A brand apart

"Brighter living” is the promise issued by the tri-color Godrej master brand that was introduced in April 2008 to lend a distinctive and vibrant identity to one of India’s largest conglomerates. By creating a contemporary and aspira­tional lifestyle brand they hope to appeal to a younger mindset, withstand global competition, create a cohesive culture focused around the consumer and sustain a powerful link between brand investments and business results, notes a press release detailing the marketing and brand strategy.

The traditional red signature lettering, the running hand of founder Ardeshir Godrej remains essentially the same except for a dash of color. The three colors introduced are: green, to signify growth, harmony with nature and renewed life; blue, to suggest blue sky thinking, big ideas, technology and innovation; and ruby, to indicate passion, indulgence, energy and dynamism.

"For over 100 years India has progressed tremendously and Godrej has been a part of this. Nothing signifies this better than the relationship we share with more than 20,000 of our employees and more than 400 million of our consumers who use one or the other Godrej product everyday. And it is a relationship built on the foundation of trust and quality products that I think Godrej has stood for, over these years. I think going forward as India changes, Godrej needs to change too,” remarked Group chairman Adi Godrej.

"Today the Indian consumer has evolved into somebody who is very demanding, wants new things, wants lots of innovation, and wants products that can really make a change, a difference to his or her lifestyle. Today’s consumer is very discerning and wants something worthwhile that provides great value for money. Over the years Godrej has provided a lot of innovative products, services and path-breaking solutions that make consumers’ lives brighter and better. The future will be about continuing to do this even better,” added Jamshyd Godrej, chairman of Godrej and Boyce.

"The Godrej brand is a unifier that brings together all our diverse businesses. Highlighting Godrej as a brand made sense because it is our most valuable asset, it cannot be replicated and it spans all our businesses. The revitalized corporate identity is a result of a detailed analysis of our vast product, service and business portfolio,” commented Tanya Dubash, executive director and president, marketing, Godrej, the first from the fourth generation of the Godrej family (being Adi Godrej’s daughter) to join the 112-year-old enterprise.

Godrej worked with Interbrand, the world’s lead branding consultancy to harness the Godrej brand’s intrinsic strengths. The brand equity study revealed that while a large number of consumers thought of Godrej as a trusted and reliable brand, it was not perceived to be in sync with the young, it was reported in Business Standard, May 20, 2008. "Demographically the Indian consumer is getting younger – by 2010 half of the country’s population will be below the age of 25. If the Godrej brand touches the lives of nearly 400 million consumers everyday (more than 30 percent of the population), it had to spruce up its youth appeal,” it was analyzed in Business Standard.

This new Godrej makeover is constantly on view for cricket enthusiasts watching the IPL series and as reported in Business India, May 18, 2008, the company spent over Rs 18 crore during the IPL alone. Besides they have relaunched Cinthol with filmstar Hrithik Roshan as the brand ambassador while actor Katrina Kaif was brought in to market their hair dye products.

Besides placing "progressive consumers at the center of our product,” other stakeholders like employees, investors and business partners are expected to benefit from the new Godrej brand experience. "At Godrej we have always been at the helm of changing and redefining the marketplace and this will now be reflected in a marketing and branding strategy that accelerates profitable growth,” remarked Adi Godrej. With over Rs 7,000 crore in revenues, the Godrej Group is targeting a growth of 25-30 percent compounded annually.

A detailed understanding of the brand is expected to create a brighter work experience for the employees and instill in them a pride in their organization. "If we can get totally consumer centric, if everything we do revolves around our hundreds of millions of consumers, I think we can really make a huge difference to where Godrej goes into the future. And we need to involve our employees in this consumer centricity and I think that’s how we will evolve in the future and that’s how we will soar even higher,” Adi Godrej had conveyed at the launch function on April 17.

Whilst translating Godrej’s integrity, innovation, experience and empathy with consumers into products and services, they would like to offer a superior brand experience. In the initial phase the Godrej Master brand will be built in tandem with the four ‘hero’ businesses of Personal grooming, Furniture, Properties and Appliances. While building on the Godrej master brand there would be simultaneous investment in the creation of platforms/sub-brands that create a strong Godrej brand franchise for Indian consumers viz Renew, Expert, Interio and Eon.

"We would want to create a dynamic structure of sub-brands using the brand recall of the Godrej name,” Navroze, Jamshyd Godrej’s 25-year-old son was quoted in the Hindustan Times of April 14. A certified interior designer who has recently joined the Group, he referred to his team’s efforts to bring in "a new range of furniture and cupboards that would appeal to the younger generation.” "We might use our branded furniture business with our realty and property business and brand it under the Godrej name,” mentioned Adi Godrej at a conference to launch the new brand identity.

Driving growth in the coming years will be the recently formed FMCG (fast moving consumer goods) cell that includes Godrej Hershey’s and Godrej Sara Lee. Popular domestic brands like Good Knight mosquito repellent, Kiwi shoe polish, Sofit soya milk and Ambi Pur car air fresheners are some of the many products that come from the Godrej stable although not all consumers may know of the association.

As summed up correspondent Delshad Irani in Business India, "A brand new united corporate image might spell good news for the legacy brand that was getting dissected and confused as the separate entities grew.”