Marketing Stragety free essay sample

In this project, I have compared the analysis, existing marketing strategies and recommend the future strategy for both products which Cobra Beer and Kingfisher Beer. The aim of this report is to compare both of the products in the UK market and to get the future forecast that where both of the products have place in the market. The reason I have chosen those products is just because I am working for Cobra Beer head office and I wasn’t difficult for me to get the information for the company’s product I am working for. As far Kingfisher Beer is concern, I have really put my efforts searching for there marketing analysis and their strategies. For that I have consult many website and read plenty of articles related to Kingfisher Beer. I have also interviewed ex employee from Kingfisher Beer, who really had helped me a lot giving the facts and figure of current Kingfisher Beer market. We will write a custom essay sample on Marketing Stragety or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page And in the end I had also give the trend comparing among those products and their current market shares not only in UK’s market but also in different countries. Introduction: Cobra Beer: Cobra Beer Ltd. was founded in 1989 by Karan Bilimoria, then aged 27 and ? 0,000 in debt. A Cambridge law graduate and qualified Chartered Accountant, Bilimoria launched Cobra Beer when it became clear to him that Britain needed a smoother, less gassy lager that appealed to both ale drinkers and lager drinkers alike, and also complement all types of cuisines. I saw that the market was dominated by harsh, gassy Euro fizz beers, all poor partners to food and so I wanted to produce a premium, high quality lager which would complement rather than fight against food. Cobra 5. 0% Premium Beer is brewed to an authentic Indian recipe using the finest natural ingredients. A unique blend of barley malt and yeast with maize, hops and rice gives Cobra it’s distinctive, clean and extra smooth taste. The 660ml bottles are great for sharing with friends at the dining table, which is ideal as Cobra makes an excellent accompaniment to all cuisines. Kingfisher: The inspiration for the choice of brand name was certainly influenced by the great numbers of these beautiful and strikingly coloured birds which abound in India where over 70 different varieties/species of kingfisher can be found more than in any other country or continent in the world. Kingfishers are particularly prevalent in Bangalore, the garden city of India, which is also headquarters to The United Breweries Group, brand owners of Kingfisher Lager. The new distinctive Kingfisher brand logo incorporates a visual of an Indian Kingfisher. From modest beginnings where Kingfisher Lagers distribution was somewhat confined to Southern India, it has grown to become Indias leading brand of premium lager with share now approaching 36% of the total beer market. The brand is owned by the UB Group of India, a multi-divisional conglomerate operating in over 20 countries across Europe, North America, the Caribbean, the Middle East and Far East. UB Group activities include pharmaceuticals, engineering,fertilisers and information technology, but its traditional and core business is in the drinks sector where beer and spirits divisions dominate the market with famous lager brands such as Kingfisher, UB Export and Kalyani and numerous category leaders under the Mc Dowell and Herbertson spirits brands. Situation analysis: Cobra Beer Cobra beer is only 14 years old brand but still it’s managed to capture market place. Cobra beer is selling in almost 6000 Indian restaurants, 5000 pubs, bars and clubs and exported to 30 countries with having turnover of ? 65m. Apart from that, cobra beer has also won awards Monde Selection Brussels – World Selection Quality Awards. 2005 – 2 Grand Gold Medals and 9 Gold Medals. Cobra beer is also the only beer brand to have associated itself exclusively wit safe-flo, manufacturers of anti-spiking devices. The company provides these anti spiking caps to universities and bars that display an interest in protecting their clientele from dangers of spiking. Market Demographics The profile for Cobra Beer consists of the following geographic, demographic and behaviour factors: Demographics †¢Male and female. †¢Ages 25-65 †¢Those who drink beer when in a bar or restaurant SWOT Analysis The following SWOT analysis captures key strengths and weaknesses within the company and describes the opportunities and threats facing the Cobra Beer. 2. 2. Strengths †¢Cobra beer is a complete Indian beer, which means that it accompanies Indian spicy food and it’s less gassy. †¢It is double filtered for an extra smooth taste. †¢ Marketing strategy of Cobra Beer is best as compared to it competitor. 2. 2. 2 Weaknesses †¢Cobra Beer is the growing brand in the market because it is just 16 years old company. †¢Prices for Cobra Beer are bit high as compared with the competitor brand Kingfisher Premium Beer. †¢There are still many people who are unaware of the brand Cobra Beer. 2. 2. 3 Opportunities A growing market with a significant percentage of the of the target market still unaware of the Cobra Beer. †¢Increasing sales opportunities as people become familiar with the advantages of the structured conversation system. †¢The ability to lower variable costs through efficiency gains. 2. 2. 