MC5083NI BRAND MANAGEMENT

60% Individual Coursework

Spring 2020

Student Name: Diwas Pant

College ID: NP01BA4S200016
London Met ID: 19033630
Assignment Due Date: 9th Dec
Assignment Submission Date: 9th Dec
Word Count: 2600

I confirm that I understand my coursework needs to be submitted online via Google Classroom under the
relevant module page before the deadline for my assignment to be accepted and marked. I am fully
aware that late submissions will be treated as non-submission and a mark of zero will be awarded.

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Executive Summary

Anything that is deeply ingrained in a customer's consciousness about a brand is referred

to as a "brand association." Customers should identify the brand with anything nice, so
that they associate the brand with being positive. This research aims to learn how Caliber
Shoes (one of a footwear brands of Nepal) create brand value in the Nepalese market.
The study's major goal is to determine what areas of improvement the brand may make
next to strengthen its position in the market. It demonstrates how Caliber Shoes is
creating brand equity through secondary brand associations. The research has been
carried out based on secondary research. This report examines the segmentation,
targeting, and positioning process of Caliber shoes in order to assist readers in breaking
down larger markets into smaller parts, making it easier to develop specific approaches
for reaching and engaging potential customers rather than having to use a generic
marketing strategy that would not be as appealing or as effective.

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Table of Contents

Executive Summary....................................................................................................................................... 2
Acknowledgement ........................................................................................................................................ 4
1. Introduction .......................................................................................................................................... 5
2. Company Profile .................................................................................................................................... 5
3. Brand Background ................................................................................................................................. 6
4. Used Academic Theories and Secondary Research findings ................................................................. 7
4.1 Secondary Brand Associations .......................................................................................................... 7
4.1.1 Company ....................................................................................................................................... 7
4.1.2 Company of Origin ........................................................................................................................ 8
4.1.3 Channels of Distribution ............................................................................................................... 8
4.1.4 Co-Branding .................................................................................................................................. 9
4.1.5 Licensing ........................................................................................................................................ 9
4.1.6 Celebrity Endorsements ................................................................................................................ 9
4.1.7 Sponsorships ................................................................................................................................. 9
4.1.8 Third Party Sources ..................................................................................................................... 10
5. Segmentation Targeting and Positioning ............................................................................................ 10
5.1 Segmentation .................................................................................................................................. 10
5.2 Targeting ......................................................................................................................................... 10
5.3 Positioning and differentiation ....................................................................................................... 11
6. Recommendations .............................................................................................................................. 11
6.1 Celebrity endorsement ................................................................................................................... 11
6.2 Co-Branding .................................................................................................................................... 12
6.3 Segmentation and targeting ........................................................................................................... 12
7. Conclusion ........................................................................................................................................... 13
References .................................................................................................................................................. 14
Appendix ..................................................................................................................................................... 15

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Acknowledgement

I would like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude to my teacher, Mr. Surendra
Raj Acharya, for providing a wonderful opportunity to conduct research on the topic "brand
equity and secondary brand associations." The opportunity helped me improve my
research skills and helped me learn new things about brands, positioning, brand value,
etc.

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1. Introduction
This research demonstrates how Caliber Shoes are creating brand equity through
secondary brand associates and how they might use secondary brand associations more
effectively in the future to increase brand equity. Where Brand equity is the strong,
favorable, and distinct relationship that a brand and its products have in the minds of
consumers. The research was performed to learn how the brand creates brand value in
the Nepalese market. The study's major goal is to determine what areas of improvement
the brand may make next to strengthen its position in the market.

