The fact that Indians have a sweeter palate and also that mothers and fresh juice stalls add sugar to freshly squeezed juice to enhance its taste appeal was a key input by the research and consumer insight team to the new product development team at the Dabur Research Foundation. Merely aping the texture (which was more fibrous), taste (which was less sweet) and flavours (which were western fruit variants) of the West would have been premature for the Indian market. In a market where sweet lime and orange were the most juiced fruits, orange seemed to be the more appropriate variant from a profitability point of view. Hence, the first flavour to be created and launched was orange with the right balance of tangy and sweet to suit Indian taste buds.
Consumers’ acceptance of a non-medicinal non-Ayurvedic juice from Dabur was another big question. The solution was actually quite simple. By not highlighting the company name alongside the Real brand name, as was conventional Dabur practice, two objectives were served. The authenticity of the product was highlighted while the very different traditional product portfolio of the parent company didn’t act as an obstacle to acceptance.
It was a brave sacrifice and bold strategy within the organization to create a whole new brand, create and develop a new category not just within the organization but for the country itself and launch it in a relatively new-format packaging.
The launch pack was dark blue with strong branding and such that the fruit stood out. However, in making the pack premium, the need to convince the consumer of the authenticity and taste, somehow seems to have got diluted. This was a learning from the first phase of launch that was quickly corrected along with other tweaks post the first year of launch.
However, the most important achievement of Real was highlighting the taste dimension in a category traditionally driven by health, without compromising on the wholesomeness factor.
Business problems
Solution design
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As fresh as home-made juice
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Packaging innovation ‘tetrapack’ that helped preserve freshness
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Taste as important as health
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Choice of orange flavour as the launch variant with the right texture and balance of tangy and sweet
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Dabur’s overt perception as an Ayurvedic company a barrier
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An authentic brand name like ‘Real’ not pre-fixed with ‘Dabur’
A comprehensive overhaul
The first year of launch did not turn out to be very encouraging. While many of the strategic decisions paid off, critical concerns related to distribution and supply-chain management emerged as barriers in market acceptance. Added to this was the wrong choice of packaging design and missing links in communication. A demotivated team, including the sales crew, nearly forced a defeat. The bottom line was that the packs were not being picked off the shelf.
A sales meet in Mussoorie proved to be the turning point. An open mind and sheer grit and determination helped identify, course-correct and chart the course forward by the team led by Krishnakumar Chutani, the marketing head. A patient ear to the woes, complaints and issues highlighted and helped translate these into tangible actionables.
To bring back faith and confidence and re-energize the team, some fundamental components required re-engineering:
»Supply chain: Some of the packs were getting puffed due to delay in the supply chain. The then existing supply chain was not fully equipped to handle food products with specific storage needs and short shelf lives. This was one of key concerns that was addressed on war footing, and Real is reaping the benefits even today.
The internal systems were improved to ensure that quality was maintained till it reached the consumer by strengthening distribution and better packaging.
Real developed a food-sensitive warehouse management training programme at all levels of the channel to ensure that the freshest product reached the market.
»Design and aesthetics: The first pack, though premium looking, lacked food appeal. In India, dark blue is conventionally seen as a negative colour and not very appetizing—clearly disassociated from foods. Real redesigned to enhance food and fruit appeal by using bright and attractive colours that enhanced retail shelf impact.
»Packaging enhancement: Dabur Foods was also the first company to introduce cap-on packs which gave consumers the flexibility of reuse. This, in addition to the tetrapack spin cap, cold-fill technology and spill-proof double seal cap packaging, helped in keeping the juice fresher for longer and also making it easier to pour.
»Revamped product portfolio: Launching preferred popular variants like orange and mango to start with, proved an effective fruit variant strategy. The stringent action standards in consumer product testing ensured the acceptance of the product by consumers and thereby the success of the brand.
»Communication: Consumer research had already tabled the lack of belief in packaged foods and fresh juice. This issue was addressed in communication by highlighting no added preservatives and no added colour.
Having addressed each issue systematically, the brand tasted its first success in the year 2000. The changing consumer, impacted by urban India’s rapid globalization, was actively embracing the concept of ‘Time is money’. The 2–minute noodle generation wanted everything fast and was willing to pay the premium for the convenience.
Real was an idea whose time had come.
Segmentation plays a pivotal role in market expansion
Today, Real commands a more than 50 per cent market share in the packaged juices and nectars market (AC Nielsen). This growth was made possible on the strength of innovative segmentation to tap into diversified consumer needs.
Real was able to successfully segment the market early, thus effectively creating a differentiated niche even in the no added sugar juice category with its sub-brand, Real Activ, in the year 2000.
Real Fruit Power: Focusing on children while promising health with happiness
Real’s proposition is that fruits can be fun, colourful, juicy, delicious and exciting. Its ongoing endeavour is to bring fruit goodness and health to the home, without compromising on the happy. To cater to different needs, occasions and taste buds, the Real Fruit Power range today has fourteen exciting variants. The range includes exotic Indian mango, international favourites pomegranate and cranberry, and classic orange and pineapple among others. Real Fruit Power has no added preservatives, delivering on the promise of real fruit power.
