Introduction

ITCIndia LimitedType Public (BSE:ITC)Founded August 24, 1910RadhaBazarLane,Kolkata, India Headquarters Virginia House, Kolkata, IndiaKey people Y C Deveshwar,ChairmanKVaidyanath,Director, CFO: ParthoChatterjeeIndustry Tobacco, Foods, HotelsProducts Cigarettes, Packaged Food, Hotels,ApparelRevenue $5.25 billion USD (2009)Employees 21,000 (2009)Websitehttp: / / www.itcportal .com / Today. ITC also ranks among India's top 10 `Most Valuable(Company) Brands', in a study conducted by Brand Finance and published by the Economic Times. ITC has a diversified presence in Cigarettes, Hotels,Paperboards & Specialty Papers, Packaging, Agri-Business, Packaged Foods & Confectionery,Information Technology, Branded Apparel, Greeting Cards,Safety Matches and other FMCG products. While ITC is anoutstanding market leader in its traditional businesses of Cigarettes, Hotels, Paperboards, Packaging and Agri-Exports, itis rapidly gaining market share even in its nascent businessesof Packaged Foods & Confectionery, Branded Apparel andGreeting Cards.

SunfeastNoodles
To grab a share of the Rs 1,200-crore instant noodle category,the tobacco to FMCG (Fast Moving Consumer Goods) majorITC Ltd enter into the segment with SunfeastYippee, instantnoodles. ITC launched two variants of the product ClassicM a s a l a a n d M a g i c M a s a l a t o b e g i n wi t h . The company, which currently is a big player in atta, spices,salt, (with the Aashirvaadbrand), biscuits (with Sunfeast),branded snacks (with Bingo), confectionery (with Mint-O andCandyman), Ready To Eat (with Kitchens of India andAashirvaad), now plans to make an impact in the instantnoodle category with the extension of the Sunfeasttrademark with SunfeastYippee

Mission
Sales goals: Leadership in the edible Fmcginstant food segment.Capture the profit of market share in noodleindustry.Break the legacy of Maggie.

Advertising goals
Communication

task:

Position Sunfeastnoodle as the healthy noodle forhealthy people Ensure that this did not erode the delivery of thetaste benefit. Positioning had to be perceptually as far away fromN e s l e M a g g i e . Young, modern and premium feel Execution had to be distinct and original to stand outfrom the clutter.

Sunfeast enters noodles segment with Yippee

Sunfeast is on its way to become a megabrand. This challenger biscuit brand launched in 2003, within a span of 7 years, has presence in categories like biscuits,pasta and now in noodles. Sunfeast made its first brand extension in 2005 when it launched Sunfeast Pasta Treat and created the pasta category in the Indian market. In September 2010 , the brand launched its noodles brand extension- Sunfeast Yippee. Indian noodles segment has now become a huge market worth Rs 1200 crore . Maggi is the market leader with a whopping 70% market share ( Business Standard). A huge market with one major market leader is definitely an attractive one. That is one of the reason why so many players have recently launched their brand in this segment.

Sunfeast ( ITC) is a worthy player to take on the might of Maggi. ITC is a company that is not averse to taking risk and have a huge cash reserve to fight a marketing war with Nestle. The Sunfeast brand already has built up sufficient equity in the biscuit business with its high profile campaigns featuring Shah Rukh Khan . The brand also occupied good shelf space in most of the large retail formats . Another aspect of the brand was its penchant for launching a series of new products and flavors which helped gain lot of consumer liking in the biscuit business. Looking at the strategy behind extending the biscuit brand into noodles, there are pros and cons that has to be noted. The major advantage for ITC in extending the Sunfeast brand is that it may have saved lot of money through this extension. Building a brand in a sensitive category like food will take lot of investment and time. Since Sunfeast is already in food business, it makes economic sense to launch noodles under this brand. The disadvantage is the dilution of the equity of the brand in its core business- biscuits. Sunfeast is not now a biscuit brand but an umbrella brand endorsing many food items. Hence the personality of the brand has changed . This change has happened from 2005 itself when the brand launched the Pasta Treat.

In the branding of noodles, Sunfeast has adopted an endorsing structure where Sunfeast brand will endorse the Noodle brand "Yippee " . The look of the brand says that it is going to be positioned as a happy, vibrant, fun loving brand. I am yet to see any campaigns for this brand in any of the channels. Retail shops are displaying the brand with some POP promotions but not much on the message side.

