She seems pretty happy with her situation...
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Ruf N Tuf : Struggling to Survive
Brand : Ruf N Tuf
Company : Arvind Mills
Brand Analysis Count : # 488
Ruf N Tuf was an innovative brand which virtually revolutionized the Indian jeans market. It was also a brand which ultimately failed to capitalize on the tremendous growth that it created. Born in 1995, Ruf N Tuf was India's first Ready To Stitch jeans brand. Ruf N Tuf along with Newport Jeans virtually made the jeans category penetrate into the semi-urban and rural markets.
Company : Arvind Mills
Brand Analysis Count : # 488
Ruf N Tuf was an innovative brand which virtually revolutionized the Indian jeans market. It was also a brand which ultimately failed to capitalize on the tremendous growth that it created. Born in 1995, Ruf N Tuf was India's first Ready To Stitch jeans brand. Ruf N Tuf along with Newport Jeans virtually made the jeans category penetrate into the semi-urban and rural markets.During the 90's jeans gained much prominence in the urban markets. Although there were enough room for all the players in the market, Arvind mills felt the need to expand the market by targeting the rural/semi urban market. The strategy was partly driven by the increased competition from the urban market by well known global labels.
Ruf N Tuf was a brilliant idea. The concept was to sell the ready-to-stitch jeans to the consumers who were not accustomed to buying readymade clothes. The ready-to-stitch brand was very affordable and broke the price barrier for this category. Jeans were no longer an aspirational product but became affordable to a larger section of the market.
The idea of ready to stitch jeans caught the attention of the consumers. The brand was highly successful in the initial phase of the lifecycle. Consumers liked the very relevant brand name and the price was the real game changer. For 299 one was able to afford a good quality jeans when the average prices of readymade brands was over Rs 700. The brand had the Bollywood Action Hero Akshay Kumar as the brand ambassador for Ruf N Tuf. These tactics made the sales of the brand soar during the initial phase of the brand's life.
The successful run of Ruf N Tuf did not last long. The brand faced significant problems from counterfeits which merely copied the brand elements and fooled the consumers. Ruf N Tuf tried to manage the counterfeits by embossing log on the jeans pocket but these measures found little success.
The brand then began to face another issue which is directly linked with its product performance. The idea behind Ruf N Tuf's business model is that the tailor will stitch the jeans in a way that is comparable with the readymade ones. That assumption proved wrong. Consumers began to feel that the tailors were not able to bring the finishing in a perfect manner compared to readymades. The local brand made use of this weakness by launching low quality jeans with good stitching and competitive price. This strategy of local brands virtually killed the market of Ruf N Tuf.
To counter the onslaught from local readymade brands, Ruf N Tuf reduced the quality of the product and tried to compete on price. That strategy too failed to click in the market. Since the market of Ruf N Tuf was highly price sensitive, the local brands took advantage of the weakness of Ruf N Tuf. The presence of Newport and Ruf N Tuf started creating problems in the company's product line. These brands began to cannibalize each other despite having different distribution channels.
These issues created huge inventory issues for Arvind Mills during the early 2000 forcing the company to put Ruf N Tuf in the freezer. The brand was on the verge of being killed. In 2004, the company decided to rejuvenate the brand by associating with Big Bazaar. According to the arrangement, the brand will be available only through Big Bazaar. Thus Ruf N Tuf virtually became a private label ( not theoretically ).
The story of Ruf N Tuf provides some insights to the difficult task of marketing. The consumers loved the idea of a ready-to-stitch jeans and the low price. But they are not ready to compromise on quality and fit. And the business model of Ruf N Tuf had no control on the tailor who made the final product. Hence the brand was not able to control the complete experience to the consumer which ultimately lead to the demise of the brand.
The next question is that if the ordinary shirtings and suitings can thrive then why not Ruf N Tuf ? I think its because of the points of parity . Ruf N Tuf's point of parity was established with readymade Jeans and not textiles. Hence the consumers expected Ruf N Tuf to be having the same stitching quality as the readymade jeans.Hence the comparison with readymade jeans is inevitable.I think the brand could have carved a better market if it had established parity with denim clothing rather than readymade jeans.
The current strategy of associating with Big Bazaar ensures the survival of the brand. Through the extensive chain of stores, the brand rightly ensures that it reaches its desired TG through Big Bazaar. Big Bazaar offers instant reach to the bargain hunters and price conscious consumers. In that sense, the brand has struck on a workable strategy. Having said that , from a mainstream brand to a private label ( somewhat) it is a fall from grace. The solace is that the brand is still alive.
The brand then began to face another issue which is directly linked with its product performance. The idea behind Ruf N Tuf's business model is that the tailor will stitch the jeans in a way that is comparable with the readymade ones. That assumption proved wrong. Consumers began to feel that the tailors were not able to bring the finishing in a perfect manner compared to readymades. The local brand made use of this weakness by launching low quality jeans with good stitching and competitive price. This strategy of local brands virtually killed the market of Ruf N Tuf.
