question hour. An enduring endorser

Hrithik Roshan has had ups and downs in both personal and public life, yet he is a brand endorser of high value. How does this happen?

Hyderabad

Anjana, Hrithik Roshan is all about a rare star doing a rare set of films. This, in sheer brand positioning terms, is good strategy. Whether it happens by circumstance or design, never mind, it is good for the star in question. It is, however, important for him to position it right. Saying he is choosy is a good way, but remember, all out-of-work actors say the same thing.

Roshan, however, remains a bankable star. His unique format of acting is all about action and dance. He combines both well with his candy face image very well.

His brand value is a simple sum of his imagery. And that imagery is solid, robust and strong. Never mind the ups and downs.

HMT, a great brand, has died. Sad?

Bengaluru

Aryan, yes. Grab the last of the leftover stock if you want to own a heritage watch of yesteryear that dominated much of the history of modern India.

HMT is the classic case of a company that got caught in a time warp of its own making. The brand emerged from a public sector stable and took the country by storm. The watch was sturdy, solid, functional and represented value. The entire nation grabbed one, and the brand rightfully chose the caption “Timekeepers of the nation”.

Time, as usual changed, but HMT refused to keep pace with time. And that represented its biggest disaster. The brand was resolute to stick to its category, with minimal change. In came Titan and brought cosmetic features that were different. The early range of Raga watches, to an extent, represented the ethos of a nation that was changing in its choice and cosmetic appeal. The brand collapse was surely not sudden. It happened over time. The company refused to recognise this, and in the bargain lost valuable consumer space on the wrist of a nation.

What are the key challenges of building a brand in India today?

Mumbai

John, building a brand is a relatively deep-investment game in India today. The key input, as is globally, is money. You need to have enough of it, and you need to have the patience to invest a fair bit of it ahead of the curve. Most traditional brands do not have this mindset in their fight-kitty, and write a self-fulfilling prophesy of remaining small, nifty and regional.

A very important challenge of brand building in India is seeking out good distribution. A good distribution is all about being good on width (in terms of coverage of every kind of outlet), good in depth (in terms of being able to estimate outlet-wise need, want and desire to stock), and, of course, very importantly consistency of this distribution week after week. The key challenge in building a brand in India is therefore two-fold, for a start. You need enough money to fuel brand sentiment, and a good and solid spine of distribution that is efficient in its delivery.

Harish Bijoor is a brand strategy expert and CEO, Harish Bijoor Consults Inc. Mail your queries to cat.a.lyst@thehindu.co.in

COMMENT NOW