Sunfeast Yippe a foray of ITC into a competitive product category with a Difference
ITC has always taken a very aggressive approach from the day it entered the FMCG sector and has been giving a very tough fight to the already established players because of the financial muscle that it has and the wider and deeper reach that ITC has got even in the rural markets because of its tobacco business. This always provides it an edge even over the established players in the market as not many players in India have got such a deep and a wider reach for making the products available to customers in almost every nook and corner in India.

And ITC has taken the same approach for the newly launched noodles brand Sunfeast Yippee in the Indian market, which is dominated by Maggi from decades. Recently, this product category has also seen a lot of activit y with the launch of many new brands like Horlicks Foodles by Glaxo Smithkline India, Knorr from HUL, Chings secret by Capital Foods Ltd, Tasty Treat by Future Group, etc. And these players have been fighting out the competitive battles to get the most of the instant noodles market of the around Rs. 1300 crore and which is growing continuously at around 17-20 percent growth rate. All these players are giving Maggi a tough fight and are eating out into the almost 70 percent market share that Maggi has got in this market (Source Business Standard).

Devendra Chawla, business head for private brands at the Future Group, one of India largest retailers, puts it succinctly: "The instant noodles market [in India] is set to grow from `1,300 crore (US$288 million) at present to around at least `3,000-3,500 crore (US$666 million to US$776 million) by 2015 and therefore all the big FMCG [fast moving consumer goods] players have their eyes set on it." With producers spending far more money on the category than they are earning from it, "marketers can safely assume that the noodle wars have begun," Chawla notes. He should know. Tasty Treat, a private label from the Future Group, is one of the contenders in this space. (Source Economic Times) This shows that there is a lot of business opportunity to be tapped and all the players in this category including the private label brands of big retail stores are ready to make sure that they do not miss this business opportunity and get a huge chunk of this large opportunity.

And one interesting thing is that all the players in this product category are coming with a completely different positioning in the market, with GSK focusing on projecting the noodles as a healthy snack option and even HUL focusing on the soupy noodles as a positioning for their brands. And ITC has also taken the same approach by focusing its noodles brand Sunfeast Yippee as a brand using the benefit positioning concept in which they tried to position the product as a better alternative to Maggi on the basis of following three differentiating criteria :-

1 - The first point used by Yippee to position itself as a better alternative over Maggi was that it was telling the customers that they should have the choice of variety of masala with two variants in their product portfolio Classic and Magic. The stress was made upon the point that we want choices in each and everything in life so why not have a choice while having instant noodles. 2 The second point focused on the shape of the contents within the pack. The contents in other options available are in rectangular shape which have to be broken which leads to short pieces of noodles, where as in Yippee noodle pack the cake is in round shape which keeps the noodles intact and long and smooth. 3 Then third thing that it focuses upon is the fact that Maggi must be had immediately after it is cooked as after sometime the taste deteriorates and you cannot have it, where as Yippee noodles promises that they can even be had after some time.

Thus it has tried to give itself a totally different positioning from the other competitors present in the market and it is the only competitor to Maggi which has decided to take it head on while competing with it.

The biggest advantages available with the Sunfeast Yippee noodles brand are as follows: 1 The deeper penetration provided by the already well established and penetrative distribution channel provided to ITC by its channel member in the tobacco business which provides it the most penetrative distribution network both in rural and urban India. 2 Then it used the Sunfeast brand, thereby using the Umbrella branding strategy, which had already become a well known name in the Indian households because of the equity that the brand had gained in the minds of the consumers. 3 The financial muscle of the ITC conglomerate to back the company to tackle all the competitive moves in an efficient manner.

The Marketing Mix for Sunfeast Yippee Brand : 1 Product It is a product that is different in terms of package (red and yellow contents), contents (which was round cake instead of the rectangular cakes as used by other brands), labeling, 90 gram pack (where as the biggest competitor Maggi is offering 85 gm pack), with two variants available and many more lined up for launch in the coming months. 2 Price- available at the price tag of Rs. 10 to match the competitive prices that the other competitors are offering. 3 - Place The distribution reach is the biggest asset that ITC has got and Yippee is also using this biggest advantage of ITC to penetrate especially into the rural market at a rapid pace. 4 - Promotion The company is focusing very heavily on the benefit positioning concept in their ads focusing on the benefits or the advantages it has over Maggi as a competitor.