4 Threats †¢Competition from taverns. †¢Competition from other sources of singles meeting events. †¢A slump in the economy which will decrease discretionary spending. Kingfisher Premium Beer Kingfisher all began with 5 breweries in South India. The oldest of which, Castle Breweries, dated back to 1857. United Breweries, as these breweries were named in 1915 has come a very long way. Soon afterwards, the sight of bullock carts carrying huge barrels or Hogs heads containing beer became a household sight. These carts wheeled their way to the customers, including British troops, living in and around Madras, Bangalore and the Nilgiris. Almost immediately, the brew from UB became a favourite, especially with the British troops. So began the history of Beer in India. And the history of Beer Division of United Breweries! The company was bought by late Mr. Vittal Mallya in 1947, and since then has never looked back. Today each one of the 32,000 Beer outlets in India sells one brand or the other from United Breweries. Market Demographics The profile for Kingfisher Premium Beer consists of the following geographic, demographic and behaviour factors: Demographics †¢Male and female. †¢Ages 25-65 †¢Those who drink beer when in a bar or restaurant SWOT Analysis The following SWOT analysis captures key strengths and weaknesses within the company and describes the opportunities and threats facing the Kingfisher Premium Beer. 2. 2. 1 Strengths Kingfisher Premium Beer is one of the oldest beer brand as it got the biggest market shares in Indian restaurant. †¢People are aware of kingfisher worldwide. It is a hit in Caribbean, India and other part of the world. He, however, said that the company would have to start selling around 3 million cases per year to set up such a project. He said the company is in talks with a contract brewer each in the north, south and eastern parts of the country for sourcing beer. To get to 1. 5 million cases in another couple of years, we will need at least three more brewers, he said. Cobra Beer has so far invested around $10 million in its Indian operations. The company has a tie-up with a contract brewer, Mount Shivalik in Rajasthan. The company currently sells over 2 lakh cases of beer every year. It also plans to launch a strong beer, King Cobra, in India soon. We have already launched it in Europe and it is seeing good sales, he said. According to a press statement from the company, Cobra Beer is one of the fastest growing beer brands in the UK. Cobra is exported to over 40 countries and its current retail turnover is around $151 million. Cobra’s success is founded on its targeting of a niche market — the Indian restaurant market — which the big breweries had failed to exploit. Bilimoria had complete faith in his product and despite feeling demoralised at times during the early years of the enterprise, he never gave up, even managing to turn threats into opportunities. Cobra has also adopted a strategy of market development. For example, it has agreed a deal to sell Cobra Beer on Virgin Airline flights between London and Delhi. There is little risk involved in such a move, either in terms of the finance required to get started or in terms of its likely popularity with travellers. But it is an important deal as part of its plans to break into the Indian beer market. Cobra has widened its distribution by selling in over 30 countries around the world. In 2004, it made its debut in the USA, although it has had to trade under a different brand name due to a trademark dispute. Cobra has also started producing and selling beer in India. At the moment, the average Indian drinks one litre of beer per year, compared to 100 litres per year in Britain. Data from the drinks analysis firm Canadean shows the growth of beer consumption in India. However, this is a riskier example of market development for Cobra. Drinking beer is also frowned upon in much of India, with high tariffs on imports, a severe licensing regime and a number of different regulations at state level. For example, in Delhi, advertising is restricted, while in Gujarat alcohol is banned altogether. Taxation on beer consumption can be as high as 60% of the cost of production. Yet, despite all these potential drawbacks, Canadean believes the beer market can overcome these difficulties and predicts that sales growth will continue. Cobra Beer recognises the importance of gaining a foothold in this market and establishing brand loyalty while the market is growing. Kingfisher Premium Beer Kingfisher Premium Beer started with five small breweries in South India, the oldest of which Castle Breweries dated back to 1857. Then in 1915, Thomas Leishman, a Scotsman, combined these breweries to form United Breweries Ltd. The popularity of their beers soon spread and within a short time, bullock carts carrying huge hogsheads of Kingfisher became a familiar sight in Madras, the Nilgiris and Bangalore, the headquarters of United Breweries Ltd. Today, 19 breweries operating to capacity supply the ever-increasing demand for United Breweries range of beers in India. Kingfisher, the flagship brand of United Breweries and the best-selling Indian Lager worldwide, is now available in over 52 countries and is exported from the UK to Europe and North America and from India to major markets in the Middle East, South East Asia, the Far East and Australasia, and it is also served on board 6 international airlines. Kingfisher was first imported from Bangalore in to the UK in 1982 in the traditional large 650ml bottles. It rapidly gained a foothold in the fast expanding Indian Restaurant market and within