2. Company Profile
Caliber Shoes is a new brand in the Nepalese shoe business. KD Shoes, a 25-year-old
pioneer local shoe manufacturing enterprise, introduced the brand in March 2017. The
KD Shoes Industry, with a desire to develop a top shoe brand in Nepal and 25 years of
experience in the shoe industry, launched the brand, which has been marketed in
practically all parts of Nepal in a short time of 5 years. (Caliber, 2021)

Caliber Shoes is on a mission to establish itself as an innovative shoe brand in the Nepali
market. The company has concentrated on giving customers with a selection of shoes
based on their preferences. The company's objective is to provide stylish and well-
finished shoes at a reasonable price. Caliber Shoes currently has 35 retail locations
throughout Nepal, including 13 in Kathmandu; however, this number is rapidly growing.
(Caliber, 2021)

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3. Brand Background

Fig 1: Brand Logo of Caliber Shoes

Caliber Shoes aims to be Nepal's leading shoe brand, transforming the country's existing
shoe market with trendy, comfortable, and high-quality local products. Their objective is
to make Nepal self-sufficient in footwear and to export high-quality Nepali footwear to
other countries. Caliber shoes is attempting to develop itself as a famous shoe brand in
Nepal and other South Asian nations under the theme "Unleash Your Caliber." The
corporation has focused on the youth market, believing that they will be the ones to
purchase the products until they become elderly. The company has redefined the Nepali
shoe industry rather than simply following the standard shoe production and selling
technique. The brand is attempting to create a vibe of stylish shoes at a low cost and of
international quality. The company has concentrated on the youth and is quickly
becoming a source of inspiration and pride in the Nepali manufacturing industry.

Caliber Shoes provides their consumers with attractive packaging in the form of eco-
friendly cardboard boxes. The market for these shoes is expanding daily. Their
competitive advantage is that they offer trendy, high-quality, long-lasting, and comfortable
shoes. And customers keep coming back because they know they can rely on them to
deliver on their promises. Customers receive a 6-month warranty period as well as three
free service options for their leather shoes. The brand has used a variety of marketing

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tactics, including television commercials, newspaper adverts, campaigns, sponsorships,
expos, and digital marketing. Digital marketing has been the most successful marketing
technique for them to date because it allows them to reach thousands of customers.

4. Used Academic Theories and Secondary Research findings

4.1 Secondary Brand Associations

Secondary brand associations are a kind of relation of a brand is linked to certain entity
which helps the organization to evolve and grow. The main aim of the secondary brand
associations is to imprint a mark in the audience thinking where they are tended to think
about the brand more often. Often the linkage of the brand with certain other entities in a
positive sense are ignited so that the reach of the brand goes to a wider audience.
(Masandaviciute, 2005) It Is about leveraging the association of the brand for the
advantage of the brand. The secondary brand associations having different components
that contributes the linkage of the brand with some other entities.

The secondary brand associations components with respect to its use by the caliber
shoes are described below:

4.1.1 Company
This aspect of secondary brand associations talks about the association of the brand with
the parent company which holds an effective market reputation which in turn would help
in igniting the popularity of the brand. It depends on the brands on how intense image
they want to reflect to the public and what are the consequences of relating the image of
the. Rand to the entities’ image. Generally, if the company has a recognizable and popular
imprint on the market, the brand can leverage that to enhance their marketing and sales
process. Talking about Caliber shoes, it was associated with KD shoes which was one of
the initial shoes brand companies in Nepal. The loyalty of the customers for the KD shoes
remained intact too while the name was change into Caliber shoes. The association of
Caliber shoes with KD shoes obviously did help in the customers retention and acclaiming
the loyalty of the customers.

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4.1.2 Company of Origin
The country of origin also plays an important role in the reflection of the product and its
reach to the public. The brands often choose the association of theirs to the country of
origin as their identity and this helps them to be a strong player in the market of their
country and all the other places where the population of that country are located. The
association of the brand with the country of origin ignites the popularity as the brand is
also remembered while people talk about that place or that country. Caliber shoes also
uses this aspect to strengthen their image in the market. The shoes are made in Nepal,
and Caliber shoes often use this as leverage to retain the big chunk of Nepali customers.
As the customers think it is their duty to help a brand from their own country to grow so
that makes them loyal to the brand. So, the association of the Caliber shoes with Nepal
(country of origin) has helped in popularity and strengthening the brand image in the
public.