Thus all in all ITC has come up with an alternative which seems to be a bit different from all the options that have tried to compete with Maggi and the only alternative that has decided to take the market leader head on through its television commercials which are making direct comparisons with Maggi thought without naming it and showing how Sunfeast Yippee Noodles is a better option than Maggi.

The competitive scenario in this industry is getting more intense as the customers habits are changing and they now want more options in anything and everything that they consume and the entry of these variants has provided the customers with a lot of options, and the brands are using their financial and marketing prowess to come out on top of the competitors. It now needs to be seen how Sunfeast Yippee Noodles from ITC is able to make a dent in stronghold of Maggi from Nestle and how it is able to come out on top in this battle of FMCG giants.

Sunfeast Yippee Noodles Parent Company Category Sector Tagline/ Slogan USP ITC Food Products Food Products The better noodles; Spread the smile Instant noodles with different tastes STP Segment Target Group Positioning People looking for a healthy snack when hungry Young people and children from upper and middle class Sunfeast Yippee noodles do not lump even 30 minutes after cooking SWOT Analysis 1.Good advertising and visibility 2.Good product distribution and availability Strength 3.Lots of flavors and varieties available 1.Media generated news about health issues Weakness 2.Brand loyalty of Maggi is tremendous 1.Untapped rural markets 2.DINKS, single professionals Opportunity Threats 3.Newer tastes 1.Price wars with other noodle brands Competition Competitors 1.Maggi

I dont think anybody would even dream of disputing Maggis continuously amazing hold over the instant noodles market in India. Ive been a Maggi fan ever since it was launchedor ever since I was born, whichever came first/later. I have even interacted with Maggi, long before all this social media happened, as I had written earlier see the post titled, Social media lessons from a 70 year old man. I even tweet about my love for instant noodles and Maggi, in general see these!

Going to consume Maggis new flavor, Tricky Tomato. Will tweet my opinion after finishing it, in a few minutes. Coming to think of it, Maggi is like Google; masala = search. Tomato/Curry/whateva = Buzz/Wave/whateva. Knorrs taste didnt appeal to me that much. One time try-buy only, IMO. Went back to Maggi. Smith & Jones is the worst. And, I make it a point to try every single new instant noodles brand in India. So, Ive given enough chances to Nissins Cup-o-noodles, Smith & Jones, Wai Wai, Top Ramen, Horlicks Foodles and Knorrs Soupy noodles, among others. I also try the slightly more expensive imported ones there are many that are available in Indian store shelves but most are disappointingly un-Indian in taste. Out of these, I had a brief affair with Top Ramens Smoodles despite protests from family that it tastes like sambhar rice! I liked itbut I always come back to Maggi. Even in case of Horlicks Foodles, I remember liking one variant, but the trouble is that there are S-O M-A-NY variants and they all more or less look the same with minimal color changes and tags that it is impossible to find out which one I liked. I gave up, after a brief, pointless query with my shopkeeper even he seemed confused. As for Knorrs soupy noodlesthe ad featuring Kajol is its undoing. There is so much hoohaa around how to consume the damn thing, that Im more interested in shoving it down those kids and Kajols throat. It doesnt taste as interesting as the kids make it out to be is another factor. The less said about Smith & Jones taste and TVC the better, what with a 8 year old Shak Rukh look-alike and bizarre print ads directly naming Maggi that forced me to tweet, Why is Smith & Jones targeting Maggi by name? Dont they know the fanatic love for Maggi in India? Cup-o-noodles is the other brand that I go back toit tastes good enough and is incredibly convenient! On the convenience factor, I tried other new, Indian-flavored variants from Cupo-noodles and they are plain horrendous. Even worse is Maggis Mania-something rice noodles. Maggis other new variants Thrilling-something, Tricky Tomato, Multi-grain crap and Atta-blah are pathetic, in my opinion. So, it is not as if they have been innovating nonstop it is still the original masala that rules. This multi-grain thingy is a particularly disturbing trend that Maggi and Horlicks Foodles are latching on to disturbing to the taste buds, that is. So, in reality, Maggi was competing with none, but its own brand legacy. Till ITC Sunfeasts Yippee happened!

