Entry of Kellogg’s Corn Flakes in India; Marketing and Brand Posn. against regional desi breakfast

Cornflakes as a product have positioned itself as the quickest, healthiest and tastiest breakfast. Kellogg’s Chocos is immensely popular and admired amongst the kids. How did, Kellogg’s, a U.S. Company entered the Indian market and ruled the breakfast industry of India?

Breakfast market situation in India (context)

During the 1980s Indian cuisine had begun to popularize in China and middle east countries. There was a boom in the Indian Food Industry due to demand. At the same time, the emerging food industry giant, MTR Foods, started selling outside Bangalore. Their ready-to-mix chutney’s and food items started distributing to Madras, Hyderabad, and Vijayawada.

Consumer behaviour towards breakfast

Firstly, India was not in favours for eatable breakfast.

Brunch would probably be the first meal of the day or directly lunch. The type of brunch Indians ate in the 1980s would be hot and cooked.

Popular breakfast in 1980s:

1. Chevda/Poha (flattened rice, in the West and Central India)

2. Dalia (Whole wheat grits, in North India)

3. Parathas (in North India)

4. Idli/Dosa (in South and East India)

5. Thuka (in East India)

Kellogg’s Entry in India

While India was developing, Kellogg’s was already a ready-to-eat giant in the U.S. and had reached the peak sales covering 40% market share of the U.S. It was few years down the line that Kellogg’s saw its first potential rival, General Mills, who brought the brand Cheerios.

In 1991, India went through economic liberalization and removed international barriers. Just three years later, Kellogg’s invest $65 million to launch the brand, Cornflakes.

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Product Positioning

First Launch

Kellogg’s product pitch:

1. Educate India about breakfast

2. Provide more nutritious and tasty breakfast

3. Focus on crispiness of their flakes

4. Not just accept the brand, but buy cereal as a category

Initially, Kellogg’s introduced these flavours: Corn flakes, Wheat flakes and Rice flakes. They positioned themselves in more tasty and more healthy coordinates. This type of cereal goes best with cold milk which is opposite of Indian culture, of having hot and cooked breakfast. They reinforced their idea with their tagline “Jaago jaise bhi, lo Kellogg’s hi” (No matter how you start your day, Start it with Kellogg’s).

Problems:

1. The product’s method of usage is against the current trend

2. India was uneducated about the importance of iron and minerals

3. Comparison of the product and Indian breakfast was yet not clear

4. Unable to retain customers

5. 30% pricier than the competitor

6. India used hot milk instead of cold milk (this made flakes soggy)

Hence, the breakfast Corn Flakes positioned itself as a luxury to be eaten on Sundays or a special occasion. Their technology was focused on crispiness of the flakes. Since Indians used hot milk instead of cold, it lost all value. Even the value of Iron had lost due to unawareness.

Repositioning and Magic of Marketing

The solution was to “spread awareness”. This is what Kellogg’s did:

1. Repositioning previous product by launching a new product

2. Kellogg’s focused on kids

3. Launching desi flavours

4. Advertising

Kellogg’s also launched the Special K: Get into shape product.

Advertisement by Kellogg'

A bunch of robbers were robbing a home. The daughter continuously pointed at stuff while his father reassured her that it was Pandey Ji’s. Later the father realizes he had been robbed. The scene cuts to the next day and a tagline is shown, “Iron kam khaoge toh kaise chalega. Aapko chahiye Kellogg’s Corn Flakes jisme hai iron ki shakti. Ab poore parivaar ka dimag chalega nahin daudega.” The ad ends with his father telling the thieves’ truck number, hence proving memory.

The advertisement of Special K: Get into shape product showed a woman fit in a wedding attire as she lost weight.

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Learnings

1. Feedback is extremely vital and the main reason why companies keep asking for customer’s feedback.

2. Now, companies use demographic segmentation to try their product in a controlled environment.

3. A product can be repositioned using another product and form a relative position, for example, Samsung Galaxy S20 FE, Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra, Samsung Galaxy S20+ and Samsung Galaxy S20.

4. To introduce a new trend awareness is very important. Services like Urban Clap have advertised the method of using. Go to app, click on AC repair and book!

5. Promotion of brand is the ice breaker between the product or service and first-time customers. Kellogg’s launched ‘The Kellogg Breakfast Week,' a community-oriented initiative to generate awareness about the importance of breakfast.

Conclusion

Kellogg’s entered the Indian market at a very right time. India was developing and ready to acquire and implement faster and better methods. At first, they launched their main product only to understand the Indian sentiment. As time passed, Kellogg’s had launched Corn Flakes, Chocos, special K and many more products. The expanded themselves horizontally and vertically over time. The first-time interaction and knowing the Indian market played a huge role in forming their foundation in India. It is fascinating to learn that relation between the type of audience also matters