see that their sunglass is a Ray-Ban because the brand has an image built on style and quality. Hence the Ray-Ban brand mark on the glasses make sense for the consumers.

First the brand has to understand the important attributes that customers look for in a spectacle lens. Then try to understand which are the most critical of those attributes which influences their decisions. Then develop the brand around those critical attributes. I don't think that the current USP of a brand-mark is considered important by consumers and is a sufficient reason for them to pay a premium for the brand.

Zeiss must go back and learn some basic brand building before investing such huge amount on money on meaningless campaigns.

Related Brand
Essilor

Suguna Poultry : Younger Tender Better

Brand :Suguna
Company : Suguna Poultry
Agency : R K Swamy BBDO

Brand Analysis Count : 346

Suguna Poultry is one of the major players in the fragmented poultry industry in India. Suguna is a classic case of commodity branding . Suguna Poultry started its operations in 1984. The company is based in Coimbatore in Tamilnadu.

The story of Suguna is interesting to a marketer for two reasons. First is obvious in that Suguna is branding poultry products which is a hardcore commodity business. Second is its unique business model.

India is the third largest egg producer and fifth largest poultry meat producer in the world. Indian poultry market is huge with an estimated market size of Rs 20,000 crore ( Business line) . According to Business Standard ( July 08), the size is estimated to be around Rs 12,000 crore.

The market is highly fragmented and dominated by local players. It is in this context that Suguna 's story becomes relevant.

Suguna came into a difficult market with a difficult idea. Branding chicken ! But through heavy investment in the media, Suguna was able to create a mind space for itself .
In the poultry market , the frozen meat market was around Rs 7500 crore. It was in this market where some amount of branding activity was seen.

The market further expanded with Godrej Agrovet entering the market with their brand Real Good.Suguna was promoting itself on quality and tenderness. I remember seeing lot of ads of Suguna during mid nineties. But in Indian market, consumers prefer live birds to frozen meat because of the easy availability of live birds. Suguna was able to make its brand prominent in this market also.

Suguna has sold live birds and eggs worth Rs 2020 crore in 2007 without owning a single poultry farm. That makes their business model interesting. The company pioneered contract farming in the poultry industry in India. The company source their produce through 12000 contract farmers across different states.

According to reports , Suguna owns the day -old-chickens , feed and feed medicine and the contract farmer is responsible for the day to day management of the farm. The farmer gets the assured income while the company takes care of the risk . In that way Suguna can channel its valuable resources to marketing and distribution.

Then the company entered into another lucrative market of selling branded egg. Each year India produces around 47 billion eggs worth Rs 10,000 crore.The market is growing at a rate of 15 % in an year ( Economic Times ).

Suguna has four egg brands and sells over one million eggs a month. Suguna launched these value added egg which is fortified with vitamins. This is done by feeding the laying hen with specialized nutrient feed.I am a regular customer of Suguna eggs.
The brands are
Suguna Pro
Suguna Active
Suguna Heart
Suguna Shakthi

Infact my wife started buying this brand of eggs for my child since she was impressed by the packaging which made the eggs look more hygienic and healthy. Priced almost 50% more than the usual eggs, Suguna had to show some differentiation in the product to justify the premium.

I closely looked at this simple product ( egg) for differentiation and it was evident. The eggs were clean , more shining and uniform in terms of size and shape. Another differentiation was in the packaging. In branding commodity, a marketer should be able to justify the premium and Suguna was able to do just that.

Suguna also has expensive range of eggs under the variant Suguna Heart which contains less cholesterol and rich in Omega-3 fatty acids.

Buoyed by the success of these businesses, Suguna has entered into front end retail by launching Suguna Daily Fresh retail outlets. Reports also say that the company is launching Ready To Eat Chicken products also.

Suguna is a case which proves that its possible to brand any commodity.

Meera : Healthy Hair for Years

Brand : Meera
Company : Cavinkare
Agency : Bates 141

Brand Analysis count : 336

Meera is a classic example of ethnic marketing in Indian context. Ethnic is defined as that which is pertaining to or characteristic of a people ( group) sharing a common and distinctive culture. Ethnic marketing is understanding those distinctiveness and adapting product and marketing strategies inorder to appeal to that group.

Meera is famous for its herbal hair wash powder. The tradition of using powder hair wash lies in our culture and tradition. Traditionally Indian women relied on powdered herbs to nourish their hair.

Then along with changing lifestyles, new products like shampoos began to take the place of these herbal powders. While hair oils have retained their position in the hair care market, the use of hair-wash powder was reduced to a niche.

It is in this context that Meera as a brand becomes interesting. The brand not only catered to the niche but also has developed this market and evolved to become an umbrella brand for more traditional hair-care products.

