Revamping Rasna - A Marketing Overhaul Saga

Rasna Wakes up to the Challenge Contd...

By 1999, Rasna International's sales accounted for an estimated 15% of the Rasna's total turnover of Rs 650 million, even as SDC's contribution kept declining. In summer 1999, Rasna also went against its tradition of launching 'one-new-flavour per season' and launched two new flavours, Rasna Yorker (Yorker) and Rasna Aqua Fun (Aqua Fun). The company launched these products in order to exploit the Cricket World Cup fever. Kapil Dev was brought in to endorse Rasna Yorker. Though Yorker succeeded moderately, Aqua Fun was a dismal failure. The failure of Aqua Fun was attributed mainly to its blue color, which was not readily accepted by the Indian consumer in the food products segment. Pioma's efforts at broadening its product portfolio continued with the launch of Oranjolt in 2000, an aerated fruit drink, available in 1.5 litre PET bottles.

The brand, launched in selected outlets, failed to attract customers and soon had to be withdrawn. Commenting on Oranjolt's failure, Khambatta said "Oranjolt was never meant to be an aerated drink and it was just, one in the range of innovations that Rasna constantly did." However, he agreed that Oranjolt's failure was a result of certain inherent product problems.

It was common practice for many Indian retailers to switch their shop refrigerators at night. This resulted in quality problems, as Oranjolt required refrigeration at all times. The short shelf life of the Oranjolt also contributed to its failure as the company failed to set up a strong distribution network for the product, which could allow it to replace Oranjolt every three to four weeks.

Following its failure, the company sent the product for further improvement at its R&D facility. Despite its efforts, the woes of Rasna increased through the late 1990s and 2000. Rasna SDC's volume continued to shrink by over 7% every year. Moreover, the steadily increasing prices of Rasna SDC, over the years proved to be another significant hurdle for Pioma.

Initially priced between Rs 8-10, Rasna SDC was sought by the middle-class family as an affordable hospitality drink during the 1980s. By the late 1990s, it had gone up to Rs 22-24, which according to the analysts was supposedly above the reach of its target audience.

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Case Details

Case Code : MKTG025
Themes: Marketing Mix
Case Length : 11 Pages
Period : 1995-2002
Organization : Pioma Industries Ltd
Pub Date : 2002
Teaching Note : Available
Countries : India
Industry : Food, Beverages and Tobacco

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