marketing project on loreal
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Sunfill : RIP (2001-2005) Brand : Sunfill
Company: Coca Cola
Brand Count : 191
Sunfill was Coca Cola's foray into the Soft Drink Concentrate market
in India. Globally it was the company's first foray into the powder
concentrate segment. This good product died after 4 years primarily
because the company did not consider worthwhile to focus on
marketing this product.
Sunfill was introduced in 2001 and Coca Cola intended to take on
Rasna in the Rs 180 crore soft drinks concentrate market in India.
Rasna was dominating the market with a share of over 85%.
Sunfill was a powder soft drink concentrate . Powder concentrate
occupy85% of the total soft drinks concentrate market. Sunfill came in
three variants : Regular,Anand and Tarang.
Sunfill differentiated from Rasna by taking the convenience route. The
concentrate had added sugar in it so to make the drink was easy for
the consumer. While other concentrates, sugar need to be added
hence was cumbersome for the consumer. The taste of Sunfill was
also better compared to other brands ( personal opinion). The brand
also innovated in packaging by coming out with single serve packs
and also multi serve pillow packs.
The biggest challenge for any FMCG/SDC products was distribution.
Sunfill found an innovative method to reach the market. It had
alliances with other FMCG firms in reaching the market. The brand
had its own channel + third party alliance (Hybrid network) to ensure
that the brand is available in all stores.
But somehow the product failed in the market. The issue was with
regard to distribution, product and the promotion.
The product had some quality issues. In my personal experience, some
of the packs had very bad quality concentrate . At one point of time,
the product was not available in the stores. The issue in promotion
was regarding the positioning. When Sunfill came into the market,
Rasna countered Sunfill with its own range of powder concentrate
with added sugar.Hence the differentiation became negated for
Sunfill. The promotion investment for Sunfill was not adequate to
counter the huge brand equity that Rasna enjoyed. I have a feeling
that Sunfill was a half hearted effort from the company.That was
reflected in the promotions for the product which ultimately lead to
the death of a high potential brand
I still feel that the company did not do justice to the brand which had
a potential to make it big in the SDC market but the plug was pulled
on Sunfill in 2005.
Related brands
Rasna
Source: Agencyfaqs,businessline,magindia
Labels: beverages, failed brands, marketing myopia
POSTED BY HARISH B AT 9:52 AM 0 COMMENTS
F R I D A Y , D E C E M B E R 2 9 , 2 0 0 6
Maruti Gypsy : RIP
Brand : Gypsy
Company: Maruti Suzuki
Brand Count : 182
Gypsy was one of India's first sports utility vehicles. The vehicle
created a breakaway category of SUV offroader from the existing jeep
category which was dominated by Mahindra.
Born in 1985, the brand was considered as an aspirational one by
many young at hearts.The brand was positioned on the basis of its
ruggedness. The brand was promoted as a pure offroader. The ads
used to say that Gypsy could even climb trees. The positioning was
reinforced by the success of the brand in rally and offroad events.
Maruti also promoted such events to boost the brand as the ultimate
offroader. The brand had the tagline of " There is a Gypsy in
Everyone".
But the brand failed to capitalise on the first mover advantage
although it is still considered to be one of the sportiest looking SUV in
the Indian market. The brand is now confined to certain niche markets
like Police and Army vehicle segments.
Gypsy was the rebadged version of Suzuki Jimny. Although Jimny is
still surviving, Gypsy is in the last stage of its product life cycle. The
brand which pioneered the offroader category sadly is dying when the
SUV category has started growing. The brand failed because of the
apathy of the company in investing in the brand. The product had
inherent problem that created negative word of mouth and the
company didn't cared to look at the negatives of the brand.
Gypsy although considered as a tough vehicle lacked many important
attributes valued by a customer. The driving quality and the mileage
was awful. The product was priced at a ridiculous premium which was
not justified interms of the delivery of value.
The brand was priced at around Rs 5 lakh which is comparable with a
entry level sedan.The product although looked excellent outside was a
mess inside. The vehicle lacked space and comfort especially for the
rear seat. It had all the qualities for an offroader but failed to
understand that Indian consumers use offroaders on roads
( cities).The mileage was awful and that ensured that only those who
fall head over heals over the looks only will buy this brand . Since
MUL at that time was in the public sector, the brand was sold to
Police and army. For the ordinary consumers, the brand did not made
any sense.
Gypsy also did not change itself in tune with the changing industry
requirements. The vehicle initially was severely underpowered for an
offroader. The company enhanced the power from 975cc to
1300 cc only after 11 years. Gypsy King was
launched in 1996 sported the more powerful Esteem engine but was
priced steeply.
The last four years has shown that SUV category is growing very fast
fuelled by the success of the likes of Mahindra Scorpio. Most of the
global bigwigs in the SUV segment is now there in India. Suzuki also
has launched its brand Grand Vitara in this segment. But in the
current scheme of things, Gypsy was sadly not in the picture.
Compare the picture of the Suzuki Jimny (given in the blog) and Gypsy
and see the difference. Had this brand changed its looks and feel in
tune with the emerging category requirements, Gypsy could have
been a major brand. But Alas.... the brand's fate is to be cited as an
example of Marketing Myopia or is it Marketing Laziness.
Source:marutigypsy.com,wikipedia
Related Brands
Tata sierra
Labels: automobile brands, branding, failed brands, marketing myopia
POSTED BY HARISH B AT 9:48 AM 1 COMMENTS
M O N D A Y , D E C E M B E R 1 8 , 2 0 0 6
Vanilla Coke : Wakaw Brand :Vanilla Coke
Company: Coca Cola
Agency: McCann Erickson
Brand Count : 178
Vanilla Coke was touted as the greatest innovation since Diet Coke in
1983. It also has the distinction of the greatest flops after the New
Coke. Vanilla Coke came with a bang in the Indian market in April
2004. It went without much noise in 2005.
The history of this product variant dates back as early as 1950's. The
mass marketing of this variant began in 2002.The brand went global
in 2004.
2004 saw the unusual scream " Wakaw" played across mass media.
We all looked up in awe : a brand new variant from Coca Cola : Vanilla
Coke. The brand was targeted at the metro youth was different. It was
different in taste, promotion, package, price etc.
Vanilla Coke was promoted in retro style. The brand had Vivek Oberoi
, the then bollywood flame endorsing the brand in an unusual style.
Vivek sported the retro look with typical combination of Elvis style +
Shammi Kapoor style in an Old Lamby Scooter screaming Wakaw.
The ads were surely clutter breaking and backed by 360 degree
branding efforts that ensured good publicity. The creative done by the
famed Prasoon Joshi was discussed in all media and that ensured
truck loads of free publicity. The brand also got into viral marketing.
The campaign along with Contenst2win asked the c
ustomers to SMS Wakaw to 8558 inorder to win
goodies. According to media reports, the campaign resulted in
440,000 SMS in just 4 weeks creating a record of sorts.
According to Indiatelevision.com report, the media brief given to the
agency was to create a clutter breaking campaign targeted at youth.
The campaign should create a dhamaka in the market. And rightly so
all the client requirements was achieved with in a short span of time.
But how come a product with such a good start failed so easily. With
in one year, the brand has been taken out from most of the Indian
states. The brand is said to be available in Gujarat,Kolkatta and Delhi.
As a marketing person, I am also perplexed. Frankly I liked the ad the
feel and wanted to try it out. But soon the product was not at all
available. The failure of this product line extension may have
delighted Alries and Trout .
