Desi Disruptors: The journeys of Indian brands that changed the game

The journeys of 26 brands, mostly since liberalisation, show how brands can drive trial and loyalty

Desi Disruptors: Timeless Lessons from Iconic Indian Brands

By Vispy Doctor & Vikrant Pande

Published by Harper

272 pages  ₹599

  “Bombay Club” was the name given to the informal lobbying group of prominent industrialists, formed in 1992, who felt threatened by the sudden liberalisation and opening of the Indian economy to multinational companies. They demanded that the government create a level playing field for Indian companies before allowing indiscriminate foreign investment. Their list of demands, some of them still valid, included the need for reliable electricity, high-quality ports and roads, sensible framework for labour law, speedier judiciary system, and a uniform tax system (GST). But the movement lost its momentum by the mid-1990s. Interestingly, Rahul Bajaj, who was one of the most vocal critics of the liberalisation, later relented and in a public forum that celebrated an anniversary of the liberalisation movement, he went on record to say that he was wrong in 1992. Liberalisation did work for all players.

 

I was reminded of the Bombay Club as I completed reading the book Desi Disruptors – Timeless Lessons from Iconic Indian Brands by Vispy Doctor and Vikrant Pande. No, this is not a book that extolls the virtues of the liberalisation movement, but hold on.

 

Mr Doctor is a marketing research veteran who claims to be “terminally curious”. He and his company have worked on hundreds of consumer research projects over the last 40 years. You will come across numerous examples from his own consumer insights work in the book.

 

Mr Pande is a graduate of the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore who, after a 25-year career in corporate India, transitioned into a highly acclaimed author. He has written both business books as well as well appreciated translations of Marathi books; many of them have been bestsellers and won awards.

 

The book presents the journey of 26 brands, some of them from multinationals and many from Indian companies. I do admit some of them are from the pre-liberalisation era. The 26 brands have been grouped into four buckets: How to Create a Blue Ocean; Creating a Need; Creating Brands from Commodities; and Creating Leaders by Beating Competition. Many of the brands selected for analysis are those on which Mr Doctor has either done consumer research work or had a ringside seat in their development.

 

In the section “How to Create a Blue Ocean”, we meet Vicks, Maggi, Whisper, Frooti, Goodknight, Glucon-D, Coldarin, Nycil, Jockey, Weikfield and Volvo buses. In “Creating a Need”, we meet Itch Guard / Ring Guard, Livon, Ceasefire and Krack cream. In “Creating Brands from Commodities”, we meet Aashirvaad, Gujarat Ambuja Cement, Tanishq, ID Fresh, Kanan Devan tea, Lenskart and Puro salt. In “Creating Leaders by Beating Competition”, we meet Moov, Fogg, Thums Up and Taj Hotels.

 

As readers may have noticed, there are quite a few brands that have been built (and sold) by Darshan Patel of Paras and now Vini Cosmetics. Some of the brand successes are from new age companies (Lenskart, ID Fresh) and some are from Indian corporate groups (Tanishq, Aashirvaad).

 

The chapter on Aashirvaad was one of the best in the book. It presents the brand journey and shows how ITC leveraged its traditional strengths (from agri-businesses) to score over its competitors and win over sceptical consumers. I wish the book also showed why Hindustan Unilever’s  Annapurna failed.

 

Yet another chapter that made interesting reading was the one on Volvo buses. How did a multinational manage to change perceptions about bus travel, charge a hefty premium and create a unique brand position in a crowded market?

 

You may quibble with the categorisation of brands into the four buckets. Why is Maggi “Blue Ocean” and not “Creating a need”? Or why should Frooti be classified as “Blue Ocean” and not “Beating Competition”? But those are small doubts. The authors have done meticulous work through interviews and secondary data analysis. The 26 brand stories are each in themselves fit to be a case that can be discussed in the class room.

 

Coming to Bombay Club, many of the brands portrayed in the book were created in post-liberalised India, by Indian companies. And these are just a small sliver of new brands that have faced competition from multinationals and won. Desi disruptors are continuing to flourish and not all of them are from deep pocketed multinationals

 

The book is a great read for anyone who wants to understand more about Indian consumers and how brands need to search for the right insight to gain trial and loyalty.

 

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The reviewer is a best-selling author of 12 books on consumers, brands and advertising