Consumer Superbrands- 2nd edition(Main) 1/15/07 10:27 PM
Market to innovate quicker,
Seen from any perspective the one thing that
will stand out is that the kitchen appliances
industry in India is booming. Cutting across
economic barriers the industry is riding a crest
of success on reliable user-friendly appliances –
non-stick cookware, mixer grinders, gas stoves,
electrical gadgets. But the ubiquitous pressure
cooker remains the queen of the kitchen – and
Prestige its glittering crown.
The appliances market is currently estimated
at Rs. 2000 crore (US$ 444.4 million) (Source:
industry estimates). It is also fragmented with a
steady influx of a large number of unorganised
players with pockets of influence in different
parts of the country.
The pressure cooker market is estimated at
about Rs. 500 crore (US$ 111.1 million) with
the organised sector accounting for about 60%
of this (Source: Francis Kanoi Marketing
Research 2005). In this market Prestige casts a
long shadow. From a turnover of approximately
Rs. 137 crore (US$ 30.4 million) in 2000/01.
TTK Prestige has posted a turnover of Rs. 231
crore (US$ 51.3 million) in 2005/06.
The pressure cooker market comes with its
own nuances defined by the inner-lid and the
outer-lid formats. While the inner-lid is the
preferred choice in the North and the East, the
latter finds support in the rest of the country.
However, market growth in this segment has
been slow and sluggish and has been mostly
driven by innovation from thought-leaders like
Prestige. Another area of distinction is in the
fact that the North prefers large-sized, hard-
anodised cookware while the non-stick variety is
the choice elsewhere.
Between a growing market and the evolving
retail climate the unorganised sector is feeling
the heat – and losing
ground. Some of the
main reasons that can
be advanced for
this are that
branded
players are
able
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change designs
faster, deliver new
models in response
to changing
consumer lifestyles
with greater
alacrity and
consistently
provide top quality.
Achievements
In the 1950s, the
pressure cooker
aroused
trepidation and
suspicion. But that
was before
Prestige launched
one of the safest
cookers in the
world and pioneered an entire
category in India. Allaying fears and inspiring
confidence in consumers, Prestige soon became
a household name.
Long before live product demonstrations
became a well-tested promotion concept,
Prestige undertook house-to-house
demonstrations for promoting pressure-cooking
as a safe way of preparing food. The cooker
became the norm rather than the exception in
Indian households. Prestige’s pioneering efforts
proved the adage that supply creates its own
demand and catalysed numerous unbranded
players to enter the market.
The introduction of various safety
concepts in pressure cookers, such as
the unique gasket release system, the
gasket offset device, the pressure
indicator and the latest offering, the
re-settable safety device, inspired
confidence and revolutionised
the cooker category. In fact,
many of these innovations have
now gone on to become
industry norms.
Prestige is the first and
only brand in the country to
boast of an exclusive network of
stores. The Prestige Smart Kitchen,
launched in 2003, has since changed
market rules.
Prestige was the first kitchenware
company in India to receive the
ISO 9001:2000 Certification and
to be certified by all international
standards which include the
British Standards, BIS – India, UL
– USA, and ED/CE certification
by TUV of Germany.
History
The TTK Group,
one of the most
respected
business houses
in India, was
founded in
1928. While it
began by
pioneering and
establishing a distribution
network, it moved into manufacturing after
1947. One company venture was TTK Prestige
Limited. Though the company initially imported
pressure cookers from the UK, it soon became
the leading manufacturer of this product in
India. A manufacturing facility set up in
Bangalore in 1959 was the genesis of this
stirring success story.
Over the years, TTK Prestige has built an
enormous reputation for itself and has been
responsible for several manufacturing and
marketing initiatives – from dropping sales
leaflets from a helicopter to the more recent
introduction of India’s first exchange scheme.
The latter was designed so that customers
could derive value for money even after the
product had lived its life. Exchange schemes are,
today, of course, part of marketing lore.
For Prestige it has been a long journey from
the days when its salesmen went from door-to-
door delving on the merits of a pressure cooker
and giving live demonstrations to a very
sceptical audience.
Product
In order to tackle the social problem of
drudgery in the kitchen Prestige embarked on a
whole slew of inventions that would make life in
the kitchen safer and less stressful. The pressure
pan, for example, introduced in 1980 was a
multi-utility utensil that could fry, sauté and
pressure cook; it was destined to become a
national rage.
The pressure pan was followed by Prestige
Omega and Omega Select, India’s first metal
spoon friendly non-stick cookware. This product
firmly established Prestige as the innovation
leader and trendsetter in the industry.
In 2003, Prestige launched the Deluxe range