I am assuming that the following factors may have caused the failure
of this brand.
a. The product may have been bad. The TG may not have liked the
taste. Although Coke has test marketed this product, there is always a
chance that the customers may have disliked the taste.
b.The campaign was not targeted at the right segment. This campaign
had its fair share of critics also. I liked the campaign because I have
seen the old stars and the lamby etc and could easily relate the old
characters and the concept. But for a twenty year old, he may not
relate or understand the concept. The brand may have lost out in that
respect.
c. The brand was priced at a premium over the ordinary coke. This
may have discouraged the TG from checking out the brand. Together
with the retro campaign not clicking with the intended audience may
have given a double whammy for the brand.
d. Indian SD industry is a duopoly. Pepsi and Coke rule the roast and
there are brand loyal on both sides. The new variant will be tested
first by the Coke loyal and not the Pepsi loyal. Hence like most of the
Product line extensions, the variant will be pitted against the mother
brand. Hence the customers may have compared the new variant with
the classic coke and not as a new drink. And surely the classic coke
won .
These are all assumptions because I am still confused.
The failure of Vanilla Coke is a classic case that proves that Marketing
is not a perfect science. There are no formula or theory that can make
a brand successful. To Quote Kotler " Marketing is easy to teach and
understand but difficult to practice".
source:agencyfaqs,indiatelevision.com,wikipedia,magindia,businessline
Related Brands
Thums Up
Coke
Sprite
Labels: beverages, branding, failed brands, marketing myopia
POSTED BY HARISH B AT 11:36 AM 0 COMMENTS
T H U R S D A Y , D E C E M B E R 1 4 , 2 0 0 6
Clearasil : For Clear Skin Brand : Clearasil
Company: Reckitt & Benckiser
Agency: Euro Rscg
Brand Count : 177
<!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--><!--[endif]-->
<!--[if !supportEmptyParas]-->Clearasil was a brand that was synonymous with skin care
in India. The brand occupied a distinct space in the Indian market as the ultimate cream
for Pimples and acne. But over the years this brand is facing the decline stage in its
product life cycle. The b rand reached this pathetic state because of
reasons not of its own.
Clearasil is a global brand famous world wide as a cure for acne and pimples. The brand
is 56 year old. Mr Ivan Combe of USA invented the product in 1950. It was the first
dermatological brand for curing pimples and acne made especially for young skin. In
1961, the brand came into the fold of Richardson Vicks. In 1985 P&G became the owner
of Richardson Vicks. Later the company sold of these brands to Boots Pharmaceuticals in
the year 2000. In 2006, Reckitt &Benckiser bought the brand globally. The brand came to
India in 1967.
Now you can easily see the reason why the brand failed. The brand went through too
many ownership changes. Some companies did not feel that the brand was a part of its
core portfolio. For example during the ownership of Clearasil by P&G there was no
investment on the brand since for the company, the personal care business was not a core
area. Hence during this period the brand was not at all promoted. Even though the other
owners had tried to revive the brand, frequent changes made the brand vulnerable.
<!--[if !supportEmptyParas]-->
<!--[if !supportEmptyParas]-->Clearas il during its peak years had the
reputation as a strong cream for fighting pimples and acnes. At that time there was no
direct competition for Clearasil although there were many skin creams. For a family
having teenage girls, Clearasil was an essential brand. But over the years, because of the
lack of brand building efforts, the brand became irrelevant to the younger generation.
Clearasil slowly became the brand that “my mother used”. When Boots owned the brand,
lot of variants were launched. The brand changed its packaging and was extended to
soaps.Rather than limiting to acne control, the brand tried to position itself as a skin care
brand. But the effort did not bear fruit because by that time, the market was flooded with
modern contemporary brands.
The brand is now owned by Reckitt and marketers expect that the brand will get a new
lease of life. The greatest challenge before the new owners is to make the brand
contemporary and relevant to the new generation. Reckitt had to find a new
differentiation platform for this heritage brand. It has to tap the existing brand equity and
try to create a new space for Clearasil. Globally Clearasil is positioned on the basis of
Confidence through better skin . The global positioning statement is “Get Clearasil , Get
Confidence”. But in India, Cinthol uses this positioning . The brand faces tough
competition from the likes of Ponds, Lakme, Loreal and so on .So to find the right space
is going to be tough.I think that the brand could take the “ Clear Skin” positioning where
by it is not limited to controlling pimples but overall skin care. With the brand Veet from
Reckitt is in the same skin care market; the brand managers will have a tough time
integrating Clearasil to the portfolio.
source:agencyfaqs,businessline,reckittbenckiser.com
Related Brands
Ponds
Fair&Lovely
Vicco
Loreal
Bodyshop
Labels: branding, failed brands, FMHG, marketing myopia, personal
care
POSTED BY HARISH B AT 2:58 PM 0 COMMENTS
T H U R S D A Y , N O V E M B E R 2 3 , 2 0 0 6
Ganga Soap : RIP Brand : Ganga
Company: Godrej Consumer Products
Brand Count: 163
If the Western Media's projection or prejudice about the social and
cultural makeup of India was correct, then Ganga soap would have
been the most sold soap brand in the world. Those who have been
watching India specific programs in BBC and National Geographic
may wond er how can such a brand fail in the land of
elephants and Sadhus ?
Ganga soap was launched with much fanfare in 1993. The soap was
positioned on the religious platform and was claimed to be made of
water from the river Ganges. The soap attained salvation in the early
2000.
The brand comes from an accomplished marketer who markets such
iconic brands like Cinthol. The brand was promoted heavily and even
had the film stars like Govinda endorsing it. Promoted using the
tagline " Now bath in Ganga" very directly puts the soap in a religious
platform. Reports suggest that the brand's initial sales was
encouraging and also there are reports that blame on the P&G and
Godrej break up caused the brand to decline.
Ganga had a revitalisation effort in 1997 when Godrej tried to
relaunch the brand under the name Doodh Ganga. But those effort
went in vain.
The primary reason why the brand failed was that the differentiation
was not sustainable over time. Although Hindu's are very religious in
nature and revers the tradition but the consumers are discerning
when it comes to purchasing products. There is a clear divide between
religion and products. Consumers seldom like mixing the two. It is OK
if religion and politics are mixed not soups and gods. That may be the
reason why the toys of Hindu mythological characters are not popular
in India.
The brand when launched was really praised for its innovative
thinking. One could see through the logic of the launch. Just looking
at the crowd at Kumbh Mela would encourage any marketer to think
about launching a product for the devotees of Ganga. But a closer look
at the customers could have proved the marketer wrong. Why would a
customer buy a product? That is a question that could reveal that
Love for Ganga would not rake in sales.
Rather than using Ganga as a differentiator, Godrej could have
positioned the product on the basis if Purity and Gentleness like the
Pears Soap. The can show the use of Water from Ganga to reinforce
the positioning. But the religious platform failed miserably. More over
this platform is too old dated for our new generation. Another funny
element is that although Hindus revere the Ganges, people are aware
that the river is the most polluted one. Hence there were consumer
buzz that using a soap made from such water may be dangerous.
Sensing this consumer talk, Godrej had to tell that the water was
taken from places near the origin of Ganges hence not polluted.
Overall it was a messy affair.
Ganga is a brand that could have survived as a small niche. I am still
not sure about the exact reasons that brand have failed in the Indian
market.The failure of such a brand should inspire a marketer to delve
deep into the psyche of Indian consumer before jumping into
conclusions.
source:economictimes. Mouthshut .com
Labels: branding, failed brands, FMCG, marketing myopia, personal
care, soap brands
POSTED BY HARISH B AT 2:09 PM 0 COMMENTS
M O N D A Y , N O V E M B E R 2 0 , 2 0 0 6
Proline : Follow Yourself
Brand : Proline
Company: Bombay Dyeing
Agency: Orchard /Leo Burnett
Brand Count: 160
Proline is a pioneer in the creation of Sports/ Leisure wear segment in
the Indian market. The brand was launched in 1983 by the Batra
group was one a premium sought after brand during that time. The
Indian apparel market is huge with a market size of Rs 18000-20000
crore. There are different versions about
the actual size of the branded segment in the apparel market ranging
from Rs 2500-4500 crore ( Market size and market share reports are
always confusing).