4.1.3 Channels of Distribution

Channels of distributions are the way how the products reach the customers. This also
affects the way how customers perceive a particular brand. If a product is only found in
expensive and limited places, it signifies that the product is elite and not that common to
be found. Likewise, if a product is found everywhere, it can be perceived as a brand with
a common pricing for that product and found everywhere. Caliber shoes makes sure to
use many ways of distribution for the products to reach its customers. First of all, it has
outlets scattered all over Nepal which makes its products very easily accessible for the
public and the buying decision of the public is not blurred by the dilemma of whether they
are buying a genuine product or a duplicate one, as they can buy the product from the
stores. Furthermore, caliber uses Sastodeal and Daraz, which are the online buying and
selling platforms in Nepal for the distribution of the product. This way customers can enjoy
online shopping making the product much more accessible. Also, the personal handles if
Caliber on Instagram and Facebook is also a distribution channel for the Caliber shoes.

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4.1.4 Co-Branding
Co-branding is a situation where two brand collectively work on achieving targets by
forming up a symbiotic relationship with each other. In this aspect, the weak point of one
brand is strengthened by the strong point of the other and vice versa. While looking into
Caliber shoes, Co-branding aspect was seen to be missing. They haven’t used the co-
branding tactic to ignite the popularity and preferability of the brand.

4.1.5 Licensing
This sub-category of the secondary brand association talks about the use of characters
for a particular in a different brand. It is somewhat like the co-branding but here a
component of one brand is leveraged by another brand to their advantage.

4.1.6 Celebrity Endorsements

Celebrity endorsement in the secondary brand association is the process of talking help
from a well-recognized figure to ignite the popularity and the use of a product. Leveraging
celebrities to the advantage of the brand is a common technique in the present business
world. (Otávio Freire, 2018)

Caliber don’t have an agreed official celebrity who has endorsed the brand, but different
popular faces of Nepal has helped the brand to publicize its image and portray the brand
worth. The popular celebrities linked with Caliber are Sandip Chhetri and Samyam Puri
who has unofficially helped to enhance the brand image. (Today, 2018)

4.1.7 Sponsorships
Sponsorships in the secondary brand association acts as a fuel to publicize the brand
image and its imprint in the market. (Hasan AAT, 2019) The brand often sponsors wide
range of events which helps the brand to gain a lot of attention and praise from the public.
Caliber shoes has also used this aspect to gain popularity. It has sponsored some
sporting competitions. Out of them it sponsored a First Parkour and free running
competition Nepal. (Shoes, 2018) With this sponsorship caliber shoes attracted so much
of attention from the public.

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4.1.8 Third Party Sources
Third party sources are the reviews and awards accumulated by the brand from the
external sources. Generally, this includes reviews and awards received for its services or
performance. Caliber shoes received a lot of appreciation for the quality of shoes it has
been providing for a long span of time. It has got positive reviews from the customers on
the website and on the social media pages too which has further helped to enhance the
positive image of the brand in the public.

5. Segmentation Targeting and Positioning

5.1 Segmentation
The Nepali domestic shoe market, while not very large, has several differences and
distinctions due to the presence of diversity in the territory. Due to market variety and the
difficulties of maintaining economies of scale, companies producing products such as
shoes in Nepal cannot intend to reach all market users. As a result, it is vital for companies
to select a market niche in which they can deliver their product while also developing long-
term profitable client connections. Caliber Shoes has tried to identify potential market
segments for their products. The company divided the market into segments depending
on various variables and combined them to produce a target group i.e., geographic,
demographic, psychographic, behavioral etc.

5.2 Targeting
Caliber Shoes established a target market after thoroughly researching the market
segment using various approaches. The organization focuses on market categories such
as people aged 22–28, clients from eastern Nepal, and customers from hilly regions. The
target market was chosen with the use of an assessment of structural attractiveness,
which should correspond to the company's long-term aims. The organization has chosen
a target market and implemented various marketing methods to reach that market. To
reach the target groups, many marketing tactics were tried.

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Undifferentiated Marketing: Caliber Shoes has used mass marketing through media such
as television, radio, and local online newspaper portals. As a result, the organization has
been able to reach out to people of all backgrounds.

Concentrated marketing: The corporation employed concentrated marketing to target

young people aged 22 to 28. The corporation has used social media platforms such as
Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to reach a certain age range through the customization
of its adverts.

