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The country's largest consumer goods company Hindustan Unilever (HUL) will roll out its premium ice-cream Magnum in five more cities.
HUL's MD & CEO Sanjiv Mehta said that the company would do so by the summer of this year in a bid to increase Magnum's footprint.
Magnum, priced at Rs 85 a stick, is currently available in five metros including Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore, Chennai and Hyderabad.
Magnum, priced at Rs 85 a stick, is currently available in five metros including Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore, Chennai and Hyderabad.
Mehta did not specify the new cities where Magnum would be launched, but industry sources say possible areas include Delhi and Ahmedabad, both of them large markets for ice-creams.
Mehta also did not specify whether a brand ambassador would be appointed for the new cities. Last year, HUL had appointed actress Kareena Kapoor as brand ambassador of Magnum in Mumbai and had used South actress Trisha for its rollout in Hyderabad and Chennai. This was in keeping with parent Unilever's global practice of having a big name back Magnum, the world's largest-selling stick variety ice cream.
Unilever, for instance, has a string of brand ambassadors for Magnum in the West including actors Eva Longoria, Eva Mendes, Elizabeth Hurley and Liv Tyler.
Unilever is the world's largest ice-cream maker with products such as Cornetto, Breyers, Ben & Jerry's retailing under the Heartbrand range. In India, HUL's Kwality Walls competes with Amul (the leader), Mother Dairy and Vadilal among others.
Magnum' national rollout last year had triggered a spate of launches from Amul, Mother Dairy and Vadilal at the premium end, which is expected to be stepped up this year.
