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Archana Chaudhary

MUMBAI, Dec. 16

ELF Lubricants India has earmarked the highest-ever ad spend for the domestic market this year, with more than $2 million spent on building brand awareness for its `elf Moto 4 Gold'.

"The Indian lubes market is finally looking up with a consistent rise in lube sales over the last few months. This was one of the reasons to launch the `elf Moto 4 Gold' for four-stroke motorcycles," Mr Nicholas Wellman, Chairman and CEO, Elf Lubricants India Ltd told Business Line.

The product's ad film is currently being aired on a leading news channel. It will be aired on five other news channels within the next few days, said Mr Sanjoy K. Guha, Assistant Vice-President, Marketing.

The new product, which claims to enhance engine life by 30 per cent and improve the performance of the clutch and gearbox, targets motorbike owners. According to company officials, this group of consumers is considered to be on "the threshold of affluence".

"Motorbike owners are more conscientious with their vehicles. They are more aware of what goes into their vehicles as compared to car owners who get their vehicles serviced by others. So we would like to make them aware of the benefits of our product," Mr Wellman said.

The company is also organising a bike race in Sriperumbudur on December 26, 27 and 28. The race will be kick-started by roadshows in Bangalore and Chennai, Mr Guha said.

The company plans to maintain its annual ad spend at $2 million for the next two years accompanied by new product launches, Mr Wellman said.

"We see a lot of potential in the India lubes market. For a country with a population of one billion people, there are only 5 million cars and around 5 million trucks on the road. This number is almost double in China. So we see a huge growth potential, especially, keeping in mind the improvement in roads and related infrastructure planned by the Government. Also, automobile sales have been looking up," he said.

The company will continue with two separate lube brands — Total and Elf in its stable despite the international merger between TotalFina and Elf. Elf will be positioned as the premium brand catering to the higher income bracket, Mr Wellman said.

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