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Wall’s – the trendsetter in ice cream business in Pakistan

 SW H R

 A U G 22 N D , 2 00 5

 ARTICLE

Ice cream has several connotations for people in different age groups. For the grown ups it is evoking
memory of the childhood, for adults it is time to romance with the in thing and silly thoughts and for
the children it is the flavoring of love and affections on the physical bondage between him and his
parents.

It has pleasant effect on all moods and on all temperaments varying from hypersensitive to soft and
obsequious.

This product has a long history and as many recipes as one can innovate for the kind of ice cream
one likes. Beginning from the simplest and the cheapest that is frozen sweetened milk with ice flakes
and crystals to the most expensive and delicious ice cream prepared for the royals in the Buckingham
palace. English aristocracy has given ice cream a special place in the art of hospitality followed by the
elites of France and Italy who have also contributed greatly toward making innovation in developing
different flavours and feel of this typical whole food.

However, the American writers, poets and philosophers have expressed their best feelings about it
and have used it to say such things that relates to cultured references. Thornton Wilder, US novelist
and playwright in his writing 'The Skin of our teeth' (1942) says: "My advice to you is not to inquire
why or whither, but just enjoy your ice- cream while it's on your plate, - that's my philosophy."

The ice-cream team of the Unilever Pakistan Limited, selling Wall's, follows the same philosophy but
with a difference. They do not discourage questions about their product and explain 'why or wither' in
such detail as one would wish to go into.

Wall's is on the market with more than twenty flavours and within the price range Rs 5 to Rs 200 -
Rocket Cola to King Kulfa family pack. The price range is within the reach of all those who are even
within the low-income group but want to enjoy this nutritious food. Though in Pakistan per capita
consumption of ice cream is the lowest in the world, 0.4-liter per person per annum, as compared to
Scandinavian countries, USA and Europe 21-26 liters per person per year, but the new trend in its
consumption is on the increase.

Jamal Mustafa Siddiqui, Ice Cream Director, Unilever Pakistan Limited, is of the opinion that ice
cream consumption will increase with the passage of time. Element of health and hygiene introduced
by Wall's has now begun to change attitude toward ice cream and people think that instead of going
for traditional food, ice cream can be used as its substitute for energy and vitality. Wall's is taking the
lead to show the road to its consumers. All Wall's products are packed in good quality packaging
material. There is no waste paper, no cottage industry product no ordinary colour and no impure
water finds place in the Unilever ice cream factory.
Siddiqui says Wall's realising that people are becoming weight conscious and worried about their
waistline like low calorie and low sugar products. Such products are being planned at Wall's. Soon
there would be low-sugar, low-fat and low-calorie ice cream available to them.

"This will increase our income further. Presently turn over in ice cream business is around Rs 1.8
billion. Our sale is over 25 million liters per year. Plans to further modernise plant in Lahore and to
bring into operation another in Islamabad with investment of Rs 225 million would expand our
business further.

We will serve our clients with more varieties in ice cream. We keep an eye on our quality and there is
an inbuilt system to ensure that all our products meet health standards. " Siddiqui says that Pakistan
is a growing economy in which the most suitable category is that of food. People irrespective of their
means do not compromise on their set quality of food. Ours is an entertainment-starved society in
which the avenues for recreation and fun are few.

Giving this setting, Wall's provides the perfect solution for both the above two requirements in that it
brings not only a mere range of products satisfying functional needs. It stands for far more than that.

It reaches out to its consumers and connects with them at a more sublime level in which be it is
communication or activation, it constantly seeks to provide excitement, shared pleasure and family
bonding moments. Simply put the brand's mission is "Bring fun in life".

Wall's was launched by UPL in Pakistan in 1995. It acquired Polka in 1966. Since then the Business
has not looked back and has constantly wowed its consumers through brilliant branding, exciting
innovations and activation, high consumer connectivity hence securing the position of a market leader
within a very short period of time. The big idea behind Wall's is that it is for everyone. It is the perfect
snack, which fits in all the occasions/moments we want to enjoy, cherish and celebrate.

