Health and wellness company Hamdard (Wakf) Laboratories is targeting kids aged between four and seven years this summer for its sherbet brand Rooh Afza which sells over Rs 135 crore annually.
“Kids are the key consumers and influencers for a natural drink like Rooh Afza as they constitute almost 35 per cent of the total population of India. According to the New Gen 2009 study conducted by Cartoon Network India, 41 per cent parents go by their kids’ opinion when it comes to choosing a juice, nectar or sherbet at a store,” says Hamdard General Manager (marketing) Tarundeep Singh Rana.
The full game plan is not yet ready. But Rana lets out some moves. “We will launch kid-centric consumer promotions by visiting schools; we will create drinks and desserts especially for pre-teens along with online promotion.” Hamdard spends around Rs 10 crore every year on Rooh Afza. Much of this money could go into such below-the-line promotion.
Also, Hamdard wants to make Rooh Afza a year-long brand. For consumption after summer, it is being promoted as an additive. It recently initiated a pilot around highways, hospitals, malls (Big Bazaar) and tourist spots. “This year, the company will launch Rooh Afza dispensers (each will cost Rs 60,000) across Delhi and the national capital region,” informs Rana. To gain traction in the South, Hamdard is encouraging Rooh Afza with milk which makes it taste less sweet.
Hamdard, which started as a small clinic for traditional medicine in Delhi in 1906, has more than 600 products and a turnover of Rs 300 crore. But the product profile does not connect with the younger generation. Dabur faced a similar challenge but it has addressed it with a series of initiatives.
With a 100-year-old legacy, Hamdard feels its USP is its product formulation that differentiates it from new-age companies. “Our strength is a poly-herbal product formulation that maintains its consistency batch to batch,” says Hamdard Chief Marketing Officer Arshad Siddiqui. It revamped its digital promotion initiatives in 2007. Next year, the company is planning to launch a micro-site for its flagship brand Rooh Afza.
The competition spectrum for a drink such as Rooh Afza is every beverage that goes into the stomach. Brand expert and Harish Bijoor Consults Inc CEO Harish Bijoor says: “Competition in this segment needs to be defined qualitatively, not quantitatively. Qualitatively speaking, Rooh Afza competes with every sherbet brand. It competes with every glass of lime-juice, lassi and sherbet that is consumed in summer and winter alike. It also competes with each glass of water.”
At the same time, Pepsi and Coca-Cola are trying to come out with Indian flavours like mango and nimbu pani. Will Rooh Afza be able to withstand the competition?