The brand
new world of Birla Cellulose
"During
a GMT interview session, I asked a young girl a simple question
'What would you rather do, work with a company with established
well-known brands or for one which is in the process of carving
out a brand identity for itself?' She didn't even blink before
replying that she would choose the latter as building a brand
was like giving birth to a baby, and watching it grow into a
force unto itself would perhaps be the most rewarding experience
that a marketer could hope for. The GMT in question was Ms.
Swati Varma, and she has been working for Birla Cellulose for
three years since that day.
We, at Birla Cellulose, are still feeling
the aftermath of birth. It is perhaps an experience, which
is both tiring and exhausting on one hand, and extremely rewarding
and fulfilling on the other.
Creation of this brand was a minor miracle
in its own right because the team was new and the product
was a commodity product with little differentiation. To make
matters worse, we had to launch a product that at the very
best, carried negative baggage or total ignorance for the
trade. Further, lax labeling laws and absence of trade guidance
had left consumers totally unaware of its existence.
There were also apprehensions in our own ranks as to whether
we would be successful in marketing "old wine in a new
bottle" to a trade, which is well-aware of its pitfalls.
Further, it would also be a harrowing experience in terms
of getting the logistics right as viscose was several stages
removed from end consumers, and had to depend on channel partners
to make the campaign a success and prevent dissonance at point
of purchase.
However, there were enough people who knew
that to brand this commodity and bring it closer to the hearts
and minds of end consumers was the only long-term alternative
to survive in a marketplace which is facing severe competition
from cotton which was riding high based on its merit of comfort
— not to mention the aggressive promotions on a global
war footing by Cotton Incorporated, and polyester which was
beating us hollow — both on price and durability. To
add to our miseries, imports from China and the imminent entry
of Lenzing, our major competitor into the Indian sub-continent
in the near future, could not be ruled out.
We figured that the pull created among actual
users by branding was the only solution to this multifaceted
onslaught.
Months of intense deliberations among the
team as well as with our marketing consultants — Quadra
Advisory and our ad-agency Lemon led finally to the creation
of a new brand identity, which at the same time connotes naturalness,
as well as a feeling of comfort, softness and unique hand
feel. These are also the intrinsic benefits offered by viscose,
which is extremely soft, comfortable, skin-friendly and most
importantly, of natural origin and entirely biodegradable.
Further, the new stylised logo also brought into focus the
fashion element for which viscose fibre is globally popular
amongst the world's leading designers.
The mother brand — "Birla
Cellulose" would be a unifier for other sub-brands like
Birla Viscose", "Birla Modal" and "Birla
Excel" which represent the different generation of regenerated
natural fibres hierarchy.
The new brand identity, the concerted promotional
plan along with a slew of world-class marketing initiatives
should help make Birla Cellulose" the preferred cellulosic
fibre brand, globally."
Thomas Varghese
Senior Executive President
Also read
|
|
|
