Baskin-Robbins turned 65 this month. It is much younger in India. Owned by the US-based Dunkin’ Brands, Baskin-Robbins entered the country 17 years ago in 1993 with a couple of company-run outlets in Mumbai and Delhi. Over the years, it has expanded to 400 franchisee outlets spread across 95 cities and is also available at some 600 hotels and restaurants and at about 600 modern-format retail stores. The chain, which is run by Graviss Foods in India and the SAARC region, says it has always grown close to 25 per cent year on year in India.
Now, Baskin-Robbins wants to penetrate deeper and denser. It’s targeting to grow 30 per cent this year. While it wants to expand the number of outlets in cities it is already present, covering pockets where it is not there, the chain is also planning an aggressive roll out in a large number of Tier II and III cities. Says Baskin-Robbins India Chief Operating Officer Subroto Mukherjee, “In cities we are already there, we want to cover the entire geographical spread. For instance, in Mumbai, we have 92 outlets, but there are pockets where we are not there. In and around Delhi, we have 45 outlets, but I see potential for at least 200 outlets.” The chain is looking at activating 80 to 85 ice cream parlours every year. Besides, it is also targeting aggressive growth from food service (hotels and restaurants) and modern-format retail segments.
As for Tier II and III cities, Mukherjee says, “They are yielding excellent results. We’ve seen some startling trends; for instance, parlours in cities like Nagpur and Guwahati have been our top grosser. These cities have got a lot of money with not many places to spend. They are certainly a key growth driver. While we’ll enter newer markets in Tier II and III cities, we’ll also explore opportunities in Tier IV cities.”
Baskin-Robbins is perceived as a premium brand — a regular scoop costs Rs 45, while a premium one costs Rs 50. It is thus positioned between the mass brands such as Amul, Kwality Walls and Vadilal and the super-premium brands like Häagen-Dazs and Movenpik. It thus faces some competition from both the categories as well as other dessert brands like Café Coffee Day and Barista. Mukherjee says the positioning has actually benefited the brand. “We are a very affordable brand and with brands like Movenpik, which cost Rs 150-plus a scoop, coming up, it has made life easier for us. Baskin-Robbins is perceived as excellent quality at a lesser price.” He adds, “We are slightly more expensive than our nearest competitor; however, we are confident that the value the customer gets out of a superior product along with our healthy portion sizes makes it great value. Today, hygiene and quality are critical to the customer and that is where Baskin-Robbins scores over others.”
Baskin-Robbins plans to support its expansion creating some buzz around the brand. Currently, it’s running a promotion campaign on radio as well as print and outdoors celebrating its 65th anniversary. It will also promote the product through kids’ camps, sampling of product through schools, colleges as well as society campaigns, as it has done in the past.
