Comments
Chennai Super Kings, the Indian Premier League franchise, has emerged a powerful vehicle for the entry of brands into new markets, whether it is the CSK owner India Cement's product into the North, or a sponsor's entry into the South.
Mr Ravi Chawla, President – Lubes Business, Gulf Oil Corporation, an associate sponsor of the CSK this year, says Gulf Oil has seen the power of IPL franchises in smoothening the entry of brands into the new markets, he says.
Gulf Oil, which is planning to strengthen its position in the southern markets, sees a fit between its own target market segment and CSK's fan base of cricketing enthusiasts — the young and fun loving. CSK, which brought home the IPL Twenty20 trophy last year, also followed it up winning the Champions League in South Africa. Gulf Oil, a major player in lube oil business with a Rs 800 crore annual turnover, hopes to triple its growth, which is now at about 6-8 per cent, in the coming years. In the truck oils segment, it is among the top as also in the new generation diesel engines. It is keen on growing its presence in the cars and motorcycles segment of lube oils, Mr Chawla said.
Long-term plans
Its long-term plans include establishing a manufacturing unit in the South. This will be a facility of at least about 50,000 tonnes a year, probably much bigger, he said. The plans are being finalised, he said, regarding location and size of investments. It now has a 75,000 tonne unit in Silvassa.
Mr Chawla was talking to media persons at a press conference to launch a range of CSK-branded merchandise, including a comic book featuring key players .
According to India Cements' officials, CSK paved the way for the entry of the company's cement into the northern markets, including Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat.
The company, which commissioned its 1.5 million tonne cement plant at Mahi in Rajasthan in February, is working to near-full capacity. Company officials say the entry of its cement brands was facilitated on the back of brand awareness of CSK, India Cements' franchise.
Over 20 items of CSK merchandise were launched today including jerseys, caps, sippers.
The comic book to be distributed by India Book House will be a monthly. Priced at Rs 40, it will have an initial print run of 40,000 copies.
CSK has tied up with a number of sponsors including new ones such as the Murugappa Group's TI Cycles for its BSA and Hercules brands of bicycles, and Mansion House, an IMFL brand of Tilaknagar Industries, and real estate player, Amrapali.
The other sponsors include Aircel, Reebok, 7-up, Wrigley's and Bilt.
The media partners are The Hindu and Hello FM.
Comments
COMMENT NOW
Comments
Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.
We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.