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: could be another brand that may require a certain amount of push because that category has become so competitive that incentive-wise the retailer gets a bit more than usual so that you stand out from rest. It’s like horses for courses.
With well-established players like HUL and Nestle getting aggressive in the confectionery market, what sort of innovations does your company have in mind?
There are loads and loads of projects on the anvil at any point of time. We are singularly focused on the sugar confectionery unlike other companies for whom confectionery is one more category they are present in. The good thing is that we have been given a lot of flexibility by our parent company to look at local products as well. So it is not just about picking up a brand that is available in the international stable and launching it in another market. We can modify the taste and, in fact, look at developing a entirely local product. This keeps our R&D team busy. Over the years we have been the first-mover in many categories—such as Alpenliebe, Centre Fresh and Happydent White. If you are able to bring in value-added offerings before other players and if you are able to distribute and advertise them well, you get a bit of a head start.
Is there any attempt at developing more local products? Is any global R&D done here?
The answer to both is yes. We have an R&D team here in India that does a lot of things locally. Some of the stuff that we launch in India goes abroad, to other markets. For example, we had launched Creamfills a couple of years ago, which has been an outstanding success. The idea was local, for the first time the production was done in India, the brand name was done locally. Subsequently, it went to other markets—China, Poland and other countries. Similar, for Cofitos. Our parent company believes in “think global” rather than just saying it.
How does the market for sugar-free products look like in India? How big would be the size?
It’s a small niche today. It will grow only when Indian consumers start becoming more conscious about dental hygiene and obesity, which is a big thing in the West. Having said that, India is huge and there is a segment of society that is exposed to international products and for whom sugar-free works. Marketers must be aware that it...
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