Although there was many companies who were selling powder hair wash, most of these players belong to the unorganized sector . Shaw Wallace had a similar product but the firm was not promoting that line. Cavinkare began to aggressively built the brand and Meera became the market leader in that category.
Herbal hair wash product typically consists of powder/essence from Shikakai , green gram, tulsi, veliver, reetha , hibiscus ,feenugreek etc.

When time passes by, these traditional products tend to lose relevance . Traditional products fade from the market for many reasons like
a. Better new products : New and better products make some traditional products less relevant.
b. No marketing : Because of lack of marketing, many traditional products fade from the consumer's mental space.
c. Product availability.
d. Changing consumer preferences
e. Non-viability of manufacturing and marketing traditional products.

In the case of herbal powder market, the products are unattractive to urban market because these are not easy products. Herbal powders are often messy and the user has to spent lot of time in using the product. In this fast life, the urban consumers are looking for fast solutions.

In my observation, consumers with grave hair problems tend to go back to these herbal products because of they feel worthwhile to invest time in using these products.

Meera as a brand has made the choice easy for the consumers. Instead of using unbranded products, consumers trusted Meera since it came from a well known company. The brand also is available in sachets thus making it convenient for the consumer to buy the product in smaller quantities. Meera uses the slogan " Healthy hair for years " highlighting the efficacy of the product.

Buoyed by the success of the hair-wash product, Cavinkare extended Meera into shampoos and soaps.
In 2004, the brand extended itself to the highly lucrative hair-oil market. Indian hair-oil market is worth around 1800 crore.

Inorder to differentiate Meera herbal oil , the company relied on a smart packaging design. The oil bottle had a visibly suspended porous cylinder containing the herbal ingredients and the consumer can see the oil deriving the nourishing from these herbs on a continuous basis. The brand virtually put into practice the dictum - " The differentiation should be observable ".

Meera is a popular brand in South India. Infact in another classic case of localising the marketing /product strategy, the brand launched Meera Chemparathi Thali in Kerala. Chemparathi is the regional name for Hibiscus. Hibiscus powder is used by Keralite as a traditional hair-care solution. Meera cashed in on this and launched the variant.

Meera is a brand which keep the hope of traditional products alive. The acceptance of this brand by consumers also gives a proof about the efficacy of traditional solutions.

With regard to the brand, Meera has extended itself to many product categories where the brand lacked competence. For example in the shampoo segment, Meera does not have a clear differentiation . In the case of soap also Meera does not have a USP. The brand was successful in offering some differentiation in oil but there the competition is huge.

Its a tough choice for a marketer to resist the temptation of leveraging a successful niche brand to mass market categories. But on hindsight, it is always wise to keep niche brand a niche brand.

Himalayan : Live Natural

Brand : Himalayan
Company : Mount Everest ( Tata tea)
Agency : Rediffusion Dy&R

Brand Analysis Count : 334

Himalayan is the latest branding initiative by Tatas. The brand which originally belonged to the Balsara Group came to the Tata fold in 2007. In 2008, Tatas began to aggressively promote this brand.

The Indian bottled water market is around Rs 1200-1500 crore ( source: FE, Domain B ) . However Livemint puts the market at around Rs 8500 crore. The market is growing at a rate of 25% per year.

The bottled water is divided into Natural Water segment and Ordinary bottled water. In Natural water category, the water is packaged from the source and no processing is done. The ordinary bottled water is chemically processed. Natural water category is hardly 10% of the total market.

Himalayan is the market leader in the Natural water category . Before being taken over by Tatas , the brand was focusing on institutional markets and also international markets. Infact Himalayan is the only Indian brand of natural bottled water to be internationally accepted and markets across Europe and US.

Himalayan has now forayed into the consumer market in India. The market leader in Indian bottled water market is Bisleri with a market share of 16 % followed by Kinley and Aqua Fina with a share of 14% The rest of the market is dominated by regional and unorganised products.

Himalayan is a premium brand priced well above the ordinary mineral water. Hence the challenge is to convince the customers to pay a premium price for a product like water. The USP of Natural water is that they are Naturally pure and also has a distinct taste derived from its origin.

The brand is currently running a tvc across the country
watch the tvc here : Himalayan
The brand has taken the tagline " Live Natural " highlighting the main strength of the brand.

For a marketer of branded water,the challenges are many :

1.Water is a commodity : Hence to brand it and sell it is in itself a herculean task.
2.Water is perceived to be a freely available resource : Hence customers will have a mental block in paying for drinking water.
3.Between brands, to differentiate is not easy
4. The market is price sensitive.
5. The market is mostly restricted in terms of usage situations. Most of us buy mineral water only while traveling. ( ofcourse in places where pure water is unavailable, even households buy mineral water)

So far ,brands like Bisleri has built the market on Purity and Safety. Although we have lot of water sources, availability of potable water is still a problem. Especially when one is traveling , the risk is higher. Hence the bottled sealed water offered the solution. The wordings on the bottle further reassured the customers about the purity of the water.
Bisleri is almost generic to the category and has built the brand with heavy investment.

