Breitling Navitimer – Rs. 280338*; Heritage Cow Ghee – Was Rs. 275, Now Rs. 227.

Many of you who read the “Mint” tabloid daily would have seen a surprise over the past few weeks. There is more advertising than ever, naturally since that is what most newspapers are all about. Thankfully, the columns from WSJ (with whom the newspaper has a strategic alliance in India) remain intact although in the last four pages of the paper. There is so much clutter, lots of entertainment, cinema and theatre, et al, what one wouldn’t usually find in a business newspaper such as this. My days are counted, how long I would subscribe to this daily! 


One of the first things (eye-catchy and hence this article) that one would notice is the first-page silo – in advertising parlance, one of the highest money-spinners. Usually located on the right-side bottom of the first page of the newspaper, the rates for this spot are among the highest, given that they receive enormous attention from readers and browsers alike. One would usually notice Luxury Products advertised here as this creates utmost attention in the mind of the reader. While I can’t comment on the history and origin of silo advertising in newspapers, this trend is followed worldwide and is not new in India either.

During the upcoming wedding season in India, it is quite common to see many Watch Brands advertising to enthuse prospective brides and grooms (although the ratio of Women’s vs. Men’s advertisements would be 3:10). What was so catchy today was an advertisement for a wrist watch on Page One – Breitling, credited to be a Pilot’s watch and an aviation enthusiast’s prized possession, for its accuracy and perfection. While the watch itself is a bit intimidating, Big and Loud with so many features on the Dial and usually fits large wrists, it is indeed a trend that’s catching up in India too. Many brands are currently offering the non-traditional large dial that’s selling like hot cakes across models.

Although Breitling doesn’t have a long list of celebrities who officially endorse the Brand, many of them like Brand Pitt have worn them in private occasions and even in movies. What was a bit strange for me is that the advertisement carried the Price of the Watch, quite a rarity in Luxury Brand Advertising. Most luxury brands, especially watches do not mention the price, unlike mass advertising by hypermarkets who mention the prices of the top 20 SKUs so consumers would walk into their stores. Popularly called as “Loss Leaders” these SKUs do not yield higher margins for the Retailers but they attract higher footfalls, usually in the range of 10-15% than usual and eventually converting more of them into consumers.


Many others who regularly advertise such as Tag Heuer and Omega only show a picture shot of the watch with their respective brand ambassadors thereby creating an emotional connect and high aspiration among prospective buyers. While it is common to list the name and contact numbers of Retailers who sell the watches, it was surprising rather strange to see one of the leading watch brands of the world mention their prices on a newspaper!

These are ways suggested by some agencies to seek higher attention but by mentioning the price, not only they would be restricting the potential walk-ins into the store but would also be lowering the standards of the Brand. Hope this trend wouldn’t continue for long, lest we would see prices of Breitling and Cow Ghee both mentioned on the respective copies, one would restrict walk-ins and the other would improve. Retailer’s agencies - choose which one you want!

Learning from Levis; Collaborate, Cooperate and Succeed.

It’s quite rare to see (in the Indian context) Brands working very closely with Retailers or Malls. Most often, each Brand would like to leverage its presence within the large format, be it a Department Store or a Hyper or even a Mall by taking up pole position (read – prime locations at the entrance). Retailers cash in on this trend by charging a premium for such locations which Brands pay, albeit not happily. Many Brands, international, domestic and regional believe that a prime location within the store would attract footfalls and the Brand magic would result into higher conversions. In most cases, it is not so. Corner locations alone do not guarantee higher business potential. What’s important is for the Brand to work closely with the Retailer in mutual interest and both must make best use of each other.

A recent example is that of Levis. I have read somewhere that on an average an American owns 1.65 pairs of Levis. That’s very similar to the count on Wal-Mart, that over the past 40 years, over 90% of all Americans have visited the world’s largest Retailer atleast once in their lifetime. In India, of course we cannot share such figures with authenticity though. Back to Levis. The Brand was among the earliest entrants in the casual-wear denim wear segment in India during the early 90s and continues to remain among the most aspired affordable fashion brands in India. After a small lull during mid-2000 decade, Levis has bounced back in strength. A very strong merchandising and marketing team is at work and the results are on the face. After many successful campaigns over the past months, the most recent one is an encouraging trend set by the brand again. This time, its outright collaboration.