three years, demand for the brand was so great that production had to be switched to England. Shepherd Neame, Britains oldest brewer, was selected to brew Kingfisher under licence and to the Indian specification at their brewery in Faversham, Kent. In 1989, a further step was taken to maximise the brands potential when UBSN Ltd, a joint venture between United Breweries and Shepherd Neame was formed to combine the experience and expertise of the two brewers. Apart from the 19 breweries in India and UBSN in Faversham, Kent, Kingfisher is also brewed at Mendocino Breweries Saratoga Springs site in New York State, USA. The UK operation is the supply centre for exports to Canada and 19 Continental European markets. Since then, sales in the UK have soared and Kingfisher is now the No. 1 selling Indian Lager in the UK and also in Indian Restaurants where it is sold in more than 7000 licensed outlets. It is available in both draught and bottles, and the brand is scoring increasing success in the UK take home sector with listings in almost all major supermarkets chains. The Kingfisher family continued to lead the industry with sales of 18. 5 million cases of Kingfisher Premium Lager representing a growth of 8% over the previous year and 7. 7 million case of Kingfisher Strong were sold during the year, an increase of 39%. Almost one of every 3 beers consumed in the country during the year was a Kingfisher. Net sales for the year under review stood at Rs 4,050 million representing a growth of 11% over a comparable figure in the full previous year of brewing operations. Recommendation: Cobra Beer Cobra beer has the best marketing strategy as compared to it competitors, recently Cobra beer launches it’s biggest ever TV Ad campaign which worth ? 10m ‘Unusual Thing, Excellence’. Heavyweight through-the-line campaign targeting discerning 25 – 34 year old lager drinkers. Cobra Beer has its goal which is to be a ? m company and for that they have to make sure that they are competing with the beer giant which is Kingfisher. But they have to make sure that future strategy should remain with their main product which is Cobra Beer, as there are some problem occurring due to the prices, as they have recently launched their beer in the mainstream, on and off trade market which eventually has raising their turnover but their big problem is prices, as their competitor kingfisher are selling their product much cheaper than that of Cobra, as for both of the companies Indian restaurants market is the main market for them in UK. The latest Cobra Beer Ad campaign is fabulous and it has helped them a lot boosting their sales and at the same time, it has giving a brand awareness among the people because Cobra’s Ad is running on most of the TV channels, apart from other promotional things are really helping them achieving their target. Entrepreneurial spirit, passion, and the ability to create an environment where people can come up with ideas and implement them quickly, is the way to succeed against more established, bigger players. Creating an atmosphere of trust, respect and flexibility enables ideas and innovation to flourish – resulting in rapid growth and constant new product development. Kingfisher Premium Beer: Kingfisher Premium Beer is the UK’s oldest Indian beer, but it rival which is mainly Cobra Beer is currently capturing the most of the market in UK. I would recommend that there a penalty of improvement needs to be in their marketing campaign. First of all, last the TV Ad campaign wasn’t successful at all just because of the story line which wasn’t good as all. Here the image of their previous Ad campaign. This Ad campaign actually telling a story that kingfisher is such a powerful beer that you simply go blank and you don’t know what are you doing and despite of that it is the no. 1 Indian lager, though this advertisement campaign caused the serious damaged to that market and there was a lot of critics on this advertisement. The other thing is the prices, kingfisher has lowered there prices in UK just to compete with there rivals which is mainly Cobra beer and due to which the profit wasn’t good at all for the UK market. I would recommend them to restrict with their mission, which is; †¢To be the recognized leader in our target markets †¢To be the preferred employer wherever we operate †¢To recognize the value of our human assets †¢To be the partner of choice for customers, suppliers, and other creators of innovative concepts Here is the Google trend comparing Kingfisher Premium Beer with Cobra Beer in the UK market as well as market other than UK. Here is a quick summary of what the results showed: †¢Cobra Beer leading in the UK and South Africa. †¢Kingfisher Beer is VERY dominant in India. †¢In the US and Canada its pretty much head to head between. Marketing Stragety free essay sample In this project, I have compared the analysis, existing marketing strategies and recommend the future strategy for both products which Cobra Beer and Kingfisher Beer. The aim of this report is to compare both of the products in the UK market and to get the future forecast that where both of the products have place in the market. The reason I have chosen those products is just because I am working for Cobra Beer head office and I wasn’t difficult for me to get the information for the company’s product I am working for. As far Kingfisher Beer is concern, I have really put my efforts searching for there marketing analysis and their strategies. For that I have consult many website and read plenty of articles related to Kingfisher Beer. I have also interviewed ex employee from Kingfisher Beer, who really had helped me a lot giving the facts and figure of current Kingfisher Beer market. We will write a custom essay sample on Marketing Stragety or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page And in the end I had also give the trend comparing among those products and their current market shares not only in UK’s market but also in different countries. Introduction: Cobra Beer: Cobra Beer Ltd. was founded in 1989 by Karan Bilimoria, then aged 27 and ? 