Integrated Marketing Management

A research on soups in India and products worldwide

Done by
1) Cilvin.J
2) Chakravarthy
3) Kunal
4) Prasanth
5) Prasanna
6) Sabari Rajan
Packaged food market – India

• The size is estimated to be 10 million US $.

• Expected to reach 20 million US $ by 2014.

• Packaged food includes baby food, bakery products, dairy products, frozen
processed food, ice cream, meal replacement products, noodles, pasta, ready
meals, sauces, dressings and condiments, snack bars, soup, spreads, sweet
and savoury snacks, etc…

• The Indian population is younger, more urban, with greater disposable income
and high purchasing power.

• This has lead to increased willingness to pay more for convenience

(convenient products).

• Thus ready meals saw a 18% growth over the previous year to 2008.

• Packaged soup benefited a 21 % growth.

Knorr - Good food matters

• Unilever’s number one brand.

• Business was formed in 1838 by Carl Heinrich Knorr.

• Soup mixes were sold from 1873.

• Knorr has become an international brand offering a wide range of bouillons,

soups, seasonings, sauces, soupy snacks, dressings and frozen and ready-
made meals.

• Annual sales more than 3 billion Euros.

Knorr India – Key facts

• Knorr soups was launched in India during 1996 by Corn Products

International Ltd, which was renamed as International Best Foods Ltd in 1998

• Knorr entered with Thick tomato soup mix and soon launched Mixed
vegetable soup by 1998.

• The brand came into the hands of HUL in 1999 when IBFL was sold to HUL.

• At present Knorr have a broad range of products such as Classic soups,

Chinese soups, Indian soups, Indian & Chinese meal maker range and Soupy
noodles.
Knorr Soups – marketing practices

• Knorr was a pioneer and pure soup brand.

• It is considered to be resilient a brand because it sustained many crazy

marketing actions by (HLL) HUL.

• Knorr was integrated with Annapoorna to create a brand Knorr Annapoorna.

• Started extending its product line into Ketchups, spices and salts, which was a
failure.

• In 2005 it was separated from Annapoorna.

• In 2006 the category was promoted rather than the brand itself by highlighting
soup and its benefits.

• From then it positioned itself interms of variety and taste.

• The USP – is its wide assortments of flavors.

• It has 14 exciting flavors.

• Overall positioning based on TASTE and HEALTH. Same as their global

positioning.

• Knorr currently is positioning itself as a 7pm snack like filler for your pre-
dinner hunger.

• Which is actually looking to replace the unhealthy pre-dinner habits Indians

follow.

• This would make consumers to buy Knorr soups who has till now not had the
idea of having soup in home.

• The new campaign emphasises soup as a healthy, light, filling, nutritious and
easy-to-make alternative for unhealthy pre-dinner snack.

• Also 100% real vegetable, no added preservative and no added MSG claims
also adds to its strength.

• Knorr has also books like SOUPS and MORE, which has built strong
relationship b/w the brand and home makers.
Knorr Soups – competitors

• The main competitors are Nestle’s Maggi and Chings secret.

• Maggi – 3 categories of soups each having 3 variants.

• Home style, Chinese style and Chef style.

• They have added one in each category very recently, which makes total of 12
flavors.

• They also have a variant called Sanjeevni Amla, spinach, Dal and tomato –
ready to make cup soup

• MAGGI healthy Soups contain real vegetables, are low fat, low cholesterol
and free from synthetic colours and added MSG.

• MAGGI in India is too noodleish, which will not make it a big threat to Knorr.

• Chings Secret – expected to be a tough challenge to Knorr.

• 9 variants and positioned as real Chinese, which is relevant because of its

presence in instant food products like sauces, vinegar, hakka noodles etc.

• It has not the ability to trouble Knorr’s market because of its “CHINESE” claim
against the “SOUP” claim.