Sports and Leisure wear segment during the eighties were virtually
non existent. It would be proper to say that there were no serious
effort to brand such apparels. Proline rightfully found the gap. Proline
gain prominence in the segment through high profile promotions
using sports celebrities. Super players like Ravi Shastri, Sandip Patil,
Padukone and other major players from different sports. This created
a hugh equity for the brand. Proline was an Aspiration brand for most
of the youngsters (middle class) like me during that period. But the
brand was premium priced and that kept us from trying out the brand.
Unlike the west, the sports wears are used as casual wears in India.
There is little difference between the two segments except for the
football jerseys. The consumers used to categories all the Sportswear
in the T-shirts category. Proline was successful in projecting a
Premium International image in this segment.
Proline buoyed by the success of its brand began retailing initiatives
in a big way. The brand was promoted through exclusive shops and "
Shop in Shops" in big supermarkets. The owners also began to market
international brands like Fila and K-swiss through this retail outlets.
2000 saw the international players entering into Indian market with
serious business plans. Brands or icons like Nike , Reebok and Adidas
started their brand building efforts. The Pioneer in the market, Proline
was dwarfed by the International giants.
Proline could not stand upto the competition from these players . With
competition from unbranded players at the bottom of the market
together with the onslaught of International brands at the premium
end. The brand could not find enough space to fit in.
Proline was positioned as a brand that respect individuality. The
brand revolves round the value of " Self Respect" and the confidence
gained by accepting what you are. The attitude " Been there
and Done That" was exemplified by the campaigns. That is
one of the best positioning that a brand can opt for.
But despite the good brand name, first mover advantage and the
memorable positioning, Proline was a brand that could not sustain.
The brand is said to have a market share of less than 6% in the
segment.
The reason for the underperformace are many :
a. Competition from International players and domestic brand: It is
interesting to note that almost all the national brands have a casual
sports wear range. Whether it is Colorplus or Peter England, T-shirts
are available. That poses serious threat to a pure play sports wear
marketer.
b. Value: The brand could not sustain the value proposition in the
mind of the consumers. Priced at par with brands like Nike, Proline
needed to show the customers more value for the premium it was
asking for. More over, there were issues of segmentation. Proline
never looked at affordability of the brand. With a choice of
international brands, Proline had a tough time convincing the
customers to stick to the brand. Further the presence of brands like
Fila selling side by side Proline was little risky . Unless the brand is
clearly careful about its pricing and segmentation, there is a chance
that the franchised brand cannibalise the manufactured brand. I am
not sure whether this has happened in Proline's case.
c. Distribution : Proline had limited presence in only major cities.
In 2003, the brand changed hands. Bombay Dyeing took 51 %
ownership in the brand and that gave the brand an instant access to
the distribution outlet of the textile major. Now Proline also has the
responsibility of marketing the failed/failing Vivaldi brand of Bombay
Dyeing.
Although brand is now with a textile major, the brand is yet to take
off. What the brand Proline needs is some fresh thinking interms of
Segmentation. The brand may not be able to compete with the likes of
Nike at the premium end. But I feel that there is immense scope for a
brand at the affordable segment in the casual wear market. For
example , in the t-shirt market, there is a scope for Proline to make a
mark if it follows the strategy of Peter England ( quality at affordable
price). Although there are brands like Classic Polo, crocodile etc,
there still space for Proline.
The brand need not do much to revitalise itself because still Proline
commands some respect and recall in the market. Price
rationalisation and some high profile brand building will definitely
rejuvenate the brand and take it to new heights.
source: businessline, prolineindia.com,agencyfaqs,universalgarment news
Labels: branding, failed brands, FMCG, marketing myopia
POSTED BY HARISH B AT 11:25 AM 0 COMMENTS
T U E S D A Y , N O V E M B E R 1 4 , 2 0 0 6
Burnol : The Burn Specialist Brand : Burnol
Company: Dr Morpean Labs
Agency: JWT
Brand Count: 156
Burnol is one of the oldest antiseptic cream brands in India. This 65
year old brand still holds tremendous brand recall among the Indian
consumers. Burnol has changed hands many times in its existence in
the Indian market. The first brand owner was Boots and the brand the
brand was acquired by Knoll. Later Reckitt and Piramal bought the
brand from Knoll. In 2002 the brand was acquired by Dr Morpean
labs. This constant change over of this brand from one company to
another has virtually undermined the equity of this heritage brand.
The Indian antiseptic cream market is estimated to be around Rs 210
crore. The market is dominated by Boroplus from Emami which
commands a market share of around 60%.
Burns market is specialised market with a size of Rs 30 crore. Burnol
had a generic status in this market.
Burnol during the hay days had a strong demand in the market. It was
perceived as a " must have" in households and offices in the first-aid
boxes. Although in households , there is rare incidents of burns,
Burnol was kept as a essential first aid medicine.
The market still remains the same. The homemakers still deal with fire
and there is still a perceived need for such a burn specialist at home.
Despite the market remaining unchanged , Burnol was pushed to a
negligible presence because of reasons not of its own.
Burnol was positioned as a burn specialist from day one ( I think so).
Customers also associate this brand with burns. The fact is that
Burnol is an antiseptic cream that could be used for burns as well as
cuts just like other antiseptic creams. Burnol was positioned so
strongly that the association has become embedded in the mind of the
customers. Even the name reinforces the positioning of this brand.
During its life cycle, the brand had tried to change over from being a
burn specialist to an all purpose cream but it was a mistake.
Customers refused to accept the repositioning and the whole exercise
was a failure.
When Dr Morpean relaunched the brand with the positioning based
on being " Burn specialist", the customers reacted favorably to it.
Burnol was promoted as a " must have " at every home.
The brand was not able to garner its potential share in the market for
reasons related to the brand owners. Either some of the companies
who owned this brand was in financial crisis or the brand was not in
their core marketing plan. Because of these two reasons, the brand
promotion was virtually nil and this apathy reflected in the market
share of this brand. Although Morpean labs initially pushed the brand,
the financial health of the company is limiting the brand promotion to
a great extent. Morpean had initiated major repositioning campaign
and even changed the product to a more acceptable cream
composition.
The brand will remain a niche brand for the following reasons.
a. Unlike other antiseptic creams, the incidence of small burns are
rare and hence the usage of this product is limited thus causing little
or no repurchase. This creates stagnation in the sales of this brand.
b. Since Burnol is very much embedded as a burn specialist, the
extension of this brand to other uses is virtually non existent because
customers will not or may not accept such an extension.
The factors outside the control of the marketer is severely hindering
the brand growth. With lot of money for promotion, one can see this
brand regaining its lost position in the market.
Source: businessline, agencyfaqs,express4media,
Labels: branding, failed brands, FMHG, marketing myopia
POSTED BY HARISH B AT 3:39 PM 1 COMMENTS
M O N D A Y , N O V E M B E R 0 6 , 2 0 0 6
Melody : Chocolaty Brand : Melody
Company: Parle
Agency: Grey
Brand Count : 153
Melody is one the oldest brand in Parle's Portfolio. The brand which
has made a place for its position in the market because of its unique
quality and taste is making a comeback. Melody is a
unique 2 in 1 toffee with chocolate inside and caramel outside. The
brand which was premium priced in early days had used its chocolate
content as its differentiators.
But somewhere in its life the brand lost its way. The brand was not
visible in the media or in the stores. With the entry of high profile
aggressive marketers like Perfetti almost pushed Melody to oblivion.
Also the brand managers at Parle was not spending enough on this old
brand. Confectionery products are bought impulsively and hence the
store placement and brand recall performs an important part in the
success of a brand in this category. At one point of time , Melody lost
on both of these accounts.