Himalayan has the task of adding more value to it because of the premium pricing. Hence the brand has to take some laddering up inorder to appeal to the consumers.
The current campaign lives up to the expectation. What was appealing about the brand was the Pink color and the bottle. My wife , after seeing the ad, exclaimed that she is tempted to buying the water.
Tatas has retained some of the unique brand elements like the color. But it had done some changes in the bottles and graphics . The bottle has been designed by SIPA of Italy and Rediffusion has done the other graphic changes. Like in the case of the global icon Absolut which uses bottle shape as differentiators, Himalayan is also trying to offer visual differentiation using label color and graphics.

Another strength of Himalayan is the brand name. Himalayan offers instant imagery of the Himalayas and brings in the visuals of Cool, Pure, Indian and Natural imagery.

Alarmed by the launch of Himalayan, Parle has launched another brand " From the Himalayas ". Tatas took the brand to the court and today's newspaper reports suggest that Tatas has won the initial round of fight. The contention of Parle is that Himalaya is a generic term and could be used by anyone.

In an interview with Financial Express , the CEO of Mount Everest Mr Pradeep Poddar made an interesting statement. He said " In my opinion , Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs flattens onto a continuum where self actualization vies for attention with basal needs. "
Infact this statement highlights the relevance of Maslow's theory even in this era. Although the theory has its drawbacks, it gives a clear idea of possible needs of an individual.
So when Poddar says about looking at these needs as a continuum,it makes more sense. So even when a customer feel a physiological need , there also exists a need for self actualization. So marketers can link their products to these needs that co-exists at a given point of time.
That is also the concept behind laddering . The brand while satisfying the functional need, also takes care of the higher needs.

Himalayan is now piggy backing on the strength of Tata Tea in reaching out to the Indian consumers. The brand can leverage the intense distribution strength of Tata Tea.
Unlike the ordinary mineral water, Himalayan hopes to give a new experience to the customers. The brand is trying to give the customers the same experience that beverages like cola gives to consumers. Although it is a ' Himalayan Task' it is not impossible.

The trend is favorable to products like Himalayan which has the health tag.
Whether Himalayan can reach the summit will be an interesting story to watch

Brand Update : Parachute

Parachute Advansed is running a campaign featuring the brand ambassador Deepika Padukone. The current campaign aims to address an important issue faced by this brand, stagnant sales.

Watch the commercial here : Parachute

This commercial is interesting because it addresses an important competition for Parachute which are shampoos. I think that a major competitor for Parachute is shampoo in a broader point of view. Shampoos may not directly compete with hair oils but can affect the purchase of hair oils. In my personal experience and observation, I feel that hair oils are not preferred by some customers because its oily ( what a paradox ! ).

The brand feels that those customers using shampoos are either not using hair oils or has reduced the use hair oils.
In the new campaign Deepika Padukone advice the girls to massage the hair with Parachute Advansed for one hour and then use the shampoos inorder to look " Gorgeous Hamesha ".

The move is a part of the " one hour champi " movement initiated by Parachute. Champi in local lingo means oil head massage. It is known that oil massage is found to be good for the strength of the hair. Even Parachute Advansed has a Massager in its product portfolio.

The aim of this commercial is to co-exist with the shampoos .The brand knows that it cannot fight with this category and replace the use of shampoos. Hence it has decided to join with the shampoos rather than fight for the customers.
Through this campaign the brand is also advising customers on how to use hair oil while using shampoo. Most of the consumers are confused about using hair oils and shampoos together . So they either doesn't use oil when using shampoo or use oil in small quantities. So here the brand is telling the users not to worry about using it both. Both these products can co-exist.

I am not sure how many of the consumers are going to buy this argument , but Parachute should be appreciated for this marketing move .

Related Brand

Parachute

Hindalco Everlast : Branding a Commodity

Brand : Everlast
Company : Hindalco

Brand Analysis Count : 309

Everlast is the brand of aluminium roofing sheets from Aditya Birla Group. Hindalco from the Aditya Birla Group is India's largest manufacturer of aluminium products in India.
Aluminium is a commodity driven basically by the price. While there are many marketers who brand the consumer products made of aluminium like vessels and utensils, Everlast can be called the first branded roofing sheet.

Everlast was launched in 2002 after much research. The purpose of launching a brand in this commodity business is to add value. Branding a commodity is a difficult task especially when the customer does not see any significant differentiator between products from different manufacturer. But for a marketer, Brands often translates into more premium and also insulates the company from price competition.
Aditya Birla group is not new to branding commodities. We have seen the high profile rebranding of L& T cements to Ultratech which showcased the branding ability .