Levis and Lifestyle, the Department Store chain owned and managed by The Landmark Group of Dubai, have come together in what seems to be among the most talked about promo in town. The tagline, aptly named “Just4YOUth” targets the young by age and young at heart to enjoy the mood and spirit of youth. This at a time, when most first-timers enter their college days, an important part of growing-up. To have a bit of variety and participation from other brands, LEE and ARROW have also been roped in. The promo seems simple; an assured gift with a minimum billing and a chance to win a Mega Prize, VW Beetle, the newest and coolest Youth icon in the making in India. And there are other prizes to be won too, including a YAMAHA motorbike and voila, a chance to be the next model for the Department Store chain! This is seemingly similar to the promotion that was held a year ago at Bengaluru International Airport to celebrate its first anniversary. Although many sceptics believe that such promos do not offer tangible benefits, I refuse to believe so. Indian shoppers are value-seekers and if they see anything additional to their purchases, they would just grab it. It’s been so for many years now and will remain so for times to come. The simple promo is a great crowd puller into the Lifestyle Stores, especially for Levis fans to check out the latest collections. On similar lines, Levis has also partnered with Shoppers Stop, India’s largest Department Store chain with another exciting promo – “Denim Rocks”, attracting music lovers by offering a Promotion revolving around the most favoured fabric of rock stars, pop stars and rappers. Here, the associate partner is another fashion brand FLYING MACHINE.

Today, Brands should seek more prominence among shoppers by not just having a premium location but by experimenting such promotions from time to time. The mantra is clear – Collaboration between the various parties, i.e., Brands and Retailers. Cooperation among Brands within the store. And the result – Mutual success for all. Wish more brands understand this simple logic, rather advertising silos on supplement first-pages!

Savings! In the heart of the city...

I was quite intrigued when I first heard of this, but then came to terms. It was about a month back when I first heard that the erstwhile Lido Mall would be reconverted into a Big Bazaar. While Lido Cinema, one of the oldest landmarks in Bangalore was brought down to give way for two new unique landmarks, Ista hotel and Lido Mall four years ago, it was quite a shock that the Mall was getting dismantled. But that’s better than running a Mall without footfalls. The Mall, among the many that are being managed by an arm of The Future Group housed International Fashion Labels such as Next, Guess and Etam apart from a spacious Pantaloons Fashion store, Body Shop, Lee Cooper, Marks and Spencer, etc. Cafe Coffee Day, which occupies the ground floor corner was a saving grace to the mall which has only seen footfalls dropping over the years, thanks to the ongoing construction work of Bangalore Metro Rail project. The block on the opposite side has a McDonalds on the Ground Floor along with the Box Office of Fame Cinemas, which partnered with Lido to manage the multiplex spread over the top floors. The Mall was actually very convenient, the only one so to say in the “MG Road” vicinity. In fact the Cinema runs to full capacity during the first weekend of new movies and apparently, night shows have higher occupancy than day shows, thanks to its prime location which is accessible quite easily within 8-10 km radius as well as for office-goers in the CBD area.

I did see the signage of Big Bazaar coming up a few days ago outside the Mall and the Newspaper Advert recently pulled me into the store, for my love of Retailing. I never imagined that an operational Mall could be put to good use; better use rather by converting it into a Hyperstore (or whatever one may want to call BB as). While Cafe Coffee Day still retains its location and I would believe would perform better with a stronger anchor in BB, all other tenants have been dismantled. The main structure remains as is; the escalators and elevators that were used earlier by the countable walk-ins now transport busy shoppers and their families up and down, albeit both transporting-equipments are not best suited for the shopping trolley – wielding consumers at a Hyper. The main signage outside has indeed changed, or rather elongated as “Lido Big Bazaar” - Honestly, looks nice. The tiles that were used earlier for International fashion concepts are now being used to sell private label grocery and electronics, Chinese-imported furniture and clothes! Well.

The Ground floor, which was reserved for parking remains so, while the First floor houses Food Bazaar, Furniture Bazaar and Electronics Bazaar. So, it’s a no-shocker to see Plasma and LCD Tvs next to household items and Deodorants. The planners have indeed done their best although a bit more adjacency planning would have helped. The second floor houses Fashion Bazaar – a street fashion concept that is being popularised using youth icons – Cricketer MS Dhoni and Actor Asin. Apparently, they are among the two icons who relate the most to the trendy youth today, almost a boy/girl next door positioning created deftly by agencies and their brands. F123, a gaming zone that is gaining popularity quietly across the various formats in the group sits in a corner while Musicworld with two gondolas serves the latest as well as evergreen hits. No eating joints as such, which would have certainly done very well, just a counter that sells street snacks. Call it coincidence; the guy behind the counter was conversing comfortably with two different couples in Bengali. Strange, yet true. Just when I realised that the music that was being played in the background was in Hindi, not in Kannada (the vernacular in the city). Does it matter so much? Well, yes to some extent. Retail is all about regionalising – as I always love to say, Think Global, Act Local, and Retail Regional.

While Big Bazaar has been communicating and advertising within and outside the store in the vernacular languages across the country, it is indeed important to maintain the connect while the shopper steps into the store. Not just the music or communication, but some local QSR would have complemented the shopping experience too. There are enough and many who are awaiting a chance to serve within the store and that’s probably the opportunity for all the three, the Hyper, the local caterer and the customer. After all, the shopper has just walked off from her favourite neighbourhood grocer to the swanky a/c shop! Overall, it was great to see the giant in the middle of the city. The promise, of Savings in the Heart of the City seems to be a big one though. Time will tell and I will live that day to see it firsthand and write about it again. Long Live the Indian Consumer. Long Live Indian Retailing.