The brand thus was slowly forgotten by the customers. Melody had
some unique attributes that made it once successful
a. Its unique taste
b. The brand recall and equity
c.The brand elements like its jingle and tagline and packaging.
Melody was famous for its jingle " Melody hai chocolaty" and " Melody
khao khud jan jao" emphasising on the rich chocolate core and the
high decibel campaigns in the past was so effective that now also
people remember the jingle.
But those who remember the jingle and the brand has now become
older and the younger ones are not knowing this brand. That is a big
problem that this brand faces.
2006 saw this brand coming back to the Rs 1200 crore Indian
confectionery market. The brand handled by Grey Worldwide is
retaining the famous positioning of "Chocolaty" .The latest ads shows
the famous question 'Why Melody is so chocolaty" has made a
comeback.
In the analysis of competition, we often say that there is a competition
for an Idea among marketers. Brands compete for idea or positioning.
Here the " Question" that made Melody famous was hijacked by
Chlormint which ask the same question in a different way " Log
Chlormint kyon khathe hain". Hence Melody lost the exclusivity of the
Q & A that made it famous ( to a certain extent).
But for a consumer who has liked this brand and missed this brand,
the comeback is a welcome event. If Parle sustains its product quality
and maintains its share of voice, Melody will lift the fortunes of its
confectionery business.
source: agencyfaqs,parle.com,businessline
Labels: branding, failed brands, FMCG, marketing myopia
POSTED BY HARISH B AT 6:59 PM 1 COMMENTS
T H U R S D A Y , O C T O B E R 2 6 , 2 0 0 6
Nivea : Gentle Care Brand : Nivea
Company : Beirsdorf AG (JL Morrison in India)
Agency: TBWA
Brand Count : 147
Nivea is a German brand marketed in India by JL Morrison. This
brand has a history of around 96 years. Nivea came into existence in
the year 1911. The brand has derived its name from the Latin word
Nivius meaning "Snow White".
Nivea has been in Indian market for more than 30 years. But this
brand which is truly a global brand has not met with success in India.
Nivea globally is the brand that has its presence in around 20 product
categories in more than 50 countries. But in the 1300 crore Indian
skin care market, the presence of Nivea don't justify its rich heritage.
Nivea is famous worldwide for its face cream. Nivea Creme created by
Dermatologists was launched in 1911 . The brand is considered to be
the first to take the skin care category from the elite class to the
masses. The brand worldwide is known for its Trust, Reliability and
Accessibility. Globally this brand is positioned in the platform of
"Gentle Care" and " Wellness". The brand has its elements of Color
embedded firmly in the minds of the customers. Nivea took its "Blue
and White" color as its brand element as early as 1924. From there
onwards, this color scheme has been a brand identity for Nivea.
In India, the brand is known for its skin cream. Nivea cream is but
perceived as a winter cream because of its thickness and oily
consistency. While in other parts of the world, Nivea has successfully
came out of this narrow perception, in India, the marketers were not
able to effectively take the brand forward. With most of Indian stated
do not have severe winter, the market for winter cream is very
limited.Nivea has a market share of 19% in the Rs 108 crore skin
cream market which is dominated by Ponds.Now Ponds hold the
position which Nivea could have taken had it been more aggressive in
the market.
Although JL Morrison tried to extend the brand to soaps, the
extension has not been successful bec ause of
the halfhearted effort. With salespromotion now being used to
promote this brand of soaps,further dilution of the brand equity is
inevitable.
Nivea face serious marketing issues in India. The brand has not been
aggressive enough in this market which is crowded with established
brands. Nivea was never bothered about strengthening its positioning
as a skin care leader. While Ponds successfully extended itself to
other product categories, Nivea is stuck with its cream.This is a brand
that failed because of marketing laziness. Nivea have huge brand
recall and equity. It has the global parentage, successful positioning
opportunity but was not able to leverage the strength because the
Indian marketers didnot want to invest in the brand. The problem is
that when the brand is licensed to a marketer in a country, the
objective of the brand manager will be to milk maximum out of the
brand rather than invest in longterm brand building. Every ads and
campaigns will be weighed interms of the ROI and sales growth.
Successful brands required longterm investment that will yeild results
over a period of time. But in the case of Nivea, no such brand building
efforts were to be seen.
The potential of the brand is evident from the fact that in the Grey
market, the brand is sold well. There is also significant difference in
the quality of imported Nivea and the local one. It is said that Nivea
Deo is the best selling product in the grey market.
Nivea is sad story of a brand that failed to succeed inspite of having
all essential Brand qualities. If failed because of marketing laziness.
source:rediff,brandweek,businesstoday,nivea.com
Labels: branding, failed brands, FMCG, marketing myopia, personal
care, soap brands
POSTED BY HARISH B AT 10:12 AM 4 COMMENTS
T H U R S D A Y , O C T O B E R 1 9 , 2 0 0 6
Tata Sierra : RIP Brand : Sierra
Company: Tata Motors
Agency: O&M
Brand Count :144
Sierra is the first passenger car from Telco ( Now Tata motors). Tata
Sierra was launched in 1991 marking the transformation of a Truc
k manufacturer to a Passenger vehicle maker.
Sierra was an entirely a new product in the Indian car market at that
time. This three door vehicle was indeed the first SUV to hit the
Indian roads.
Sierra was the baby of Ratan Tata and his first attempt to make a
mark in the Indian Business world after taking over Telco. But the
product bombed inthe market. Sierra can be said as a brand that
came too early. The Indian market was not ready for this concept.
I personally love this car for its look. Most of you will agree that this
vehicle is a stylish one. Even with the entry of all major SUV brands in
India, Sierra looks contemporary ( my opinion) and modern.
Why did Sierra failed in the market?
a. Price
b.Quality
Sierra primarily failed in the market because of its steep price. Priced
around Rs 5 lakh, the brand failed to appeal to the value proposition
of the Indian consumer. Another factor was the corporate image of the
company. Telco was rightly perceived as a truck manufacturer and
Sierra was the first passenger car. Hence the consumers were not
ready to shell out a premium for this brand
Then there was the quality issue. Sierra was a truck in the car form
( no problem with that!) .The consume rs
knew that and the price don't justify the quality proposition given in
the product. Although steeply priced, Sierra had all the goodies that
2005 cars offered like power steering, power windows etc. Yet....
Sierra failed to enthuse the customers.
Sierra was rightly positioned as a sporty beast. The ads and
campaigns rightly promoted the brand and it had all the potential to
be an icon. Telco made a mistake in having high hopes for this brand.
At the best, the product could have been a niche brand and an
important one. The brand could have lifted the company to a higher
level, had the quality issue was rectified.
Even today , we can see this car on the road . And most of the owners
who uses this product because they like the brand not for any other
reason such as low price.I read in an article that the design guru Dilip
Chabaria loves the look of Sierra. As the old ad of Sierra says , "Sierra
is not owned It is Possessed". Today Sierra's position is occupied by
Scorpio and rightly so.. If launched again with a right price , there is
still a market for Sierra.
Source: indicar,businessline,agencyfaqs.
Labels: automobile brands, branding, failed brands, marketing myopia
POSTED BY HARISH B AT 3:16 PM 1 COMMENTS
M O N D A Y , O C T O B E R 0 9 , 2 0 0 6
Coffy Bite : Coffee or Toffee
Brand : Coffy Bite
Company: Lotte India
Agency: JWT
Brand Count : 137
Coffy Bite is a power brand in the Rs 1500 crore Indian Sugar Boiled
Candy market.This 100 crore brand has a history of 18 years of
existence.
Coffy Bite is one of the brands which I grow up with. The brand is
unique and its positioning and ad campaign was one of the best in
that era. The brand is in the coffee category which is around 15% of
the Sugar boiled candy category. Coffee Bite have around 9 % market
share in the SBC segment.
