XLRI marketing fair turns 25 this year

Brooke Bond successfully launched a tea pack in 1996 on the results of a unique marketing fair organised by the Xavier's Labour Relations Institute (XLRI) here.

Nestle profited by re-thinking its strategy to launch iced tea in India on the findings of the XLRI's MAXI (the Market Association of XLRI) fair, which turns 25 this December 27.

The unique fair, organised by Sharad Sarin of XLRI, has thrown up models adopted by several Indian, American and European business schools.

The fair uses games and events to elicit information from consumers regarding their preferences and perceptions.

XLRI sources said the marketing fair has served several international corporate giants, UNICEF and also Indian corporate houses and banks.

The companies participating in this year's MAXI fair are ITC, Titan, Franklin Templeton Investments, Colgate Palmolive, Nestle and UTI Bank.

The XLRI concept has reportedly been mentioned by men like Philip Kotler of Kellogg School of Management, Theodore Levitt of the Harward Business School and Dr Jim Nelson of Colarado University. Harvard University has reportedly done a case study on the concept of the marketing fair.

The fair starts with corporates posing research problems to XLRI. This is followed by weeks of data collection through pilot surveys conducted by XLRI students and its analysis. The process culminates with games and events that helps in arriving at solutions to research questions.

"The fair creates an entertaining and memorable experience for the participants. The consumers, who are basically residents of Jamshedpur, are attracted by the fun element, while giving away their responses and actions that are collected as consumer behaviour information for subsequent analysis using the latest marketing techniques," says Aditi Kavarana, external linkages secretary of the institute.

"The exclusiveness of the fair is maintained by having a definite focus every year. Some of the notable focus areas of earlier fairs include children as consumers, new entrants in the Indian market, Indian women as consume and niche product consumers," said Sharad Sarin.

Two fairs focused on the largest yet most neglected market segment, lower income group consumers. Sarin's team is presently working on modifying the concept for the Internet.