Real Activ: Appealing to a health-conscious young India
The Real Activ brand was created keeping in mind the needs of health-conscious young executives for whom fitness is a way of life. The product comprised unsweetened juices that had 0 per cent added sugar, no added colour or preservatives and that were naturally rich in antioxidant nutrients. The Real Activ range expanded to three categories of juices—100 per cent (single fruit) juice, Fruit–Veggie, a combination of fruit and vegetable juices and Fibre+ with added fibre.
Fruit–Veggie: Dabur’s most successful innovation
The new Fruit–Veggie juice category was created by Dabur Foods in 2006. Globally, the fruit+vegetable combo juice market was a fast-growing niche that appealed to health-conscious adults who wanted their juice to ‘deliver more’. Interestingly, this was not an entirely alien concept to the Indian consumer who was accustomed to drinking mixed fruit and vegetable juices from the neighbourhood juice stall but did not have this choice when it came to hygienically packaged juice.
Real’s strategy to launch this category was an outcome of an innovative product development plan that combined product ideation and extensive consumer feedback. The company’s research showed that consumers were looking at an orange+ option, i.e., a way of making the all-time favourite orange juice more nutritious and healthy. Several options were considered and the orange-carrot combination was chosen for various reasons: it made the healthiest combination; the two flavours blended well with each other
creating a more flavourful juice; and there was a high degree of comfort with the combination as carrot juice was also traditionally consumed in India and its health benefits were well known.
Real Activ was the first and remains the only juice that offers a combination of fruits and vegetables. The innovations in the ‘health’ space continued with the launch of Real Activ Fibre+—the first fibre drink— and Real Activ Yoghurt—the first yoghurt drink—both of which directly benefited gut health in addition to weight management.
Real SupaFruits: Promising supra health and enhanced nutrition
Superfruits are a special category of fruits which are exceptionally nutrient dense and rich in antioxidants. These are among the most exotic and premium fruits that are difficult to obtain throughout the year. Superfruits and their juices enjoy great popularity the world over. These superfruits and their juices are a perfect blend of exotic fruit appeal and exceptional fruit nutrition. Hence they are not only great tasting but also provide extra nourishment that boosts well-being.
Dabur continued its innovation stint with the launch of Real SupaFruits, another first for India. Real SupaFruits combined two superfruits (Goji berry and Plum) in each pack to deliver the promise of more nutrition per millilitre.
Real Fruit Shakes: Becoming every mother’s best friend
With the launch of Real Fruit Shakes, Dabur forayed into the packaged milk fruit shake market. The objective was not only to extend brand Real to give consumers more choices but also make the experience of having milk more enjoyable and nutritious for kids.
Real has grown from strength to strength and will continue to create a disruption in the market with innovations and speed to market with the numerous variant launches and sub-brands.
The role of communication
Communication strategy relied heavily on launching and communicating new variants. The launch of popular variants to start with, before moving on to more exotic variants, was an important and effective part of communication. It helped create familiarity and acceptance for the packaged juice category among Indian consumers without compromising on nutrition and taste as fruits are almost always associated with freshness and seasonality.
Once familiar with the concept of packaged juices and the more niche ‘no added sugar’ Real Activ variant, the market and the consumer were now ready to experiment with newer variants, some of which were exotic fruits not juiced at home like apricot, plum and cranberry. It is this nimble-footedness and ability to deliver a variety of products and variants under each category that will continue to fuel growth.
In a short span of time, the communication traversed from ‘Fruit in a pack’ to ‘Eight times more fruit (nutrition)’, ‘As good as fruit’ and ‘Drinking a fruit’. Krishnakumar Chutani, the marketing head, followed the simple philosophy of ‘brutal simplicity leading to engaged creativity’, that became the cornerstone of all communication.
Rooted in the insight that ‘kids make faces at healthy foods’, Real Fruit Power took on a compelling platform of fruit nutrition for fussy eaters (i.e. kids). This was different from the competition’s aggressive communication on owning a particular occasion or time of day, like breakfast. The brand endeavoured to involve mothers through real stories to help them overcome the barrier of children finding fruit boring. This was brought alive through fruit stories, recipes, fun facts and innovative digital initiatives to drive home the proposition of Happy=Healthy.
High-impact, below-the-line engagement—‘Real taste challenge’— supported the campaigns by establishing the authenticity and freshness of real fruit in a pack. In fact, in 2013, in some Durga Puja pandals, Real packs were distributed as prasad in lieu of the conventional fruit prasad. This is a sign of the high respect the brand has earned.
The brand philosophy of ‘A Happy Child is a Healthy Child’ captured in the latest communication is a guiding and driving force for the brand. In a world where milk food drinks (MFDs), amongst other brands, focus on the physical or mental dimension of health, here is a brand that goes beyond. As often heard from paediatricians—if a child is happy then it’s a sure sign of health.