Coffee Bite was introduced in India by Parry's confectioneries of the
Muruggappa Group. This was the flagship brand of Parrys. Later in
2004 , Parry's confectioneries was sold to The Lotte group.
Coffee Bite is famous for the " Coffee -Toffee " argument followed by
the tagline " Its a Coffee in a Toffee" . All th e
campaigns of this brand was a fun to watch and as a product, the
brand offered excellent taste and quality. Overall this product was a
winner. The brand enjoys a recall of as high as 85%.
With the entry of Big names like Perfette, Parrys faced intense
competition in the market for all its major brands. Along with this
heat, the company faced pressures in pricing coupled with rising raw
material costs. Infact, these issues are still haunting the confectionery
manufacturers.
The candy market is faced with two marketing issues
a. The product: since the product is purely an impulse product, lot of
money has to be spent on the brand and also on developing new
variants to create and sustain excitement.
b. The Price: The consumers in this segment is price conscious.
Because of the competition, companies cannot afford to price the
product at a premium and renounce volume. With the 50 paise price
point becoming the industry norm, most of the companies are facing
profitability issues.
The problem that Coffy Bite faced was again the issue of relevance.
Because of some reasons, the brand missed the new generation. The
brand was perceived to be " Old". Hence even though the recall was
high, the actual purchase was as low as 20%.
The task for the new brand owners "Lotte" was to make the brand
more relevant to the new generation. By New Generation , I mean
those kids born after1990's : the liberalisation child.
Lotte changed the packaging to make the brand more contemporary
and youthful. The communication also was changed. Thank God, the
brand managers did not change the famous " Argument". So the
argument continues. The new baseline is " Enough to start an
argument" was an unnecessary change for this brand which is famous
for its " Coffee in a toffee" baseline. The brand owners has to think as
to who is bored by the old baseline, company or customer? As a
customer I prefer the old one. I think that the brand need not change
the taglines and positioning to become more relevant.
Since the category is Coffee, you cannot have any other taste, that can
give some consistency to the communication.I hope the owners will
not come up with variants like Pineapple coffy bite. Besides the taste,
the "Coffee -Toffee" argument gives the creative guys lot of things to
work with.I feel that this brand should take the " Topical"
advertisement route perfected by Amul( discussed somewhere in my
blog) which will be enjoyed by all. One more major positive for this
brand is that it is more of a family toffee that gives it a huge market to
tap.
Coffy Bite is a brand that has a unique space in the mind of the
customers. Is it a Coffee or a Toffee.. the argument continues.
Source: Businessline, agencyfaqs,fnbnews.com, lotteindia.com,economictimes.com
Labels: branding, failed brands, FMCG, marketing myopia
POSTED BY HARISH B AT 1:46 PM 0 COMMENTS
F R I D A Y , O C T O B E R 0 6 , 2 0 0 6
Cuticura: Leaving You Speechless Brand : Cuticura
Company: Cholayil
Agency:Rediffusion
Brand Count:135
Cuticura is an International brand which has a history of 200years.
Once synonymous with talcum powder, this brand was pushed to
oblivion because of marketing myopia or marketing
laziness.
Cutucura came to India 80 years back.Cutucura was owned in India
by Muller&Phipps. Globally this brand was owned by Keyline Brands
which was acquired by Godrej Consumer products in 2005.
Interestingly the brand is owned in India by Cholayil who are the
marketers of Medimix soaps.Cholayil refuses to sell the brand to
Godrej. Godrej hence have the rights to the brand outside India. It
looks like a typical hindi film story script. Cutucura may be crying "
Main kon hu, Main kahan Hu, Mera papa Kaun hai"?
Cholayil acquired the brand from Muller in 2002. The brand was given
a make over and the new owners was trying to revive the brand.
Cuticura was a leading brand of talcum powders in India in the 80's.
Indian talcum powder market is estimated to be around Rs 600 crore.
In the late 80's the brand faced competition from HLL and Cuticura
was not able to sustain in the market.One major factors was that the
Muller underestimated competition. The brand failed to change .
Today the talcum poweder market is dominated by HLL's Ponds with
65% share.
Cuticura's stronghold is the southern market where it
claims to have a share of 30%. The brand still holds equity in this
market. So for Cholayil who markets Medimix, this brand gives a
platform to get into personal care business.
Cuticura is known for its fragrance. The classic brand also famous for
its orange and white packing which still has a huge recall. Cuticura
while retaining its classic product launched a lavender variant in
2003. Reports suggest that the variant failed to make any ripples in
the market. But these efforts helped the brand to post a decent
turnover thanks to the brand equity. Now this brand is worth Rs 10
crore.
Although the Cholayil group has taken serious steps in reviving the
brand, the campaign lacked the punch needed to propel the brand to
new heights. The brand still retains the classic positioning based on
fragrance. The new tagline talks about the brand leaving you
speechless . Although creative idea is OK, the execution is horribl
e. The hyperbole fails to catch the imagination of new
generation.
The biggest challenge that the brand face is that its core users have
become old. The customers who liked and used this brand have now
become old and the new generation does not know this brand. Hence
the brand has to be relevant to the new generation competing with
the power brands like Ponds.
2006 saw the brand extending to deodorants. The extension was
branded as Cuticura DeO2.The main USP of DeO2 is its ingredient
Farnesol. The brand has the tagline " Let your underarms breathe".
Although a not thrilling tagline, to some this make sense because this
product will help you smell good without inhibiting perspiration which
is an important function of the body. Most of the deos inhibits
perspiration to control the bad smell.
Unlike the talc ad, the DeO2 campaign is carefully executed to appeal
to the newgen. Cuticura DeO2 will be pitted against Rexona, Fa, etc in
this segment.
The brand has a potential to be a serious player in the personal care
segment. The brand has to exploit its brand equity and strive to be
relevant to the new generation who may have forgotten this brand
source: historypages.net, magindia.com, agencyfaqs, cholayil
Labels: branding, failed brands, FMCG, marketing myopia, personal
care
POSTED BY HARISH B AT 10:33 AM 0 COMMENTS
M O N D A Y , A U G U S T 2 8 , 2 0 0 6
Akai : The Original Price Warrior Brand : Akai
Company: Videocon
Agency:SSC&B
Brand Count 118
Akai is the brand that changed the Indian CTV industry for ever.The
25000 crore Indian consumer durables market survived at one time
because of Akai. Akai was brought to India by Baron International , a
company floated by the young Kab ir Mulchandani.
Akai was launched in India in 1995 and there after the CTV market
was never the same. Before Akai, the CTV was a luxury affordable
only to the middle class and above. The starting price of CTV at that
time was Rs 15000 and above. It was a big task for a middle-income
family to afford one at that time.
Players like Videocon, BPL, Philips and Onida dominated CTV market
at that time. Akai had to break the stronghold of these players and
how they did it is one of the greatest marketing success stories ever.
From 0 to14% market share within 18 months. That was the outcome.
Akai did this by going by the advice of Don Corleone “ Make an offer
that no one can refuse”.
“ Rs.9999 for a 21 inch color television” screamed full-page ads in
newspapers. It was for the first time that a consumer durable
marketer took full pages that too frequently. Along with the price,
Akai invented the concept of exchange schemes into the Indian
market and customers loved it. Nobody could believe the offer and the
price. I don’t think anyone now also knew how it worked out.You go to
the dealer with an old TV and you could get a discount of Rs 5000 on
the new one. WOW…
Akai positioned itself as a price warrior and the heritage factor of
being a Japanese company boosted the brand image of the company.
The tag “Made in Japan” always impresses Indian consumers and it
helped Akai to scale up in the market with in a short span of time.
Baron also took an unconventional distribution strategy by advertising
heavily before the product hit the market. This created rush in the
market and distributors paid upfront to get the orders and the
company had the money before selling its product. The additional
margins also satisfied the dealers.
