During the late ‘90s and early 2000s, Mars Wrigley cracked the market with unique positioning, iconic TVCs and wide availability in general trade. Through this approach, they gave us two household names—Boomer and Snickers. Today, however, when looking to launch more brands from their roster, they’ve realised that the ‘go-to-market’ has changed significantly. Media and trade are fragmented and companies have had to adopt a cleaner, meaner strategy to achieve those numbers. Nikhil Rao, Chief Marketing Officer of Mars Wrigley India, takes us through their new-age strategy for the massive Indian market.
India Is Changing
Earlier, a 30-second TVC would help you get great awareness and reach very quickly. Today, things have changed. “TV is still the backbone of India, but contributes to about 50% of the reach and our spend.” While launching a new brand, the ‘go-to-market’ has become complex and a big chunk of the contribution for FMCG brands comes from Meta and Google.
“There is no one India. There are at least three Indias, depending on who you talk to,” explains Rao. There is India 1, where incomes are possibly higher than what even developed markets have. India 2 is the large middle class of India, which is the backbone of FMCG. And then there is the India 3 or Bharat, where people are possibly still at lower income levels and don’t have much disposable income.
Their three focus brands—Snickers, Boomer and Galaxy—start at opening price points of INR 1 and INR 10—with Boomer available at 1 and Snickers at 10, going all the way up to INR 70. Operating in the milk chocolate category is Galaxy which is also available at INR 10 in addition to more premium offerings like their dark chocolate bar, ‘Fusions’; ‘Flutes’, their wafer roll and ‘Jewels’, the gifting range.
“While traditional trade is a large backbone of FMCG in India, organised trade, which essentially involves modern trade and e-commerce, is also very important when launching a new product.” Mars Wrigley ensures wide availability of their focus brands in trade and plays other brands like Mars, Bounty and Twix opportunistically. “We play the entire segment.”
Strategic Positioning
Mars entered the Indian market a little later than other key players but managed to capture a massive market share through strategic positioning. “The hunger category was started with Snickers.” The tagline ‘You’re not yourself when you’re hungry’ coupled with zesty TVCs starring MS Dhoni, Rekha, Sonam Kapoor and now, Rohit Shetty, got their message across—a delicious chocolate bar loaded with peanuts, caramel and nougat can also appease your hunger. “The hunger sub-segment has today become 20% of all snacking in India, where people consume chocolates for hunger.”
Boomer is a 31-year-old brand and the oldest bubblegum in the country. Originally from the Wrigley stable of brands, it is known for its pink colour and strawberry flavour. Mars Wrigley has now extended Boomer’s brand equity into two different formats—chewing gum and lollipops.
The newest brand in focus is Galaxy. Milk chocolate accounts for about 55% of India’s chocolate market and Galaxy is positioning itself as the go-to brand for premium gifting. Festive campaigns starring Kiara Advani for Rakhi, Diwali and Valentine’s Day help get that premium messaging across. “When launching premium, it’s very important to start at the top and not to hurry the process. The moment you start discounting or pushing a product into trade, it loses its premium appeal.”
An Onset Of Unique Behaviours
“Changing the very structure of the country is rapid urbanisation.” More and more people are moving away from small towns and villages and moving into urban centres. Places like Bangalore (Bengaluru), Mumbai and Gurgaon (Gurugram) are seeing a huge influx of people and they have very different needs. “Smaller families and ambitious careers are leaving people with a lot of disposable income.” This triggers a series of changes.
Another trend, which blew up post-Covid, is health and wellness. “We are seeing an acceleration in the number of people that are becoming aware of the amount of sugar and protein they should consume”. However, Rao says that while they want to be healthy, they don’t want to compromise on taste. That’s where portion control comes in: “Our offering of a small unit at INR 10 or share bags instead of a large bar caters to this need.”
When expanding into new markets, Mars Wrigley has been strategic in tailoring products to suit local requirements. That’s where product formulation comes into play. For example, the Indian Snickers don’t melt easily and are vegetarian. “We slightly tweak the recipe so the chocolate can stay intact up to 26/ 27 degrees but offers the same great taste. We’ve also taken out the egg.” Another trend seen in food in India is experimentation. People want to try new and different flavours. Catering to that sentiment are launches like Snickers Kesar Pista and Peanut Brownie.
Shape-Shifting To Fill Gaps
A lot of the startups have entered niches that have been left out by legacy players. One of these is seen with the massive influx of protein bars. Mars Wrigley India is watching that space closely. Internationally, however, they already have a Snickers high-protein bar in addition to their acquisition of brands like Trufru or Kindbar, which operate in that space.
“India has just crossed the USD 2,500 per year per capita GDP cusp. This is when the economy starts growing very rapidly, almost quadrupling in the next 10 years.” As disposable incomes grow, Rao believes that categories like chocolate will only benefit.
“Chocolate, luckily for us, is a repertoire category.” Different brands of chocolates cater to different needs. “People may consume a particular brand of chocolate as a post-meal sweet treat, while they consume a completely different one for hunger and still another for gifting.”
Markets are fragmented and disposable incomes are increasing. People are indulging their unique tastes and exercising choices. Mars Wrigley has got its eye on the ball. They intend to make the most of the brand equity they have garnered over decades—innovating and launching new formats for consumers to enjoy.
