The Hindu Business Line : Bath and beyond

BATHROOMS have always been a refuge, somewhat, from tiresome phone calls, unwelcome guests and demanding family, but now they have transcended that to being oases of blissful self-indulgence — "everything else can wait." At least, that's Parryware's proposition in its latest campaign.

During this time, the company was re-inventing itself as a total bathroom solutions company - it entered taps and high-end segments such as shower temples and shower panels, and launched products that met the demand for hygienic, space- and water-saving solutions.

The objective is to make bathrooms - and the brand - top-of-mind, get consumers to see them as inviting and warm places, and the challenges are to get them to spend more money on the bathroom than any other in the house, and not delay spending, says George Angelo, General Manager (Marketing & Sales), Parryware.

Ergo the woman cocooned in the soft pastel environs of her bathroom, rudely awakened from her reverie by one of the men working on the rest of the house, which is a mess of timber, cement and noise. Where should he place the table? Hmm ... oh, just dump it somewhere, she says, shutting the door on the dumbfounded chap, and on the rest of the world.

Consumer involvement with bathrooms has traditionally been low, but now, the scenario's changing. In higher priced apartments, 5-6 per cent of the total cost goes towards bathrooms. K. E. Ranganathan, CEO of Parryware, says this is part of a larger trend where more attention is being paid to something other than the living room - kitchens, of late, and now it's the bathroom's day! It's seen as a place where one can de-stress and relax with a good bath. Time spent there translates into one's private time for the day. There are more bathrooms in apartments today - the `guest bathroom' and each bedroom having its own bathroom are manifestations of this, says Ranganathan.

In the ad, Parryware has shown off its shower temples and taps, in keeping with the `glamour' proposition. Bathrooms have moved from "mundane" to "glamorous" - "we're now in the fashion industry," says Ranganathan. The company will add tiles to its portfolio in a couple of years and then "we'll be selling entire bathrooms," he says. Parryware has 40 per cent share of the Rs 700-crore sanitaryware market.

Says U. Jayraj Rau, Vice-President and Client Services Director of ad agency JWT, Chennai, which has created the campaign, "Imported brands were posing a threat. Research shows bathrooms are second in the priority list, after kitchens. People are willing to spend. Also, Parryware is not restricted to potties and basins anymore."

Capitalising on research which found that bathroom spelt personal space, JWT came up with "everything else can wait." The TVC reinforces by it by showing the viewer it's the bathroom that's ready before the rest of the house is! This is also the point the company is trying to make in its press and POP advertising - where the everything-else-can-wait emotion can't quite be brought out, the emphasis is on influencing the consumer to make bathrooms, rather than a big holiday or a second car, their priority, says Rau.

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