To counter the onslaught from local readymade brands, Ruf N Tuf reduced the quality of the product and tried to compete on price. That strategy too failed to click in the market. Since the market of Ruf N Tuf was highly price sensitive, the local brands took advantage of the weakness of Ruf N Tuf. The presence of Newport and Ruf N Tuf started creating problems in the company's product line. These brands began to cannibalize each other despite having different distribution channels.
These issues created huge inventory issues for Arvind Mills during the early 2000 forcing the company to put Ruf N Tuf in the freezer. The brand was on the verge of being killed. In 2004, the company decided to rejuvenate the brand by associating with Big Bazaar. According to the arrangement, the brand will be available only through Big Bazaar. Thus Ruf N Tuf virtually became a private label ( not theoretically ).
The story of Ruf N Tuf provides some insights to the difficult task of marketing. The consumers loved the idea of a ready-to-stitch jeans and the low price. But they are not ready to compromise on quality and fit. And the business model of Ruf N Tuf had no control on the tailor who made the final product. Hence the brand was not able to control the complete experience to the consumer which ultimately lead to the demise of the brand.
The next question is that if the ordinary shirtings and suitings can thrive then why not Ruf N Tuf ? I think its because of the points of parity . Ruf N Tuf's point of parity was established with readymade Jeans and not textiles. Hence the consumers expected Ruf N Tuf to be having the same stitching quality as the readymade jeans.Hence the comparison with readymade jeans is inevitable.I think the brand could have carved a better market if it had established parity with denim clothing rather than readymade jeans.
The current strategy of associating with Big Bazaar ensures the survival of the brand. Through the extensive chain of stores, the brand rightly ensures that it reaches its desired TG through Big Bazaar. Big Bazaar offers instant reach to the bargain hunters and price conscious consumers. In that sense, the brand has struck on a workable strategy. Having said that , from a mainstream brand to a private label ( somewhat) it is a fall from grace. The solace is that the brand is still alive.
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Wireframe Sculpture
This is a sculpture by Jaume Plensa, located at the Yorkshire Sculpture Park in Wakefield, England.
Source Via
Source Via
298 Condiments from Around the World
A condiment is a relish, sauce, or seasoning added to food to impart a particular flavour or to complement the dish. Often pungent in flavour and therefore added in fairly small quantities, popular condiments include salt, pepper, ketchup, mustard, olive oil, and vinegar.
There are some overlaps between condiments and seasonings.
Below are condiments from around the world, including some brand
There are some overlaps between condiments and seasonings.
Below are condiments from around the world, including some brand
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Acti Life : Daily Nutrition for Adults
Brand : Acti Life
Company : Zydus Wellness
Brand Analysis Count : # 487
Acti Life is a new brand in the Rs 2000 crore Indian Nutriceautical market. The brand is trying to create a new category of Adult Nutritional Drink in India. It is a bold step on the part of Zydilla to create a new segment in the highly cluttered health drink market. Acti Life is a new brand in the Rs 2000 crore Indian Nutriceautical market. The brand is trying to create a new category of Adult Nutritional Drink in India. It is a bold step on the part of Zydilla to create a new segment in the highly cluttered health drink market.
The health drink market in India is dominated by brands focusing on child nutrition. The mega brands like Horlicks, Bournvita, Complan all have spent huge amounts of money in developing the health drink market in India. The competition in this market is huge and often has lead to all out war between the brands.Horlicks, the market leader, was the first brand to understand the potential for a brand for adults. That resulted in the launch of Horlicks Lite and later Women's Horlicks. These were product-line extensions and the brand's primary focus was on the kid's segment.
It is in this context that the launch of Acti Life becomes significant. Acti Life is targeting adults ( age 18 and above) and is harping on an impressive list of nutritional benefits as its USP. The brand is trying to educate customers that different age group has different nutritional needs and hence need specialized brands like Acti Life.The brand is now running a campaign telling people to switch to specialist brand like Acti Life
Watch the TVC here : Acti Life
The brand has done basic homework on the segment and the brand's microsite is full of educational literature on the need for such a dietary supplement. The challenge is to convince the consumers to buy and that too regularly. The brand is very optimistic in telling the consumers that it has to be taken two times daily .Acti Life comes in two flavors - Chocolate and Coffee. The main differentiator for the brand is the presence of Prebiotic Actifibres which enhances digestion and reduces cholesterol levels.
The brand has adapted a rational positioning platform and the initial campaigns are focused on taking about the rational benefits.The brand has the tagline " Daily Nutrition for Adults " which is a basic tagline which doesn't inspire much analysis.
The challenge for the brand is to bring in the habit of taking such a product. I think that Indian adults are little hesitant to purchase a health drink for themselves. There is an inertia in choosing such a product and most consumers will shrug away from admitting that they could need a health drink . Also there is a perception that health drinks are for kids. These are the two issues that Acti Life needs to address if it wants to break into this demographic segment.
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