What I think about yippee noodles ( Conclusion)

I noticed Yippees print ad sometime back and assumed theyre going to be yet-another instant noodles player in the Indian market. I wasnt even planning to buy it, but my son (aged 6) insisted that I do, since he liked the color of the pack. Relevant digression on packing: ITC Sunfeasts Dark Fantasy directly rivals/copies Britannias Pure Magic, but the packing is what makes it super appetizing. For a change, I noticed a rich, matt finish pack (this is a new one not the earlier dark blue standard pack) that I was tempted to pick up! That it tastes as good as Pure Magic only helps! End of relevant digression. The Yippee pack is bright yellow and red (Maggiish!) and is relatively simple. There are just 2 variants no mandatory non-veg (Chicken) variant yet not that it matters to a vegetarian/eggitarian like me. The variants are Classic Masala and Magic Masala. Classic, iswell, good ol masalawhile Magic has a bit more tomatoish feel and my son loves it. The great news is simply this I have an opinion on most new instant noodles brands and it ranges from Yeeeeeaaauck! towill try after a month, again. Yippee was the first ever, in a l-o-n-g time, that I liked instantly! So much that I got 3 more of each variant, and me and my son have been eating it with much glee, every other morning! Now, I completely understand that this is a very personal opinion and you may not like Yippee at all given the strong Maggi loyalty. What is more interesting is not on the taste front, but on the distribution front. In a mall like Total, I notice everything Maggi, Knorr, Smith & Jones etc. No Yippee. In other places, no Maggior blink-and-you-miss, minimum Maggi. But loads of Yippee and others. That this war between Nestle and ITC is being fought on the distribution front makes it all the more interesting. It is also a bit unfair but that is the market dynamics we all have to live

with. If you do not find any traces of Yippee in any store in your cityrelax. It is yet to be launched nationally and is available in very few states/cities, as per this news report. As a consumer, Im glad I have a legitimate, rightful alternative to Maggi. My son agrees too! :: Snack foods In July 2003, ITC forayed into the Biscuits market with the Sunfeast range of Glucose, Marie and Cream Biscuits. Sunfeast's brand essence connotes happiness, contentment, satisfaction and pleasure. In a span of 9 years, Sunfeast has well-established presence in almost all categories of biscuits and is also a key player in the pasta and instant noodles segments.

Sunfeast Milky Magic

Packed with goodness of milk these deliciously nutritious crisp and crunchy biscuits are a favorite among mothers and kids. Milky Magic has the Magic of 2 - A perfect balance of energy that aids physical strength and mental ability. These biscuits strike the right balance of milk and wheat which helps in an all round development and nurturing of the child. Sunfeast Marie Light Sunfeast Marie Light Original : This ideal teatime biscuit is made from the finest quality wheat high in fibre and keeps one light and healthy through the day . Sunfeast Marie Light Orange : It has the distinction of being one of the most successful innovative Marie biscuits and is liked by one and all. Sunfeast Marie Light Oats: The first of its kind in India, Sunfeast Marie Light Oats is enriched with the goodness of natural wheat fibre and soluble oats fibre. Sunfeast Dark Fantasy

Inspired by the Master Chefs of ITC hotels, it is the richest of chocolate vanilla biscuits. These biscuits are created using carefully chosen premium ingredients for a sensory experience unlike any other. Dark Fantasy is more than a biscuit, its a luxurious mix of aromatic cocoa and vanilla. Sunfeast Dark Fantasy Choco Fills

Sunfeast Dark Fantasy Choco Fills is the latest and the most premium offering from the portfolio of Sunfeast. An exquisite combination of luscious chocolate filling enrobed within a perfectly baked rich cookie outer. An offer that fully epitomizes the brand promise of "Pure Indulgence". Sunfeast Glucose

For those light hunger pangs, a wholesome & nutritious choice as these golden brown biscuits are made from the best quality wheat. Sunfeast Glucose biscuits are ideal not just for kids but for adults too. Sunfeast Dream Cream A truly scrumptious range of cream biscuits that have become an instant hit with children. ITCs chefs have put their legendary skills into these biscuits to deliver truly tasty cream biscuits.

'Dream Cream' split cream variants

Bourbon

are available in 'Choco-Vanilla' and 'Strawberry-Vanilla' flavours.

A special delight for all those chocolate lovers.