In line with its intent of targeting a health-conscious young India, the communication for ‘Real Activ’ focused on the positioning of weight management. The earlier campaign was based on the powerful insight of ‘fitting into purani (old) jeans’ as the benchmark for successful weight loss. The recent campaign captures the rising health trends, inspiring the urban masses to lead a more active and energetic lifestyle. Celebrity endorsement by Sonali Bendre for Real Fruit Power juice and fitness icon Bipasha Basu for Real Activ also contributed significantly by giving communication the desired fillip.
Real leadership
Real has been a category creator and has driven the growth of the packaged fruit juice market in India. The brand witnessed its fastest growth in the past five years, from a ₹250 crore brand to a ₹700 crore brand. Real and its sub-brands served a whopping 15 crore juice helpings in 2013. It is said that the number of packs sold, if laid side by side, would far exceed India’s coastline of 7,516 km.
Real was a pioneer in every sense of the word
•First to launch packaged juices with Real Fruit Power.
•First to launch over sixteen variants.
•First to launch functional juices with Real Activ in eleven flavours, in the year 2000.
•First to launch summer coolers, in 2006.
•First to launch soya-based beverages, in 2007.
•First to launch Indian ethnic drinks, in 2011.
•First to introduce the concept of ‘super fruits’ through the SupaFruit launch in 2013.
•First to launch milk-based juices with fruit nutrition.
Accolades and recognitions
»Real was voted the Most Trusted fruit juice brand by consumers for the eighth year in a row in the Reader’s Digest Trusted Brand Gold Award in the Food and Beverages (Juice) category.
»Real was ranked amongst the Top 100 Most Exciting Brands in India (Milward Brown).
A stable team spanning marketing, sales, operations, supply chain and even vendors, motivated and inspired by Sunil Duggal, the current chief executive officer, and led by Krishnakumar Chutani, has been the core of Real’s success. It’s a team that dreamt of, believed in and eventually built and nurtured the business to be the most successful fruit juice brand in India.
Challenger
THE JOURNEY OF A BILLION CUPS
Thou shall not:
»have advertising
»have a marketing team
»recruit extra manpower
»blend tea
decreed Darbari Seth, long-serving chairman of Tata Tea.
Steve Jobs, while addressing the graduating class of 2005 at Stanford University, said, ‘You cannot connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards.’
Back in 1983, when Tata Tea acquired Finlay, little did Darbari Seth know that, thirty-two years later, his people would be narrating the story of the brand/company he had helped build, and that they would be doing so by connecting the dots looking backwards.
But, unlike what Jobs said, these dots are not mere acts of coincidence. They are simple yet meaningful actions taken time and again in the face of adversity; they are decisions that went on to become trends; they are a series of stories woven together that form part of the DNA of a legendary brand.
It all started when Tata Finlay was set up as a joint venture (JV) between Tata Sons and the UK-based tea plantation company, James Finlay and Company in 1962. In 1983, Tata Tea was born after James Finlay sold his shareholding to Tata, heralding the start of a new journey.
Tata Tea: A brand that was not meant to be
In the early 1980s, Tata Tea’s primary business—growing and manufacturing tea in the lush green plantations of Assam and Munnar—was flourishing. The company leadership at that time was debating the need to add value to the plantation business and also protect it from the uncertainti
es of a commodity business. Thus was born the idea of launching the Tata Tea brand. The key motivation behind the thought was to add to the plantation business rather than create a ‘branded business’, in line with the intriguing tenets laid down by Darbari Seth. In other words, the motivation behind founding the Tata Tea brand was to maximize value for the plantations and not to create a brand.
Competitive environment in the 1980s: Nothing Indian about it
Branded Tea: In the early 1980s, tea was a commodity tightly controlled by a handful of companies.
Ironically, in the early years, i.e., the first three decades of the century, the Indian tea trade was predominantly controlled by foreign entities. As one website put it: ‘There was nothing Indian about Indian packed tea.’ The names were all foreign—English names based on colours—Red Label, Violet Label, Green Label.
Of these, Red Label had the most significant share and was sold in carton packs.
At that time, with over 70 per cent market share, loose tea dominated the market. Of the remaining 30 per cent, one player, Hindustan Unilever, controlled the majority share (70 per cent).
An insight into supply chain management led to the creation of Tata Tea’s unique brand promise
To create a dent in the marketplace, the team was clear that it needed to do something different. It became imperative that the company develop a ‘competitive advantage’—something that was ‘unique’ and of real value to the end consumer.
A close scrutiny of the tea business at that time (and to a large extent, holding true today as well) revealed that tea was sent from the plantations to the auctions. Companies or agents bought this tea and then blended or mixed it as per a standard that in their understanding would deliver a certain taste and profile of tea or simply a recipe (at least for the branded players). They then packed and dispatched the tea to the respective markets for sale. This process took a whopping eight months or so from production to consumption. Now tea, like other food products, deteriorates when it comes in contact with moisture and air and hence loses its natural properties over time.
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