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| Capital Foods gets notice from Nestle over ad spoof |
| Viveat Susan Pinto & Seema Sindhu / Mumbai Mar 13, 2010, 00:37 IST |
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After Hindustan Unilever and Procter & Gamble battling in the courts over their Tide and Rin brands, it is the turn of Nestle and Capital Foods for an advertising slugfest.
Not amused with the print ads by Mumbai-based Capital Foods — owners of the Smith & Jones, Ching's Secret and Raji brands — which spoofed Maggi, its flagship instant noodle brand, Nestle sent a legal notice.
The ads appeared on March 10 and 11 in various English and other newspapers across the country. The ad, for Smith & Jones Masala Noodles, depicts rival Maggi as a girl, with the caption: Maggi aur Suzi bhi bolain. The body copy says: 'Whether it's Maggi from Goa, or Lakshmi from Chennai, Sukwinder from Chandigarh, or Rekha from Delhi, the one flavour that they all love is Masala, Tadka Maar Ke!'.
A Nestle spokesperson said: "Since the matter is sub judice, we have no further comments to offer." He added: "Maggi is by far the leader in the noodles market in India and is synonymous with instant noodles. Hence, we have initiated legal action."
Ajay Gupta, chairman & managing director of Capital Foods, when asked for a comment, said: "We have not received any communication from our peer. We will respond to it appropriately when we do."
The ad in question is the fourth in a print campaign of Capital Foods for Smith & Jones Masala Noodles over the past two months. None of the earlier ads made any direct reference to a competitor's brand. This is the first such case and, according to sources within Capital Foods, the company will not repeat the ad. "None of the print ads are repeated. Once they run their course, we move to the next idea," said an informed source.
The company had also been running a TV and outdoor campaign for Smith & Jones Masala Noodles. The TV campaign has been on for six months.
While Ching's Secret is Capital Foods's signature line for its Chinese range of products, Smith & Jones has sauces, noodles, cooking pastes, etc under it. Raji, the third brand, is a ready-to-eat frozen food range, also available in the US, Canada and West Asia. Capital Foods had planned to launch it in India shortly.
It is also looking to introduce a new line of food products. Towards this end, the company recently acquired all the brands of celebrity chef Sanjeev Kapoor, who also joins the board which includes representation from Future Ventures, the private equity arm of Kishore Biyani. The latter holds 33 per cent in the company.
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