The price and the hype affected the market share of
the leaders in CTV market .All the players cut their prices as high as
40% so as to survive. This prompted customers to believe that they
were being forced to pay a higher price before Akai came into the
market. The price offers expanded the Indian CTV market like a
rocket propeller
Akai ran into rough weathers shortly after 1998. Akai globally was
owned by Ontario based Semi Tech corporation. Baron ‘s relationship
with Semi Tech became rough. Baron, to tide over the probability of
severing ties with Akai, forged a deal with Aiwa of Japan for
marketing Hi Fi music systems.
Kabir Mulchandani did the same with Aiwa selling the brand at a
price unheard of and making the product category reachable to
middle class. But Aiwa as an upscale brand ( 51% of the co is owned
by Sony) was not happy by this positioning ,however an the brand was
looking for an upstart in the Indian market and Kabir’s strategy
helped Aiwa to create a brand awareness and expand the market.
Akai thus severed its association with Baron and forged a marketing
relationship with Videocon. Videocon was marketing the brands of
Semitech like Sansui.
Akai struggled to shrug of the image of a low price brand which was
strongly embedded in the mind of the Indian consumer. As Mr
Abrahan Koshy of IIMA says ‘ Discounted brands are promotion
dependant” so to survive Akai had to spend heavily on Advertisements
and it was a difficult proposition.
Baron later tried its luck with another Chinese brand TCL but could
not succeed. Once a poster boy in the media and once acclaimed as a
marketing whiz kid, Kabir Mulchandani has faded in to history as a
one product wonder. He is battling lot of legal issues and nobody talks
about him now. But marketing history remembers him as a Disruptive
Marketer who made two luxury product categories CTV and Hi-FI
systems affordable to the Indian consumer.
Akai expanded the Indian CTV market which is now estimated to be
80 lakhs units per year. The Korean majors currently dominate the
market. Since the launch of Akai in 1995, the entry-level models are
ranging sub 10000, which was unthinkable in the 90’s. Now all the
major players including SONY have a CTV model below Rs 10000.
Even Flat TV starts in this range. All these, thanks to AKAI. But the
brand has now become a marginal player in the Indian market.
Videocon is finding it difficult to fit this brand into its already crowded
product portfolio. Aiwa is fighting it out at the affordable TV and
Music system category with the backing of SONY.
Source : agencyfaqs, estrategicmarketing,businessworld
Labels: branding, consumer durable brands, failed brands, marketing
myopia
POSTED BY HARISH B AT 9:11 PM 1 COMMENTS
W E D N E S D A Y , A U G U S T 1 6 , 2 0 0 6
Ceasefire: RIP 1989-2002 Brand : Ceasefire
Company: Real Value Appliances
Agency: Grey
Brand Count : 114
Ceasefire was India's first domestic fire extinguisher. It was one of
India's best and worst marketing stories. A brand that virtually
created and ruled a category faded out after12 years.
Fire extinguishers comes in the category of unsought goods and it is
difficul t and expensive to create and
survive in such a product category . Real Value Appliances owned by
Mr. Pheroze Engineer started operations in 1989 bringing to the
country a new concept - a domestic fire extinguisher. The fire
extinguishers were not uncommon to Indian consumers. We see it in
large malls and theaters. But a domestic one was unique. Indian
consumers never thought of having one in their homes.
The product made perfect sense in Indian market ( infact every
market). Our households deal with fire all the time and the risk of fire
being getting out of control is very much there. Hence a marketing
mind would easily see the prospect of cashing in that need : the need
for protection from fire. Thus came in to market Ceasefire. The
product was compact, unique had a catchy name, looked good and
boasted of extinguishing all sorts of fires.
Ceasefire was halon 1211 based fire extinguisher that was very
compact and was handy and easy to use ( with minimum effort). Much
more than the efficacy of the use, it gave a certain peace of mind to
the Indian consumer against the possible fire mishap.
The product was well received in the market. The ads were focusing
on building in the consumer a fear about a possible fire mishap . The
ads were backed by a sales campaign. The company focused on direct
marketing for promoting the product . Since the " Fear of Fire" is so
basic to human psyche, the success was imminent. The product was
priced at a premium and the customers never complained.
Fire extinguishers , like Insurance is one kind of product where
customers are not unhappy if it is not being used. Hence the success
is in keeping the " Fear " alive in the customer's mind. The success of
Ceasefire was much discussed in Management classes those days.
Then buoyed by the success, the company diversified to Vaccumizer
and " rest became history". From a brand that was among the top ten
fastest growing brand in the country to a company referred to BIFR,
things moved very fast from 1997 onwards.
It happened not because the brand failed the company but it was
because the company failed the brand. The unsuccessful new product
like vaccumizer and the alleged mismanagement failed the brand once
gloried as a marketing success story.In 2002, Real Value Appliances
closed down
its operations. May be the brand / company tried to grow very fast
without consolidating, may be because of mismanagement.
It was a brand that lost its life because of faults not of its own. But
surprisingly, no other brands have come forward to take that position.
The product category that was created by Ceasefire is still void. May
be the category may not be appealing to the other marketers. But the
potential is there and the fear is also there.
Source: magindia, indiainfoline, estrategicmarketing.com
Labels: branding, failed brands, FMCG, marketing myopia
POSTED BY HARISH B AT 9:52 AM 0 COMMENTS
T H U R S D A Y , J U N E 0 8 , 2 0 0 6
Yardley : Immense Potential Wasted ! Brand : Yardley
Company: Lornmead
This 235 year old cosmetics brand from England is yet to take off in
India(after crashlanding) despite its long life here. The iconic brand
was a hit in 1950's among the elite Indians but some how missed the
liberalisation bus.
The brand which has a rich heritage was marketed by P&G and since
they did not have any interest in the cosmetic market sidelined this
brand. The brand was relegated to Talcum Powders and with no
promotions and poor pricing has dampened the equity of this brand.
Yardley is now owned by Lornmead which is under the Jatania group :
one of the richest Indian family in UK. If reports are to be believed,
they have big plans for India and Yardley may fit into their strategies.
Yardley has been positioned as the quintessential English brand with
its conservative look and royal touch. Although the brand was
appealing to the TG in early nineties, the newer generation has not
been kind to this brand ( or this brand is not existing to gennext). The
cosmetic market is dominated by the likes of Revlon and Lakme, calls
for a major rebranding exercise for this brand.
A look at their website revealed a whole range of luxurious perfume
and cosmetic range which was sadly not available in India. Yardley
have the advantage of being perceived as a Unisex brand and thus can
extend the brand to a larger audience. Since the perfumes market is
still undeveloped, Yardley have a huge market waiting for it.
What the company needs to do is to get its marketing mix correct and
make the brand contemporary. If it does it fast, the brand has the
potential to make it big
Labels: branding, failed brands, FMCG, marketing myopia
POSTED BY HARISH B AT 3:49 PM 0 COMMENTS
F R I D A Y , M A Y 1 2 , 2 0 0 6
Bajaj RE : The End Of Days?
Brand : RE
Company: Bajaj Auto
Rickshaws were a part of Indian roads as early as 1880 and the
rickshaw pullers of Calcutta are famous in the West as a symbol of
Indian Poor. Rickshaw originated from Japanese words that meant
Human Powered Vehicle. Later these rickshaws become powered by
motors hence became autorickshaw.
Bajaj is the pioneer in this market with a market share of almost 95%.
Auto which is the short form of Autorickshaw started off with a front
engine model with 'Dolby Digital ' sound effects with petrol smoke
which comes free. In 1977 Bajaj launched the rear engine Auto which
bought some decency to this class of vehicle.