5.3 Positioning and differentiation

Caliber shoes has been able to distinguish its products from other products on the market.
They have expanded their shoe line, which is extremely remarkable. The shoes are
created to be highly comfortable, with attractive appearance and the utilization of
gorgeous thread works reflecting Nepalese society's historical craftsmanship.
Furthermore, the brand has leveraged emotional appeal successfully in its marketing
strategies. As a domestic brand offering international quality shoes at a lower price, the
company has become emotionally appealing. In this approach, Caliber Shoes' tactics to
consistently innovate and produce comfortable, precisely made shoes, along with Nepali
workmanship, have strengthened the firm, making it a distinct brand in the Nepali shoe
market.

6. Recommendations
After analyzing several parts of secondary brand associations, it was discovered that
while the diverse factors have been used effectively, there are other characteristics that
will help the company grow its brand equity. The following are the recommendations for
increasing brand equity further:

6.1 Celebrity endorsement

A brand should appoint a celebrity rather than rely on their celebrity users for product
advertisements because it directly affects customers’ attitudes toward that brand. If a
popular figure with a large fan base endorses a brand, his/her fans are more likely to trust
that brand than others, and it will also increase brand awareness in the market because

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whenever customers see him/her, the brand they endorse automatically comes to mind.
For example, when the Indian actor Shahrukh Khan is mentioned, Emani’s Fair and
Handsome comes to our mind. Sunil Thapa, Paras Khadka, Saugat Malla, and other
Nepalese actors are recommended since they are more well-known among the target
audience.

6.2 Co-Branding
This is another crucial component that will help to boost brand equity when marketed
alongside other companies. Customers of that brand are more likely to remember the
next brand that is marketed alongside them. Nike and Apple airpods, for example, are
sold together, creating a feeling of lifestyle among the two brands' customers. It is advised
to partner with Nepalese companies like VIRJEAN, which have similar inspirations to
Caliber shoes, because they believe in giving trendy, durable, and high-quality items to
their clients to build a different lifestyle for them.

6.3 Segmentation and targeting

It is recommended to keep the dimensions of segmentation, targeting, and positioning on
track and improve them by developing more items for female clients, as most of the
products are for males. Official shops should be developed in Nepal's far western regions,
and product designs should be based on an analysis of the area's demographics and
geo-graphic elements. More consumer engagement activities or events, as well as more
campaigns, should be held in various parts of Nepal to raise market awareness.

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7. Conclusion

Caliber Shoes' mission is to transform the Nepali shoe industry. They have done their
utmost to capitalize on secondary brand associations to increase their brand equity. The
brand name "caliber" is pronounced similarly to the word "calibre," which implies "quality."
Caliber shoes have made a name for themselves as premium shoe retailers. Shoes can
be purchased through outlets, social media, official websites, and e-commerce sites such
as Daraz. Another reason customers like the products is that they are created entirely in
Nepal by Nepalese employees. Caliber Shoes has not engaged in any co-branding. They
should collaborate with a company to develop synergies based on the distinct
characteristics of each brand. Furthermore, unlike most companies, they have not
formally signed any celebrities to promote their business. They have also held events and
programs to have fun, be creative, and, as a result, leave an impression on the minds of
their clients. Additionally, social media blogs, reviews, and recommendations have helped
them to push their campaign.

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References

Caliber, 2021. About Us. [Online]

Available at: https://calibershoes.com/about-us/
[Accessed 8 December 2021].

Hasan AAT, H. M., 2019. Secondary Brand Association Influences on Brand Preference and Purchase
Intention. Global Media Journal, Volume 17.

Masandaviciute, E. J. L. a. S., 2005. Effects of Secondary Associations on Brand Value: a Study of the
Relationship Between Corporate Image and Consumers. In: Asia Pacific Advances in Consumer Research
Volume 6. s.l.:s.n., p. 155.

Otávio Freire, F. Q.-S. D. S. P. S., 2018. The effectiveness of celebrity endorsement in aspiring new
celebrities: Examining the effects of brand, congruence, charisma and overexposure. RAUSP
Management Journal, Volume 53, pp. 289-303.

Shoes, C., 2018. Events. [Online]

Available at: https://www.facebook.com/events/1788024011500158/
[Accessed 8 December 2021].

Today, T., 2018. Talk Show [Interview] 2018.

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Appendix

Fig 2: Reviews from customers

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