Orange Cream Experience a tangy twist in biscuits with every Orange cream.

Butterscotch Cream Another first, the taste of butterscotch ice-cream in cream biscuits.

Sunfeast Snacky

Bigger than most others in the salted biscuit category, Snacky is light and crispy like no other. From kids to adults, its the quintessential Family Biscuit. Available in two variants, Classic salted and Chilli flakes - the very first of its kind in India. Sunfeast sweet 'n salt

These thin and crisp biscuits come with a distinctive sundry taste, that of salt and sweetness. A bite into one of these one keeps wondering about its taste! Sunfeast Nice

These are crisp coconut biscuits showered with sugar crystals. The crisp sugary sweetness will just go on to make all those nice moments nicer. Sunfeast Special ITC Sunfeast presents a range of Special cookies and creams.

Special Cookies: Made with best quality wheat, cashew and butter, Sunfeast Special cookies are baked with real butter and the finest ingredients to give a mouth-watering treat that makes every moment special. Available in Cashew & Butter. Special Creams: Delicious value for money cream biscuits with a thick layer of cream sandwiched between two biscuits. Available in Orange, Chocolate & Elaichi variants. Sunfeast Pasta

The Sunfeast product portfolio was expanded in early 2005 to include healthy snacking options as well. Sunfeast Pasta Treat, a whole wheat based instant pasta was introduced as a healthy snacking option for children and young adults. After the tremendous success of the 4 initial flavours, (Masala, Tomato Cheese, Cheese and Sour Cream), the instant Pasta range has been extended with three new exciting flavours - Pizza style, Chicken and Tangy Tomato. Sunfeast Yippee!

The portfolio has been further expanded with Sunfeast Yippee! instant noodles. Three years of exhaustive developmental work has gone into the creation of Sunfeast Yippee! The product has two intrinsic components - the noodle block and the masala mix. Wheat is a key ingredient of the noodle block. The sourcing and blending expertise that has made Aashirvaad India's No 1 branded Atta has been leveraged to make a truly delightful noodle block. Sunfeast Yippee noodles do not lump even 30 minutes after cooking. At present, Sunfeast Yippie is available in two lip smacking variants - Classic Masala and Magic Masala.

Sunfeast Yippee Noodles: Targeting Maggie with Benefit Positioning

Top Roman failed and so did Foodles. This time Maggi with 80% market share in India is again being targeted by ITCs sunfeast Yippie noodles with a slight different and a well thought out stratgey
1.The below commercials of Sunfeast Yippee noodles are based on clear benefit positioning over Maggie. Lets have a look at them one by oneThe above advert attacks the largest selling variant

of Maggie, Maggie Masala, and gives consumers the choice of two masala Magic and

Classic. The advert emphasizes that since we use choices in everything why should we settle with only one choice with maggie masala 2. The advert focuses on advantage of Yippee noodles on Maggie. Usually Maggie comes in rectangular shape and while cooking it is broken into two pieces (remember maggie adverts). It results into short pieces of noodles. On the contrary Yippee comes im round shape and can easily fits into round vessel with no breaking which results in long noodles 3. The biggest problem with cooked maggie is that it is to be eaten when freshly cooked. If you keep it for some time its noodle get sticky becomes inedible. This advert exposes the same disadvantage with Maggie and promises that Yipee noodles can be eaten even after some time. In the end Kudos to branding and research team of Yipee noodles for such a good positioning for its noodles brand. But still I feel lot to be done for Yipee. The biggest advantage for brands like Maggie is its taste and first mover advantage in the instant noodle market. The brand Maggie is now become generic for the category and mere advertising is not going to do any harm to Maggi. But the key to success for Yipee will be the taste (trials) and targeted promotional activities and good distribution (A key element since I believe some purchases for Maggie are not planned and Maggie acts as a substitute for meal) Some where deep down also believe that most of the noodle brands target children only. Since the noodles in India is vastly consumed by Young population also, then why not target this group and segment the market. Divide and Conquer Any thoughts on this will be greatly appreciated

Message
Health was chosen as the platform, along with asupporting claim for taste. People who were healthyand energetic were concerned about the longtermprospects of their health. Thus Health is related to maintenance of good health is applicable to all members of the family is characterized by lively energetic people, andgrowing children's. Thus the message and (positioning):
its hot and wet.