Spreading out

Fedders Lloyd enters the LCD TV, microwave and DVD market.

Think Fedders Lloyd and the first thing that pops into your head is an air conditioner. It is a brand name that has its roots entrenched deep into the air conditioner market. But now, the Rs 280-crore Fedders Lloyd Group has forayed into other categories such as LCD TVs, microwave ovens and DVD players.

Says Sanjeev Wadhwa, vice president, sales and marketing, Fedders Lloyd, "The market is very competitive but we are confident of making a dent into it with our innovative products."

While Samsung and LG have been talking up the technology and health plank in their products, Fedder aims to have the best of everything. "We know that we have a considerable brand equity and would be looking to build on it."

The company has been out of the scene for quite sometime now but has been consolidating its presence in the OEM segment. It also provides ACs to the Indian Railways.

Wadhwa feels that the new products would appeal more to the younger audiences. The target audience for the company is SEC A and B within 25-39 age group.

In terms of branding, the brand wants to be positioned as money for value brand rather than value for money. "We don't claim to offer cheap products but our products are at a premium only because they are better."

The air conditioner market, however, continues to be the category which the company is looking at mainly. The air conditioner market in India is pegged at about Rs 3,500 crore and Fedders aims to capture a share of close to 10 per cent.

With a budget of about Rs 30 crore for marketing, the company has already started road shows in cities like Kanpur, Lucknow and Chandigarh. The company has planned out other below-the-line activities as well and a chunk of the budget would be spent on TV and print advertising.

While after sales service remains the main area of focus for the brand, the company has set up 24-hour call centres to address any problems that might arise.

It claims to have solved the problems within 24 hours of complaint being received. "The market has got cluttered and apart from better products this is one area where you can build customer loyalty," explains Wadhwa.

The company has set a sales target of Rs 200 crore for the current financial year across all categories. But industry experts feel they would find it tough.

Says a marketing manager of a rival company, "It is not an easy market to enter and customer loyalty is difficult to change, so they have their tasks cut out." Guess we can only wait and watch.