From generating pull and trade push for diamonds to getting the Indian homemaker to adopt plasticware, Anshu Bagai has had a pretty versatile career. The 44-year-old Marketing Director of Tupperware India was part of the start-up team at De Beers, and has also had stints at voucher company Sodexo, where he helped build the retail network to record levels. If Tupperware today is a household name, Bagai credits it to the brand's unique understanding of the Indian customer psyche.
My most memorable marketing initiative
It has to be the launch of Aquasafe bottles in Tupperware. Ever since we started out in India, the general perception of Tupperware in people's minds was that it has great products, but is unaffordable. There was a large segment of consumers concerned about hygiene when it came to food storage, but were restricted by their ability to spend. The demand was for a product which offered “adequate quality at an affordable price”.
To cater to this demand, we required an entirely new product and also needed to market it innovatively. This range had to deliver the same quality assurance and the lifetime warranty that Tupperware stands for, but deliver it at a price within the spending limits of the price-conscious Indian consumers. This had never been done before by Tupperware anywhere in the world. In fact, everyone's first reaction was that it cannot be done!
I worked closely with our design centres in Belgium and Orlando to develop the Aquasafe bottle. We put in place an innovative marketing plan to attract the attention of the visibility- and touch-and-feel-oriented Indian consumer. Our objective was to increase market penetration by ensuring a lot of new consumers tried this product. It was the first Tupperware they bought, but once they experienced the quality of our products they are now more open to trying others and upgrading their lifestyle.
Within three years of its launch, the bottle is now the largest selling product in India. But more importantly it gave us the much needed breakthrough with the Indian consumers.
It made them see the value that they could get for their money with Tupperware. It repositioned the brand in the country and has led our success in India. It is the first product idea exported by India to the rest of the world in Tupperware.
The Aquasafe bottle has been launched in the US, Europe and Asia Pacific, and has been a hit in every part of the world.
My first product launch
This one was quite a memorable one too! I was a part of the start-up team of De Beers in India. The Indian market was a completely unexplored territory for diamonds at that time. For all our fascination with jewellery, neither the Indian consumers nor the jewellers were equipped to trade in diamonds. The consumers were apprehensive because they didn't know enough about diamonds and felt they were only for the rich and famous. With hardly any demand from consumers, the jewellers didn't stock them, nor did they know how to close sales. So this launch was in many ways the launch of an entire new category in India. The objective was to educate consumers on the 4Cs of diamonds so that they have the confidence to buy one. Along with this we had to get the message across that they are affordable, and so the perfect fashion accessory.
Marketing diamonds to consumers was just one part of the job. We had to train the entire trade on how to close sales and motivate them to stock and display diamonds effectively at retail outlets. It was a great learning experience for me. This culminated in the launch of Nakshatra, the first jewellery brand in India.
Great idea that never took off
Well, I believe there is no such thing as a great idea that never took off. Perhaps it is ahead of its time so it will take off sooner or later. When I was working with Sodexo, we had come up with the idea of introducing a Gift Card. It would be like a debit card that a customer could swipe at all merchants instead of pay by gift vouchers. It would do away with the logistical hassles of vouchers and present a more convenient option for the consumer. The idea didn't take off then, but today many banks have launched such gift cards. So this idea too took off at the right time.
Setbacks that you learnt the most from
Setbacks are an integral part of growing and learning in life. The lessons one learns from them are more impactful than what one learns from successes.
As you know Tupperware is a direct selling company. Our sales are driven by our dealers, who are basically housewives from across the country. This means for us there are two target groups – one is the consumer and the other is our sales force comprising these homemakers. From time to time we come up with incentive and motivation programmes that encourage them to take their business further.
During my initial period at Tupperware, the incentive programmes that we launched did not work too well. This was because we did not quite understand what motivates Indian housewives, who seemed so different in every part of the country. But it was a good learning experience for me since after interacting with them I got an insight into the psychology of Indian homemakers – their dreams, aspirations and motivations. They might seem very different in various parts of the country but their value systems are identical.
Marketing idol
The first one that comes to my mind is ‘the' Steve Jobs. To imagine is one thing but to create is another. This man created amazing innovations that most consumers couldn't even imagine they would ever need. But I believe his true genius was in marketing his great innovations. He created entire categories of products and made them so successful that we can no longer think of a life without them.
Another person I admire is Mark Zuckerberg. He has not only provided a breakthrough in social communication, but has shown us all the power of word of mouth.
Where I get my insights from
From reading. I have always been a voracious reader. It's true that television and other media can provide information at the click of a button, but insights don't come from information but from perspectives on the given information. Reading has helped me see so many perspectives that I have been able to form one of my own.
How much has B-School helped me in my career
Immensely. Management is a science and while it's true that you learn the subtleties of business only after working in a business, a strong base of theory definitely makes you better equipped to deal with real-life situations.
Moreover, my B-school education gave me an overall understanding of the functioning of departments other than my specialisation. This exposure received in the span of just two years has helped me a lot in putting my department in the context of other functions and the overall working of the organisation.
We invite CMOs to share their stories here. Please write to brandline@thehindu.co.in