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Chennai, June 30

Chennai Super Kings may have come out second best in the inaugural T20 cricket tournament, but India Cements, its owner, believes that the brand is among the best recognised. So much so that the company , with ambitions of a pan-India presence in the cement industry, plans to use the Super Kings brand name for selling cement.

Mr N. Srinivasan, Vice-Chairman and Managing Director, India Cements Ltd, is convinced that the franchise has gained immense value and brand recognition throughout the country through the Indian Premier League tournament. Something that could prove of immense value to the South-based company that is implementing a Rs 2,000-crore expansion programme that will see it expand to the northern markets, says Mr Srinivasan.

It has achieved a level of recognition in the last five months that none of its cement brands Sankar, Coromandel or Rasi can boast of – brands that are essentially leaders in the South.

While the details are yet to be finalised, India Cements is considering using the Chennai Super Kings brand recognition for its products as it forays into the North. Possibly, a Super King brand for the cement, he says.

Or how about a Mahendra Singh Dhoni, captain of the Chennai Super Kings team, launching a cement brand.

The company plans to set up plants in Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh, and is prospecting for limestone in Madhya Pradesh. By March 2010, it expects to double capacity to 18 million tonnes.

India Cements is yet to fully come to grips with the idea that was conceived early this year and took shape in 44 days, says Mr Srinivasan referring to time between the board’s decision on January 16 to bid for the franchise and making the Rs 360-crore winning bid for the Chennai franchise.

But, for now, Mr Srinivasan dismisses the franchise’s contribution to the balance sheet – he states that it turned a neat profit. More importantly, it is set to become a ‘good income earner’. The contribution to the balance sheet is only a modest part of the potential value of the brand for which estimates run to Rs 1,000 crore or more, he says.

A leading investment banker has reportedly valued the Delhi Daredevils, another of the IPL franchisees, at $1 billion, even though the team lost in the semi-finals. Let the Champion’s League happen in September, when Chennai Super Kings is one of the two IPL franchises that is set to participate, the value will soar.

According to company officials, all the consumer goods companies that were associated with Chennai Super Kings have evinced interest in co-branding their products with the IPL franchise. These include market leaders such as Reebok, Peter England (which is considering a Chennai Super Kings sports line), Café Coffee Day and Camlin Stationery.

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