MIRC Electronics Ltd, makers of Onida brand of consumer durables, will roll out 30 exclusive galleries to showcase its new products across India in 2011-12 as part of its ‘Mission $1 billion' to achieve turnover of Rs 4,500 crore by 2012-13, a company official said today.
Onida's well-known ‘devil' of the Eighties and Nineties has now been replaced by a regular ‘Onida Couple' as ‘neighbour's envy' has lost meaning in a durable market and owners take pride in changing their brands. This new-look campaign is expected to restore the visibility of a classic brand that has returned, he said. But the company has no plans to appoint a celebrity as ambassador to endorse its brands.
After the national launch of a resurgent Onida's first exclusive gallery here, Mr Sriram Krishnamurthy, Vice-President, Sales, Marketing and Service, said the company, which re-launched its brands in September 2009, is all set to invest nearly Rs 100 crore next year to set up its third manufacturing plant in Maharashtra. It has already established its second factory at Roorkee, Uttaranchal, with an investment of Rs 60 crore, he said.
Having identified its new growth drivers in the markets of air-conditioning, flat-panel devices (FPDs), microwave ovens and mobile phones, MIRC has also tripled its ad-spend to Rs 150 crore this year, primarily targeting the mass media for brand rebuilding. Nearly one-third of the revenues of around Rs 2,000 crore in 2010-11 came from sale of air-conditioners.
Recently, the 30-year-old Onida launched the world's first washing machine with an inbuilt brush and the LED TV with I-Care technology that protects eyes from harmful ultraviolet rays.
Onida, which also launched the world's first pre-cool air-conditioner recently facilitating the customer to switch on or switch off the appliance through an SMS, now has a 14 per cent share in the split air-conditioning market and overall 9 per cent in this segment, is also targeting to double its TV flat panel and mobile phone market shares to 6 per cent each this year. As against the industry growth of 15 per cent, MIRC has seen a 30 per cent growth in 2010-11 in the competitive market, Mr Krishnamurthy said.