Direct marketer, Amway has decided to do what it’s best at — stick to its direct selling route for Amway XL and sell the product using its huge agent base. Deepali Shukla, senior marketing manager, Nutrition & Wellness, Amway India explains, “We will be educating all our ABOs (Amway Business Owners) about Amway XL. To sell Amway XL they will need to enrol themselves in our Institutional Customer’s Programme which caters to restaurant, pubs etc.” At present, the Nutrition & Wellness division comprises 50% of Amway India’s turnover and Shukla is optimistic that in three to four years, Amway XL will make up for 10% of the business division.
Power Horse, which has a 22% share in the Rs 500-crore energy drinks market and is the number two behind market leader Red Bull, banks on the power of both modern trade and institutional sales for its 60-city presence across India. While the HoReCa (Hotel, Restaurant and Catering) part of business contributes 60% to Power Horse’s revenues, the remaining 40% comes from modern retail. “Organised retail is very important for us. Future Group is one of our strong partners and we are consistently looking at improving our presence there,” says Mohandas. Meanwhile, newest entrant Cloud 9 has been bombarding the outdoor space with ads on bus shelters and events coupled with free sampling and sales promotion. “We are covering wine shops, pubs and discos as well as modern trade to reach customers,” says Rajesh K Singh, president-marketing, Cloud 9.
To appeal to young adults in the age-group of 15-35 years, Cloud 9 has roped in ace bowler R P Singh as its brand ambassador, while the drink was launched in Mumbai by Bollywood actor Shilpa Shetty. Says Singh, “RP Singh is a young and energetic face of the Indian cricket team and hence we decided he was the right choice for our brand.” PepsiCo’s SoBe is also aiming at similar things. Apart from targeting the 24-year plus urban youth, a lot of its marketing activities will be “driven by availability, product visibility through sampling at both on and off premise in happening places,” says Govil.
As the awareness of ingredients in energy drinks is also raising a lot of hell world-over, the new brands are also trying to create the differentiation on the basis of ingredients. While Amway XL is available in citrus blast and tropical blast flavours, Cloud 9 has natural ingredients like Guarana and Ginseng with pomegranate juice. “There is a lot of misconception about energy drinks in the market, but that will fade away with time. We provide clear label instructions about who can and who cannot consume our drink,” says Mohandas of Power Horse. Sadly, even the new elixir comes with conditions attached.
Source : The Economic Times
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