How did a local talc brand disturb a consumer goods giant?- classic marketing hacks
In 1975 executives at Hindustan Unilever Limited & Pond’s were closely following a newly launched local talc brand making a serious dent in their market share in the Kolkata market.
The founders were two passionate Marwaris who had zero naya paisa (funds) to spend on advertising. But their packaging was lovely. It was an ivory coloured container that had golden colour embellished labels – giving it an ‘imported’ looking feel.
- They used a blow-molded plastic container with a photo tone. HUL executives made discrete enquiries on blow molding & sent someone to check out their factory!
- In the 1970s there was no MRP (Maximum Retail Price) which meant that if something moved fast & looked good – retailers could charge a huge margin.
- As demand took off, the printer couldn’t get enough of the high-quality Japanese paper for the label. So, they found something similar & got the hands to manually stick it on. They didn’t wait but just shipped.
- The name of the company? Emami! It had no meaning! It sounded Italian!
The 2 ‘Radhe Shyams’ have since built the Emami Group into a 20,000 crore group employing 20,000 people.
We have much more power in our minds, hearts & muscles than we give ourselves credit for!
Atmanirbharta (being self-reliant) is a state of mind!
#marketinglessons #marketinghacks #hindustanunileverlimited #emami