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Kellogg India, which introduced Pringles in the country in 2014, has been witnessing a strong growth momentum for the brand for the past couple of years, driven by stronger distribution push and focus on flavours that appeal to Indian consumers.
Sumit Mathur, Director-Marketing, Kellogg South Asia, said, “ Pringles has been doing very well in the past couple of years. Sales of the brand have nearly tripled in the past three years as it has been growing in strong double digits year-on-year.”
The snack brand, positioned at the premium-end of the category, has a strong retail presence in the top 50-55 cities.
“Given the price architecture, we put a strong focus on ensuring that the brand is available and visible at the right catchment areas and the right kind of outlets. A big chunk of the business comes from the modern trade stores and top-end grocery stores,” he added.
Asked if the company will scale up distribution to newer cities, Mathur said: “I think there is enough potential for growth in the existing 50-55 cities for the brand currently. Simultaneously, we will scale up distribution to new cities, but in a step-by-step manner.”
New, local flavours
The company has also been working on introducing new flavours, keeping in mind Indian consumption trends. For instance, when it decided to introduce the sour cream and onion flavour, it was tweaked to meet the Indian taste palette.
At the same time, the company has been bringing new international flavours which have a strong appeal in the Indian market, such as the recently-launched pizza flavour.
“We recently introduced our fusion chutney flavour with a note of aam chutney. This innovation showcases the Pringles’ way of embracing local authentic flavours. We are also in the process of rolling out the Pringles desi masala variant, which we felt was a gap in our portfolio and will be significant. We will continue to look at adding more local flavours as a strategy while focusing on international flavours that have a strong appeal among Indian consumers,” he added.
Smaller packs
Replying to a query on whether the company will look at launching smaller packs, Mathur said so far smaller cans are a channel-specific strategy for institutions.
“For the traditional retail trade, the key is to have the right price pack architecture and within that a smaller can certainly has a role in the future. However, we will not compromise on the quality of food and the pack design structure which is a part of the brand’s DNA,” he added.
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