In the past few years, Marico Industries has been quite successful in developing a good market share for its leading brands. It has been able to fight big companies possessing higher financial muscle, on the strength of its brands' pull on the customers. This article explains how Marico has gone about creating its winning brands. The focus is on three major brands from the Marico stable: Saffola, Parachute and Kaya Skin Care. The brands are analyzed on the following issues—Brand Mantra and Positioning Strategy.

The positioning strategy had to be created such that it would enable Saffola to enjoy a better competitive position compared with the other players in the market. To achieve this for a commodity was certainly a challenge. Therefore, Saffola decided to use new features in the product that would serve as value additions and ensure higher customer delivered value. The Saffola Gold oil was made using 70% rice bran oil and 30% safflower oil. The rice bran oil boasted of ingredients like tocotrienols and oryzanol that had cholesterol reducing properties. The oil was fortified using natural vitamin E. The positioning line "dil ko rakhiye jawan" meaning "keep your heart young and healthy" helped in creating a suitable competitive position for the brand in a market that had become commoditized. Once Saffola had been able to create a distinct and desirable brand image, the customers were not only willing to accept it over competitors but even willing to pay a substantial premium price for the brand!

The advertisements of Saffola illustrated how the wife was concerned about her husband's good health and depended on Saffola to ensure that he was fit and healthy (Exhibit I). Notably, the colors and décor shown in the visuals enabled the target segment to relate with the brand. The use of yellow in the package label and also on the woman's saree represented goodness of health and denoted happiness, while the middle class settings helped the brand to appeal to a large segment of consumers in India.

The Parachute brand targets young women who possess traditional values and yet have a modern outlook. The core product offered under the brand is coconut hair oil. Again, similar to the cooking oil, hair oil also falls under the category of "commodities" and physical differentiation of the product is not feasible. Therefore, Marico has used branding to ensure strong appeal to the target segment. Having created a loyal base of customers, the brand has been extended into other relevant categories.

Marketing Mastermind Magazine, Marico, Creating Winning Brands, Saffola, Saffola Gold oil, positioning strategy, Fast Mooving Consumer Goods, FMCG, Kaya Skin Care and clinic, Brand Ambassadors, Services Marketing Agencies, Marico Industries, Bartle Bogle Hegarty, BBH India, Marico Iinnovation Foundation, MFI, Marketing Strategy.