Apart from ice-cream soda, which was extremely popular in the Eighties, the veteran soft drink manufacturer plans to launch a variety of products including Orange, Lemonade, Vito, Ginger Beer and Soda. Lemonade and Vito are the brand names of the company's lemon and cola ranges respectively.

According to company officials, Spencer plans to offer all varieties in PET takeaway bottles. ``We are the first in India to offer 200 ml and 350 ml, the largest selling segments, in takeaway bottles without charging an extra paisa for that. We are also offering 50 ml more than others in 300 ml segment,'' said Dilip Seth, the promoter of Spencer Soft Drinks Pvt Ltd.

Seth took over Spencer in 1997 from Amar Dutta, the son of Balai Dutta, whofounded the company in 1929. Confident of surviving in a market dominated by multinational giants, Seth said: ``Once Spencer had successfully countered Coke, so why can't it this time? In the Sixties, Vito used to share the market leadership with Coke and Vimpto of Rose and Thistle. This was the scenario till the late Sixties when Spencer had to stop production due to internal problems.''

``People who tasted Vito still remember it. We are not changing the old formula for the entire range. If people can accept Coke with unchanged taste then they will accept Spencer as well. Besides the nostalgic appeal, Spencer is offering a wide range which its competitors do not have. We have already begun test-marketing in some select areas of the state and the response is really encouraging,'' he added.

However, the company plans to adopt a low-profile approach in the initial stages of marketing its products. Says marketing manager Chanchal Chakravarty: ``We learnt our lesson from the disaster of the IFB-CadburySchweppes venture. Given the financial strength and wide network of the global giants, any overplay might prove to be fatal.

We are concentrating on some pockets so that Spencer can create a market niche.'' The company plans to start with a capacity of five lakh bottles per month, till it sets up a strong distribution and dealership network.