Everlast had two pronged approach towards building the brand . First task was to establish the brand name by increasing the awareness. This was done by extensive campaign through print media and hoardings. The brand also was positioning itself as a durable product. Television commercial was used to promote the positioning of the brand which was further reinforced by the brand name ' Everlast'.
Second task was to increase the popularity of aluminium roofing sheets. Now Everlast is running a series of campaigns highlighting the various benefits of having an Everlast roof. The brand is now targeting the urban households.
The campaign of Everlast is interesting because the brand recognizes that it cannot replace the RCC roof. Hence the brand aims to popularize itself as a roof over RCC terraces. The new campaign tells the customer that by covering the open terraces using Everlast, one can use that space for various purposes like Party Area, Garden, Exercise , drying clothes etc. Infact the biggest use of Everlast roof is that one can use the terrace for drying clothes especially during rainy season.
The consumer also gets the benefits of additional closed space without spending too much money on building another roof.
Everlast comes in various colors and hence does not compromise the beauty of the house. The brand highlights the following qualities like
Durability
Corrosion Resistant
Easy to Maintain
and also the trust of Hindalco.
Along with the consumer promotion, the brand also had below the line promotion aimed at the influencers like masons, contractors , architects etc.

Everlast rightfully is reaping the benefits of the first mover advantage in this commodity business. Through heavy promotion, the brand had already established its presence in the market and is in course of establish a strong presence in the market.

Brand Update : Ultratech

After the success of the heavy duty rebranding exercise of L&T Cement to Ultratech, the brand has undertaken yet another branding venture. This time its not a rebranding but a brand migration. Aditya Birla Group has a premium composite cement branded Birla Plus. The company is migrating Birla Plus to Ultratech. Birla Plus was launched in 2003 and was being positioned as a Premium brand. The brand has been promoted across the media with the tagline " Is Cement main Jaan hai ". Now the high profile migration ads are on air. The rationale is very simple , both Ultratech and Birla Plus are premium brands from same stable. There is a chance of brand cannibalisation. The group feels that all premium cement offerings should be bought under the Ultratech brand for better synergy and cost rationalization.
The company has proved that if there is huge reserves of money, rebranding is not an issue. I feel that Birla Plus brand has lost its relevance when Ultratech was introduced. In the positioning front also, an emotional positioning taken by Birla Plus does not have relevance in the commodity business. By bringing all premium offerings under Ultratech, the company will be able to spent is promotional budgets more effectively.
Related Brand
Ultratech

Gold Winner : G for H

Brand : Gold Winner
Company : Kaleesuwari Refinery Ltd
Agency : Crayon's Advertising and Marketing

Brand Analysis Count : 266

Gold Winner is a major player in the branded edible oil market in India. This brand from the Southern India made its debut in 1995. A price warrior during its launch , this brand has transformed itself to a serious brand.
Gold Winner now commands a 20% market share in the whole of India and have a commanding 70% share in Tamil Nadu. The brand has serious plans for itself and has already making its way to the North Indian market.

I have noticed the earlier ads of Gold Winner talking about health and ending with the tagline : Gold Winner is Gold- Winner. The ad made no impact on me as a marketer except an acknowledgment of the huge budget that the brand had. Gold Winner gained its initial market with a price war on the major brands like Sundrop and Sweekar. Gold Winner was retailing on a huge price discount and the heavy media campaign ensured the required volume to sustain the price war.
Then came a surprise. The quality of the campaign changed dramatically with a new Big Idea.

G for H
Gold Winner For Health.

The brand identified its DNA in those simple equation. This discovery changed the whole brand personality. I am not saying that Gold Winner discovered something new. Health was the platform that all edible oil marketers used to promote their brands. Sundrop and Suffola held their markets building on the health platform. But what I liked about Gold Winner was on its execution of the Common Idea.
Watch the Commercial here : Gold Winner Ad
Also the brand used Kids effectively in the ads making the Mothers the Target Segment. While Suffola uses Wife as the TG and the ads are more adult dominated.

With the TamilNadu market in the fold, the brand is making inroads into new market. This Onam, Gold Winner has entered into the Kerala Market. The brand has already started a high profile marketing campaign comparing the Brand with the popular Coconut oil . Kerala is a different market because here coconut oil is used as the cooking medium. Gold Winner is trying to position itself as a healthy alternative to the Coconut Oil.
Gold Winner is an example of how a brand can make a mark on a cluttered market through smart execution of an old idea. The brand is now moving out of its major market to a more competitive National Market. The G for H campaign will get the necessary eyeballs. I am sure that the threat will prompt players like Saffola and Sundrop to take the war to the Gold Winner's territory . It is war time....