In order to sustain excitement in the category, constant innovative launches in each brand are made
throughout the year. This enables the business to keep the consumer perpetually engaged and builds
the aspirational appeal of the brand. To further build the brand and to enable the business to remain
close to the consumer, Wall's want to enhance the brand experience and build consumer
expectations via stimulating activation. One such regular activation is that Wall's Fun Carnival, which
is held every year, for two days each, in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad. Families are invited to enjoy
a day filled with games, bargains music and food.

This activation has gone a long way in building the equity of Wall's and excitement in the category. To
continue with strengthening Wall's image as a FUN BRAND, we ensure our presence in recreational
spots like the Karachi beach and Murree hills. Here people go for a break and to enjoy themselves
and what better food can be there to enhance these moments of pleasure and fun with Wall's. As per
research findings, it has been proved that Ice cream makes people feel happy. These sentiments are
completely aligned with our mission of bringing fun in peoples' lives.

Consumers today are better educated than ever before and are looking for healthier, innovative
products that are convenient and safe to use, but without compromise on taste. Companies' growth
today depends on these consumers and on understanding their needs, wishes and expectations
better. Consumers have to ' be with them, learn about them and think alike them.'

There is a growing trend toward adoption of a healthier lifestyle worldwide. Research confirms that
significant importance is attached to health and vitality. Enjoying a sense of well being is a common
aim, and diet is a key contributor. Giving the increasing pace of life, it is difficult for people to squeeze
out the time to exercise regularly.

It hence becomes all the more important for them to achieve a well balanced diet. We consider it our
responsibility to help the consumer achieve their goals of adopting a healthy lifestyle. Hence the first
thing is to enable the consumer to make informed choice about the products that he or she is
consuming. "We have taken the proactive step and completely removed fats from our formulations. All
the product formulations are designed in a manner to ensure we do not exceed more than the
required level of saturated fat".
The single biggest challenge of the category is to increase consumption, which stands at less than a
liter per capita compared to approximately 26 liters in North America. This category competes heavily
with parallel markets like confectionery, snacks, biscuits and beverages etc, which we refer to as the
'Fun Money' category.

In order to broaden our own horizon of the market, we consider these categories as competition. The
current perception is that this category is very seasonal due to nature of the products which mothers
believe should not be consumed by kids in winters. In order to break consumption barriers, Siddiqui
says, "We have to focus on nutritional evaluation of the products, increase awareness of the category
and build the image of the category as nutritional value provider".

People want to get the maximum out of life by living a stress free life. Wall's is very much in sync with
the ever-changing demands of the consumer and wants to assist them in achieving the above
objectives.

Hence our main thrust includes addressing growing issues of obesity/diabetes. "We are researching
ways to extending consumer choice by offering lower caloric variants. Products that are suitable for
more frequent consumption include lighter versions of our popular Wall's brands and are for people
who are conscious about what they eat, as well as for those who like to indulge frequently," says
Siddiqui.

Kids nutrition is another issue. Siddiqui says, "Our advertising and marketing principles comply with all
relevant laws and regulations in each of the countries where we operate. In addition, international,
national or local self- regulatory organisations have standards that we adhere to and we apply our
strict self-imposed regulations regarding marketing to children."

In order to ensure that Wall's meet consumer expectations, Wall's has strict hygiene standards to
ensure that consumers receive the same quality year on year.

The objective of this is to be able to consistently produce safe and wholesome products of good
quality that, in line with Unilever's corporate purpose" "Meet the everyday needs of people
everywhere"

The ice cream director says: "Our system of manufacturing process ensures adequate and effective
cleaning. Secondly our operators and food handlers are thoroughly educated and trained in hygiene,
process and proper food handling. We are committed to continual improvement in our quality and
consumer safety performance in all of our activities". Following are some certifications Wall's has
achieved to ensure consistent delivery of quality products Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) is
essentially is a tool to achieve minimum losses, improve efficiency and reduce wastage's. All this
leads to Wall's being an environment friendly business.

Wall's factory has the level one award in November 2004. "We are amongst the very few to actually
implement TPM at our factory", Siddiqui says.

He says, "Wall's has fully implemented Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point in our plant integrated
management system (IMS) certification. The latest 3 IMS standards are: ISO 9001:2000, ISO
14001:1996 and OHSAS 18001:1996."

Copyright Business Recorder, 2005

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