Denims on Instalment....

Want a new refrigerator, washing machine or oven? A new car or perhaps an iPhone?
India’s middle-classes have been lapping up such pricey goods for some time due to deals that allow them to pay in monthly instalment...
Now, Levi Strauss & Co has decided to offer the same deal to people wanting to buy a pair of its famous blue jeans..
“A large portion of our consumers would love to access Levi’s more frequently than they currently do.”
Under the scheme, customers will be able to pay for Levi’s priced at Rs1,599 ($33) and above in three instalments. The move comes after a two-month experiment at 10 Levi’s stores in the software hub of Bangalore, where consumers offered the instalment option spent an average of 50 per cent more than normal.
As well as boosting purchases from existing customers, the scheme “opens up the brand to a significant number of new users who today already know and aspire to Levi’s”, Mr Chatterjee said.
While popular among urban youth, Levi’s has acquired strong caché among working men, especially those from rural India, helped by billboards featuring Akshay Kumar, the macho Bollywood action film star.
Levi’s arrived in India in 1994, just as the country was opening up its markets, and now has more than 230 dedicated Levi’s boutiques among its roughly 700 Indian points of sale.
In a country where a pair of unbranded blue jeans can sell for as little as Rs200, Levi’s are priced from Rs1,599 up to Rs10,000 per pair for specialised lines.
“Most marketeers in India today are looking at market creation, not market share,” he said. “It’s about giving these guys stuff they couldn’t otherwise own in one shot.”

Surprised !!!!

Read in today's newspaper....And was wondering what the heck is this????

The rivalry btwn Ambani brothers is touching skies...bt it is also disclosing the much hidden facts of how the govt and the lobbyists are playing the devil game....

Branded Sugar cane juice - Untapped potential

Cane juice is emerging as an alternative to colas in India’s Silicon Valley.

Cane-O-La, the country’s first branded sugarcane juice, was launched recently and has met with an encouraging response.Cane-O-La. Spurred by the huge success of the two parlours it has already opened,has plans to unveil 100 outlets in Bangalore over the next two years. Two more are ready for launch.
The sugarcane crop is harvested, peeled and brought to Bangalore in refrigerated vans, crushed and served to consumers in mugs, within 24-36 hours of harvest. “The entire process is mechanised at every stage, and we don’t even add ice,”
Each juice outlet requires at least 20 people, and can help those at the bottom of the pyramid. Indians have always loved cane juice, but earlier, it was available only with roadside vendors, with dubious hygiene standards. Cane-O-La’s mechanised process addresses that issue.
Coming to its pricing....its quite affordable as it provides per glass Rs.10 per glass and those who want to carry it to home the hygienic paper glasses are also available by just paying 2 bucks.

Now thats wat we call Blue Ocean Strategy !!!!...tapping the untapped market by just thinking very down to earth...

Rural Job search site...What an Idea Sirjeee...***

Monster.com and ITC Ltd have together announced the launch of a Web site for the rural job market called Rozgarduniya.com.
The Web site would be made available to rural job-seekers through e-choupal, the Internet-enabled rural initiative of ITC. It would also provide a gateway to the industry to tap the huge rural workforce. It will be first launched in Hindi and English and then in other languages.
"Rural India has a huge untapped talent pool and Rozgarduniya.com will provide a platform to bridge the demand and supply gap,"
"The will be targeting jobs in security agencies, highway construction, courier companies and rural retailing," The company would be looking at graduates and high school pass-outs

Amul at its best !!!!

Its advertising has also started using tongue-in-cheek sketches starring the Amul baby commenting jovially on the latest news or current events. The pun in her words has been popular. Amul outdoor advertising uses billboards, with a humorous take on current events and is updated frequently. The Amul ads are one of the longest running ads based on a theme, now vying for the Guinness records for being the longest running ad campaign ever with Smokey Bear. Sylvester da Cunha was the managing director of the advertising agency, ASP, that created, in 1967, the campaign whose charm has endured fickle public opinion, gimmickry and all else.Its advertising has also started using tongue-in-cheek sketches starring the Amul baby commenting jovially on the latest news or current events. The pun in her words has been popular. Amul outdoor advertising uses billboards, with a humorous take on current events and is updated frequently. The Amul ads are one of the longest running ads based on a theme, now vying for the Guinness records for being the longest running ad campaign ever with Smokey Bear. Sylvester da Cunha was the managing director of the advertising agency, ASP, that created, in 1967, the campaign whose charm has endured fickle public opinion, gimmickry and all else.

Value Advertising - The new trend in $456 bn industry !!!

Advertisements should deliver more value, firms to agencies ....This was the statement which is becoming a nightmare for the Ad agencies all over the world... The worlds top five advertising companies had 2008 revenue of $44 billion, according to industry publication Ad Age.

P&G and Coca-Cola are leading the switch to pay ad companies for the value they bring to a brand, making them more accountable.

Some analyst say this is harmful for the ad agencies and they are very much against it. The practice may shave half a percentage point off revenue in the shortterm .The economic crisis emboldened advertisers to demand results before paying agencies, which can lead to lower ad sales and more competition.

For Example-The latest Sprite online commercial which proved to be a big hit in the online market....making waves all over....

Companies are looking now towards value advertising by paying accordingly....the positive side of the coin is the advertising companies will also be getting a certain % of the increased sales affected through advertising....(P&G claims to give 10%).....

Internet advertising can be called as the revolutionising this concept in which the ad revenues collected by advertising co.are according to the clicks .....

H1N1.....The burning issue !!!!

I agree with you that swine flu awareness is needed, but there is noneed to be panicky and join the publicity propaganda carried out bymedia and others which acts as a vehicle to spread misconception thanto spread scientific information.
These are few facts about swine flu when discussed with the leadingepidemiologists.
1) Swine flu, that is H1N1 flu is not new, first detected in 1987
2) Infective stage of flue is 5 days, 1 day before and 4 days afteronset of symptoms
3) The best way to prevent it spreading is asking patient havingsymptoms of flu like fever cough and running nose to take rest at homefor 4 days so he does not transmit it
4) Masks are of limited value if any, in this disease, it can spreadthrough droplets on your skin, through contact etc, and I have seenthat the masks in Pune are worn as fashion statement, while walking onroad today morning I saw people wearing masks coming out for a morningwalk with their dogs!, many wearing masks around their necks, and soon, infect these masks shall act as the vehicles to carry the virus,instead, avoiding crowded places or cinema halls or malls where airconditioners are on, is advisable, because you get recalculated air,where the virus density multiplies
5)Death after H1N1 flu is not common, infect infections like measlesis taking toll of thousands more every year, and we are oblivious ofthe facts. Swine flu is being blown out of proportion by media tryingto create hysteria among lay people.
6) Fever accompanied by respiratory distress, should be immediatelynotified which is likely to be a complication of H1N1 flu
7)The mortality is less than .01 percent of those affected, that meansmay be one in 10,000 affected is likely to suffer the life loss
.8) If you remember, 2 years ago SARS was blown out of proportion, whathappened? Humans develop immunity to the virus, the same is going tohappen, we develop immunity in due course of time, the virus is in theair, you can not stop it, our body is already developing the immunityso nothing to panic.We need to take care of children and elderly who have less immunityand do not let them go to crowded places that are all.

I am amazed to hear that people are selling masks of RS 20 each whichare available to less than Rupee 1 in the market.See who is getting benefitted?
Please spread the scientific info, do not join the band wagon andstick to science, that should be the order of the day.

Source:An E-Mail from a friend