0,000 in debt. A Cambridge law graduate and qualified Chartered Accountant, Bilimoria launched Cobra Beer when it became clear to him that Britain needed a smoother, less gassy lager that appealed to both ale drinkers and lager drinkers alike, and also complement all types of cuisines. I saw that the market was dominated by harsh, gassy Euro fizz beers, all poor partners to food and so I wanted to produce a premium, high quality lager which would complement rather than fight against food. Cobra 5. 0% Premium Beer is brewed to an authentic Indian recipe using the finest natural ingredients. A unique blend of barley malt and yeast with maize, hops and rice gives Cobra it’s distinctive, clean and extra smooth taste. The 660ml bottles are great for sharing with friends at the dining table, which is ideal as Cobra makes an excellent accompaniment to all cuisines. Kingfisher: The inspiration for the choice of brand name was certainly influenced by the great numbers of these beautiful and strikingly coloured birds which abound in India where over 70 different varieties/species of kingfisher can be found more than in any other country or continent in the world. Kingfishers are particularly prevalent in Bangalore, the garden city of India, which is also headquarters to The United Breweries Group, brand owners of Kingfisher Lager. The new distinctive Kingfisher brand logo incorporates a visual of an Indian Kingfisher. From modest beginnings where Kingfisher Lagers distribution was somewhat confined to Southern India, it has grown to become Indias leading brand of premium lager with share now approaching 36% of the total beer market. The brand is owned by the UB Group of India, a multi-divisional conglomerate operating in over 20 countries across Europe, North America, the Caribbean, the Middle East and Far East. UB Group activities include pharmaceuticals, engineering,fertilisers and information technology, but its traditional and core business is in the drinks sector where beer and spirits divisions dominate the market with famous lager brands such as Kingfisher, UB Export and Kalyani and numerous category leaders under the Mc Dowell and Herbertson spirits brands. Situation analysis: Cobra Beer Cobra beer is only 14 years old brand but still it’s managed to capture market place. Cobra beer is selling in almost 6000 Indian restaurants, 5000 pubs, bars and clubs and exported to 30 countries with having turnover of ? 65m. Apart from that, cobra beer has also won awards Monde Selection Brussels – World Selection Quality Awards. 2005 – 2 Grand Gold Medals and 9 Gold Medals. Cobra beer is also the only beer brand to have associated itself exclusively wit safe-flo, manufacturers of anti-spiking devices. The company provides these anti spiking caps to universities and bars that display an interest in protecting their clientele from dangers of spiking. Market Demographics The profile for Cobra Beer consists of the following geographic, demographic and behaviour factors: Demographics †¢Male and female. †¢Ages 25-65 †¢Those who drink beer when in a bar or restaurant SWOT Analysis The following SWOT analysis captures key strengths and weaknesses within the company and describes the opportunities and threats facing the Cobra Beer. 2. 2. Strengths †¢Cobra beer is a complete Indian beer, which means that it accompanies Indian spicy food and it’s less gassy. †¢It is double filtered for an extra smooth taste. †¢Marketing strategy of Cobra Beer is best as compared to it competitor. 2. 2. 2 Weaknesses †¢Cobra Beer is the growing brand in the market because it is just 16 years old company. †¢ Prices for Cobra Beer are bit high as compared with the competitor brand Kingfisher Premium Beer. †¢There are still many people who are unaware of the brand Cobra Beer. 2. 2. 3 Opportunities A growing market with a significant percentage of the of the target market still unaware of the Cobra Beer. †¢Increasing sales opportunities as people become familiar with the advantages of the structured conversation system. †¢The ability to lower variable costs through efficiency gains. 2. 2. 4 Threats †¢Competition from taverns. †¢Competition from other sources of singles meeting events. †¢A slump in the economy which will decrease discretionary spending. Kingfisher Premium Beer Kingfisher all began with 5 breweries in South India. The oldest of which, Castle Breweries, dated back to 1857. United Breweries, as these breweries were named in 1915 has come a very long way. Soon afterwards, the sight of bullock carts carrying huge barrels or Hogs heads containing beer became a household sight. These carts wheeled their way to the customers, including British troops, living in and around Madras, Bangalore and the Nilgiris. Almost immediately, the brew from UB became a favourite, especially with the British troops. So began the history of Beer in India. And the history of Beer Division of United Breweries!