Autos are a source of income for lot of families.There are estimated to
be around 24 lakh three wheelers in India. The three wheeler segment
include both passenger and goods carrier and Bajaj enjoys a near
monopoly in this segment. The other players are Mahindra , Piaggio
Greaves. KAL etc.
As a marketer I feel that this segment is going to witness the same
fate as the scooters and as usual Bajaj Auto, unless it wakes up, is
going to be in the same situation as it was in the case of Scooter
segment.
Let us look at the product first. Autos is a mode of public transport.
The reason why it succeeded in India is
a. Cheaper than Taxi
b.Ideal for short distance travel
c. City maneuvering is easy
d.Comfortable than buses.
Over these years all these factors has turned against the Auto. With
the rising fuel prices, the auto rates have increased and is now out of
reach for the lower middle class.This vehicle was earlier fulfilling the
needs of the lower and upper middleclass families of India.But with
the upper middle class going for two wheeler and Maruthi, these
autos now have no significance in their traveling plans. For the lower
middle class, the new auto rates are now not affordable so there is a
shift to two wheelers or buses. For example a one and a half kilometer
trip in an auto will cost you nothing less than 15 Rs while a car will
cost you around Rs.6
The pollution caused by autos have forced authorities to put stringent
norms for this segment. The rash behaviour of the drivers also is
repulsing the customers from this mode of transport. One has to
answer many questions from the auto driver before taking you for the
ride. This segment till now has not understood the ground realities.
The vehicle is pathetic with respect to comfort to passengers aswell as
drivers. The customers are using this product just because there is no
other alternative. It is a sort of De ja vu .. Till now Bajaj has done
nothing to the product. No change in the shape , comfort, technology
etc. Yes they have came out with diesel version, 4 stroke self start and
CNG version but essentially the product is still the same.
The market size is estimated to be around 400000 units per year.
Since this is a major source of income, government will not take a
drastic step to kill the segment . But I foresee a disruptive change in
this segment. Already some disruption is happening. The goods
carrier three whe eler segment is witnessing competition
from other players and the Tata motors have launched a Blockbuster
product TATA ACE to take on the three wheeler goods carrier.
A similar disruptive product will easily kill Autos. Already there are
rumours of Honds seriously looking into this segment. To escape the
fate of Chetak , Bajaj has to once again think in terms of customer.
The autos in order to succeed should deliver more value to the
passenger and the owner. Better mileage, ridability, comfort for the
passenger are a must to survive the next ten years. Drivers should be
trained to be more customer friendly because with their Union
strength it may be possible to get higher rates but not the customers.
With the public transport systems gearing up fo major changes with
better buses, metro rails etc, customers have choices. Taxi's have
sensed this and have changed. Now we have better and courteous taxi
cabs and their business is growing.
Hey Auto : R U listening?
Labels: automobile brands, branding, failed brands, marketing myopia
POSTED BY HARISH B AT 9:28 PM 0 COMMENTS
M O N D A Y , F E B R U A R Y 2 7 , 2 0 0 6
Margo:lost in the Neem trees !
Brand : Margo
Company: Henkel
Agency: FCB Ulka
Margo is one of the oldest herbal soaps in India. The brand which is
more than 85 years old is famous for its neem content. The product
although famous for its positive effects to the skin is nowhere in the
market. This is a brand which never changed with the customer.
During its launch, the product had dedicated customer base and since
the product was unique due to its medicinal value , customers tend to
be loyal. The whole brand was having Neem as its core identity.
But Margo failed to understand the changing dynamics of Indian
consumers, more and more choices began to unfold before the
consumer and Margo was becoming a niche brand. Margo was
positioned as a "complete skin care soap". When market became
fragmented with lot of products positioning at different attributes,
Margo was sidelined as a medicinal soap.
The product has inherent negatives, the fragrant was not attractive
nor the shape. It was also less lathering compared to its competitors.
Margo changed hands from Shaw Wallace to Henkel. Although Margo
was relaunched in 2003 with a new fragrance and shape , it has not
excited the market so far. The new positioning is " Margo skin clear
skin". The brand had a following in AP, Tamilnadu and West Bengal
( am not sure about its present status). The single mistake the brand
made was to miss the new generation. It failed to attract the young
users.
With Lifebouy herbal variant and other established brands taking in
the "neem" content away from Margo, this brand needs a hell lot of
money to rejuvenate itself. May be a high decibel big celebrity
endorsement may help this brand ( try Aishwarya for a change) . Can
it change its avatar and fight lifebuoy in the health platform?
This is a brand that failed to change with the customer or changed
very late.
Labels: branding, failed brands, FMCG, marketing myopia, personal
care, soap brands
POSTED BY HARISH B AT 12:11 AM 0 COMMENTS
M O N D A Y , F E B R U A R Y 1 3 , 2 0 0 6
Vimal suitings : Where art Thou ? Brand : Vimal Suitings
Company : Reliance Industries Ltd
Agency : Mudra
One of the oldest and most respected iconic textile brand of India is
languishing some where in the attic of the mega corporation Reliance.
The brand which started of as a Saree brand developed itself into a
mega textile brand for women , men and even for furniture ( Vimal
Harmony is one of the largest furnishing brand).
Vimal suitings was launched in 1980 after the successful Vimal range
of sarees. At that point of time Reliance was a predominantly a textile
company. This brand was carefully positioned as a premium men's
suitings brand. The brand which was handled by Mudra, was
promoted heavily by Reliance. At that time the major competitors
being Bombay Dyeing and Raymonds.
According to the case study of Vimal available in Mudra Website, the
Vimal Suitings brand was developed in 4 stages . The first stage
involved convincing the customer about the quality of the brand
explaining the technology behind the making of Vimal in
advertisements. The second stage involved creating a personality of
the brand using living legends. In the ads, living legends like army
veterans, experts in various fields were used as models to build the
character of the brand as a credible brand. The third stage involved
promoting the brand as a fashion brand or Style gur
u. The ads showed Kabir Bedi and the likes
catched the imagination of the TG. The 4 stage used cricketer as
models to appeal to larger crowd. May be Vimal was one of the first
brands that used cricketer as models ( correct me if I'm wrong).
I would add the fifth stage as letting the brand die without giving it
any marketing support.
The brand was targeted at the young ambitious who are challengers
to the CEO's . The brand personality was stylish, and aspirational.
Vimal was promoted using the famous tagline " OnlyVimal " created
by Late Frank Simoes. The tagline is said to be personally approved
by Dhirubai himself. The brand was a premium brand and the ads
were catchy. Reliance also opened exclusive Vimal showrooms as a
part of promoting the brand.
Later in the 1990's the Reliance business model changed. The
company changed from textiles to petrochemicals and Vimal was not
fitting into reliance business plans. It was the only retail brand of
Reliance ( now we have RIM) and company never focused on Vimal.
As far as a marketer is concerned, Vimal was a great brand with huge
potential ( whether it fits into Reliance plan is another issue). 90's also
saw the shift in the consumer's preference towards readymades.
Although reliance had a readymade brand "Reance" it was a half
hearted move which resulted in a flop.
Vimal was known for its quality and style. Still people remembers its
simple baseline " Only Vimal". Lack of marketing support had virtually
killed the brand. Now the position that Vimal occupied is now owned
by Raymonds and Reid & Taylor.
News reports suggest that Reliance may revive the Vimal brand owing
to their retail foray and the opening of the textile sector to the global
markets. Vimal have already being messed itself up with the launch of
V2 brand which is cheap and available even in grocery stores. What a
way to mess up a brand ! Vimal have stopped marketing sarees and is
said to be concentrating on suitings. Suitings are becoming more
popular because of the increasing globetrotters and professionals.
Reviving Vimal will be very difficult since this brand has lost its touch
with the new Indian consumer.
Oh Vimal!
