Print Pack Show Daily 2019 - 1st Day For-distribution-day1-final-PP | Page 2

2 PRINTPACK INDIA 2019 SHOW DAILY 1 FEBRUARY 2019 | SUPPORTED BY INDIAN PRINTER & PUBLISHER AND PACKAGING SOUTH ASIA IS THE START-UP SECTOR ADEQUATELY SERVED BY THE PACKAGING INDUSTRY? TWINKLE TWINKLE LITTLE STARTUP The branded consumer product business universe in India is expanding visibly these days. As new brands emerge and fight for market share from the biggies, can nimble packaging suppliers become key enablers for their success? DEEPAK MANCHANDA M any new challenger ‘star’ brands seem to be shining on the shop shelves across categories – from food and beverage to personal and home care. According to a report in Livemint, “The last five years have been telling on India’s consumer market. Increasing broadband pen- etration, growth of private label brands from retailers like Big Bazaar, Big Bas- ket, Reliance Fresh and More, along with the growing economic might of a younger demographic have challenged the top brands across categories – from home care to packaged foods and bev- erages.” (Sapna Agarwal, April 2018; www.livemint.com) In the same, above quoted report, research firm Euromonitor is mentioned as saying, “Between the years 2012 and 2017, eight of India’s top 12 brands have ceded nearly 40 basis points, to two percentage points of either vol- ume or value market share to newer entrants in home care, packaged foods and beverages categories. A basis point is 0.01% of market share. It is calculat- ed based on volumes and value. While volume refers to the number of units sold, value is the price component. The brands that have lost share are Thums Up, Horlicks, Tata Tea, Amul, Britan- nia, Mother Dairy, Brooke Bond and Surf.” It’s apparent that the huge unor- ganized and ‘local’ market of India is beginning to create slick new ‘chal- lenger’ brands which need packaging just as good as the big brands but at a reduced scale. The new, start-up brands deserve a better response from the eco- New brand Aavrani’s natural cosmetic product packaging system of the packaging industry which is presently structured to cluster around the big ‘star’ brands. The big brands, with their deep pockets and wide mar- ket penetration have little difficulty in meeting the minimum order quantities (MOQ) terms of packaging suppliers. On the other hand, the new entrants seek lower initial order quantity terms and need flexibility to customize on- pack messaging to niche markets as well. As Aniket Deb, co-founder & chief executive officer, Bizongo is quoted by Accel India Insights, in Medium.com, “If you want to place a custom order with a packaging manufacturer today, you’re still dependent on the manufac- turer’s waitlist and whims. Buyers have to chase the manufacturers, only to be told about unaccounted-for produc- tion delays and to hear at the eleventh hour, that their specifications can’t be met.” (https://medium.com/accel-india- insights/) Bizongo is an online packaging design and supply resource that aims to disrupt the B2B packaging supply chain by bringing in more reliability of supply as well as quality and cost ef- ficiency. “When Bizongo stepped into the market,” as Aniket goes on to say in the article, “it was highly fragmented and unbranded. To provide the best ex- perience for buyers, we needed to build good relationships with the packaging suppliers, by showing value and provid- ing end-to-end serviceability.” While Bizongo may be doing its best, the vast majority of the local, un- organized and start-up market faces ex- actly what Aniket mentions plus much more, if financial resources are limited. To be noticed on shelves and create consumer appeal, startup brands need to look different and innovative compared to the brand leader. This calls for finan- cial and creative resources to be able to invest in the packaging development. However, due to the fickleness of consumer response most entrant brands prefer to be conservative on develop- ment costs and initial order quantities. Most of the time this leads to having to Fabindia expands towards luxury cosmetics and packaging depend on ‘stock packaging’ which is essentially generic bottles, jars, pouch- es or tins made with ‘one-size-fits-all’ considerations. The outcome inevitably is erratic specifications, poor quality, cost overruns, excess inventory and time delays as well as severe limitation on design choice and shelf-appeal. On its part, the Government of In- dia’s intent to leverage Startup India was announced on 15 August 2015 by the PM, Narendra Modi himself. Between the years 2012 and 2017, eight of India’s top 12 brands have ceded nearly 40 basis points, to two percentage points of either volume or value market share to newer entrants in home care, packaged foods and beverages categories. Various schemes to improve the busi- ness environment for startup brands have been announced. The outcome is beginning to be visible in the form of new brands of food, personal care and home products in retail outlets as well as online sales. The need to upgrade packaging design and quality has been recognized even by the vast ‘unorgan- ized’ market of kirana store labels and local super-market brands. Under these circumstances, has the response of the vast majority of pack- aging convertors been adequate? Have packaging material and equipment suppliers responded adequately to the IS YOUR PRINT QUALITY DETERIORATING ? Meet IPM’s experts at Stall No. H 47, Hall No. 9 at Printpack India 2019 for corrosion free, extra long life & special matt or glossy surface of offset printing machine cylinders and other components ! Explore customised repair & revolutionary robotic coatings for critical components: • Plate, Blanket & Impression cylinders • Ink duct, Dampening & Rider rollers • Grippers, Chase Strips, Pads & others Industrial Processors & Metallizers (P) Ltd. Unit-1 Address: 3, Badli Industrial Estate, Phase- I, Delhi- 110042 | Ph: [phone], 9818288877| Email: [email protected] 2 | 1 FEBRUARY 2019 | Please visit our websites www.packagingsouthasia.com & www.indianprinterpublisher.com for LIVE updates during Printpack 2019