Perfect to the Tea…but where are the Sales?

CLIENT

EXPERTISE: Market Insight, Retail Strategy, Advisory

Background and Challenge

Tea. This ubiquitous herb has been consumed for centuries. It commands a product category of its own
Typhoo was an internationally established brand that—sought to enter the Indian market to sell their teas and delectable infusions (in teabag form). However, there were simply no retailers willing to stock Typhoo. This was a connoisseur’s market in India at the time. Moreover, more popular brands such as Twinings and Dilmah were already established competitors
The challenge was that Typhoo needed to:
  • Achieve product placements with skeptical retailers
  • Reach out effectively to the consumers to sell their product.

Typhoo’s initial strategy indicated that a rejig in their retail efforts was the need of the hour. Their selling costs were not being incurred where it mattered the most—at the prospective retail store.

We crafted what we like to call, “the max 100 metre strategy” – all selling costs must be within 100 metres of the store proposed to stock Typhoo’s products.

What followed was an intensive mapping and planning exercise of the locations where Typhoo’s teas would be available in India. Each of these locations would deploy focused and localized advertising to familiarize the retailer and the prospective consumer with Typhoo’s products.
The marketing mix we prescribed focused on immediate and direct engagement with the consumer
Created a visual anchor in the form of giant cup, evolved at a cost lower than what was being paid as Displays. At the stores, where customers hardly take any samples, Typhoo samples were grabbed fast.
Reaching Customers – Large scale Sampling cum Awareness Programme.

The programme generated a tremendous goodwill between the brand and retail.

Introduced Mobile Sampling in markets, an innovative approach to reach large number of customers in a single evening.

Included Display Communication along with sampling, leading to instant recall when customers walked into the stores.

Introduced a coupon and gift system to incentivize purchase and capture data.
Markets where sampling awareness programme was implemented as per plan reflected good off-takes; even when sampling was withdrawn
In the end, we won retailer confidence in the product by formulating a strategy where the retailer sees Typhoo, its sales efforts, and market reaction at the store level, rather than at a market level.
Religare, Nature’s Basket, Big Bazaar, and other premium outlets started stocking Typhoo. Our detailed product wise campaigns – variegated for masala chai, earl grey, and myriad other flavours and infusions – paid off in sales. We helped get the brand on a pedestal, where it was ready to launch itself.
At Springboardd, we provide solutions that makes your business break barriers.

Click here to know how Springboardd deployed the CMR (Category Management led Retail Advertising) to help build retail relationship for Typhoo

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