Labels: branding, failed brands, marketing myopia, readymade
brands, textiles
POSTED BY HARISH B AT 9:54 AM 0 COMMENTS
W E D N E S D A Y , F E B R U A R Y 0 8 , 2 0 0 6
Yamaha : Not truly Yamaha ! Brand: Yamaha
Company: Yamaha
Agency : Dentsu
Yamaha which once ruled the mind of Indian youth is now in dire
straits. The company which is the second largest motorcycle
manufacturer in the world is having a market share of 5%
in the booming Indian two wheeler market which is growing at a rate
of 12-15%.
Why?
Yamaha is a performance bike manufacturer which recently
celebrated its golden jubilee of its existence . In India Yamaha was
present in a joint venture with Escorts which brought out the
blockbuster Yamaha RX 100 and the cult Yamaha RD 350. Yamaha
and Hero Honda had during the late 80's beat the hell out of scooter
manufacturers , but Yamaha now has lost its edge. Yamaha broke the
partnership with Escorts and started its India operations as a 100%
subsidiary of Yamaha Japan from 2001 onwards.
Yamaha was not able to sustain the momentum it had generated
during 1990's with RX100. RX100 was a bike that had style and
substance. The product was powerful, gave no mech problems and
was embraced by the youth. But after the tight environmental
regulations introduced in 90's , RX100 had to be shelved. RX100 was
replaced by RX135 which was no where near RX100. The ride was
terrible and the product had nothing to boast about. It was the
beginning of decline of Yamaha.
Yamaha was not able to bringout a blockbuster product in the recent
past. It is unfair if I don't mention that there were lot product
launches from Yamaha but nothing clicked. The reason being that the
company was focused on Utility segment ( true that money is there
only in that segme nt). Yamaha did not try to look
at the changing profile of the Indian consumer.
Yamaha also thought that it had the same premium image in the mind
of the customer . It failed to realise that the brand equity has eroded
because of failed product launches. It had no product to showcase its
superiority as a bike manufacturer. While Bajaj demonstrated its
arrival in to the bike segment with Eliminator and Pulsar, Yamaha still
tried its luck in the executive segment which was dominated by
Splendor from Hero Honda.
Yamaha should have realised that inorder to break the Splendor's
dominance, It had to build a brand in the premium segment and using
that image, try its luck in the mid segment. Bajaj launched Eliminator
to show the technical superiority. We drooled at the cruiser and then
grabbed Pulsar. Yamaha failed to do that.
Yamaha tried to shock the market with a low
priced Cruiser Enticer at an unbelievable price of 49000 but the
product failed because the company wanted to play the volume game.
Enticer could not sustain the huge initial it got because the market for
cruiser was only emerging and the product did not live up to the
expectation. Cruiser with only a power of 125 cc was itself a failing
proposition. Now that there is a trend towards low priced cruiser
pioneered by Bajaj Avenger, Enticer relaunch may succeed.
Yamaha then launched Crux and Libero and Fazer in the executive
segment but cou ld not set the market on fire . The
company says that it is moving away from utility bikes to performance
bikes. The launch of Fazer was towards this direction. The product
had an unusual look hence failed to catch the imagination of Indian
bike enthusiasts. Here again the company made a mistake of not
making a statement.
Yamaha is having big plans for India. The company is earmarking 200
crores in revamping its operations. On the marketing side, it has
roped in John Abraham as the brand ambassador.
I am no expert in Motorcycles but I feel that Yamaha now needs to
make a STATEMENT. A powerful statement that will force the
consumers to look up and say " Its a Yamaha".
Just compare the Fazer launched in India and the
Fazer which is showcased int ernationally, the
Indian Fazer is no where near the international one. Why did Yamaha
which wanted to play the lifestyle game launch a stripped down
Fazer ? Had it launched a chunky masculine Yamaha in India, the
brand will move miles ahead in the mind of the consumer. Forget the
price and the volume, bring the best bike to India and make a
statement.
What we have in India is not the Yamaha but only a shadow. Yamaha
if it wants to emerge from the shadows will have to shed the volume
game and seriously build the brand.
To become Truly Yamaha , Change the rules...
Labels: automobile brands, branding, failed brands, marketing myopia
POSTED BY HARISH B AT 12:23 PM 0 COMMENTS
M O N D A Y , J A N U A R Y 2 3 , 2 0 0 6
Bajaj Chetak (1972-2005) :RIP
Brand : Bajaj Chetak
Company : Bajaj Auto Ltd
The brand which ruled the Indian roads have been laid to rest. Bajaj
has officially stopped the production of Bajaj Chetak from December
2005. The stocks will last may be upto March 2006. The company says
that the product no longer have any relevance to the customer. To
quote Rajiv bajaj " Any one who clings to the past is a failure".
I owned a Chetak: a gift from my father for having secured admission
to MBA program. It was in the year 1996. Later I exchanged it for a
bike in 2001. Still Chetak lingers in me ( or rather haunts me) in the
form of " Back Pain".
The brand which was launched in 1972 virtually owned the two
wheeler segment. If reports are to be believed, Chetak was an
unavoidable dowry in 1970's and 80's. It had a waiting period of more
than 10 years ( can you believe it ? ) and now here I am after 34 years,
writing the epitaph of this brand.
The brand which was named after the legendary stallion of the Rajput
king Maharana Pratap, was known for the reliability and sturdiness.
The brand thrived during the license raj with virtually no competition.
It was during 1990-91 that the brand began the journey to the end.
Bajaj Chetak had a huge brand equity . The brand had the persona of
a " work h orse". With reasonable price and the low
maintenance cost made this product a huge hit among the middle
class Indians.
Promoted along the base line " Hamara Bajaj", this was the Indian
Family vehicle - a position now owned by Maruthi 800.
But then How can a brand that was so popular and successful fail?
Frankly, I am not sure. But here is what I think about this brand...
The primary reason is that the Brand forgot the customers. Another
case of Marketing Myopia. The company failed to understand the
changing perception of the customers towards scooters. Rather than
looking at the customers, the company focused on influencing
Government to block the opening up of economy. Bajaj never did
anything with the product. For 40 years Chetak had the same look,
same quality and style.
During the mid nineties the company realised lately that the segment
has shifted to motorcycles. Scooters were no longer the option. But
did the company made a mistake in discarding the scooter segment ?
Looking at the way the share prices are going, the market thinks that
Bajaj Auto made the right decision. But I think that th
ey made a mistake in leaving the scooter
segment completely. Contrary to expectation, the scooter segment has
not died. It has only changed.
Chetak lost its identity some where during the nineties. What should
be the future of the brand : no body knew. It was only in 2004 that
company made any change in Chetak. In 1994 Bajaj introduced
Classic another scooter with same style as Chetak, but failed.
Bajaj never was serious about product development. The R&D spent
for a long time was a miniscule 1%. The average cycle time for the
new product development was 4-5 years compared to 2-3 years of
Japanese competitors.
Even after the opening up of economy, the scooter segment did not
witness much competition.
The players like Vespa did not had much of success in this segment.
Kinetic Honda managed to carve a niche with its gearless scooters.
Another segment which was growing was the scooterette segment
which was dominated by TVS scooty.
Bajaj never seriously looked at customer perception about Chetak.
The product had serious problems like starting trouble and riding
comfort. The " Tilting the chetak to the side for starting " was a
common joke. Did the company do anything for that ? no
There was nothing wrong with the Promotion. " Hamara Bajaj " and "
No one can beat a Bajaj " were famous base lines. There was nothing
wrong with distribution and the pricing was very reasonable. The
major problem was in the first P : Product.
So without addressing any problems regarding the product , can you
expect the customer to buy the product ?
Bajaj was never a leader in technology ( now they are !!!). They never
bothered to and paid the price . Had Chetak pioneered Electric start,
had it provided more riding comfort, it could have survived.
Somebody have just beat the Bajaj........ the customer!