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Fast Moving Consumer Goods? Poate ca prea fast pentru sanatatea noastra...

Partea 1

[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5774892958354867332]

Partea a2a

[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3486838871531386599&hl=en]

Nicarbazin:

http://www.food.gov.uk/news/newsarchive/2008/may/nicarbazin0508

http://www.epa.gov/opprd001/factsheets/nicarbazin.pdf

http://www.inchem.org/documents/jecfa/jecmono/v041je10.htm

For more details, please call (65) 6866-3748 or email info@strategixhr.com for a discussion.

Umm - this sensible thing is kinda weird. But I like it.

So I've added it to my facebook page. It asked me how I felt Sunday morning (which was good)

and now it's status is " My Sensible is doing double fist pumps of joy" WHAT THE????

It is memorable. A too much like the Tooheys Extra Dry tongue?
There's alot of these weird characters in ad land at the moment.

It's growing on me. Am getting to know my new friend.

Interesting use of Papervision too. Check out the site here.

And you can even send aseless chaps as gifts!

Sven Andersson’s great new urban transport invention.

It’s 8.50, the train or bus is running late and it’s a 20 minute walk across town to get to work.

What if you could simply swipe your credit card, grab a free bike, pedal across town and return the bike to another stand? It can be a reality.

And Sven Andersson, the Swedish bike guru, is here to show us how. His innovative company BikeStand can help ease traffic congestion in the city and help us all get places faster.

Without, as Sven would say, “Costing you a leg and a arm”.

See how free bikes can take hundreds of cars off the road and save the environment.

Visit BikeStand for more info and to sign the petition to make your government support this great initiative!

Schmackos is up and running after alot of hard work from the
gang at Tequila, Sydney.

Featuring stop frame photography of clay animation figures
created by Adelaide based animation house Anifex.

Learn dog tricks in the fun park, or get a photo taken with Roger and the gang.

]]> http://santoshsrivastava.wordpress.com/?p=73 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 04:43:52 +0000 Santosh Srivastava http://santoshsrivastava.wordpress.com/2008/09/30/performance-indicators-fmcg-industry/ I’ve tried to understand dynamics of FMCG industry in my new post at wealthyson. Changing market dynamics with crude oil prices and inflation, emergence of retail, cost structure of the companies and competition with unorganized sectors are explored in the article. Based on these qualitative parameters following performance indicators are derived for FMCG sector.

1. Brand equity with competitive advantage
2. Operating profit margin to understand cost advantage
3. Distribution efficiency by evaluating rural presence
4. Proportion of outsourced manufacturing
5. Cash in hand

For more details please read full article at http://wealthyson.wordpress.com/2008/09/29/performance-indicators-of-fmcg-industry/

First and foremost is changing market dynamics with fluctuating crude oil prices and inflation. Last few months were terrible. On one side input prices are increasing resulting in thinner margin to manufacturers. On the other side the share of wallet of consumer is decreasing. Overall decrease in category demand is now become visible. Companies with better brand equity are successful in transferring this burden to consumers. However with high competition already in place every time price increase will not be a viable solution.

Second emerging market dynamics is the emergence of organized retail. In this new format, relatively weaker brands also get equal opportunity to place their products and offerings along side a stronger brand. Two things will distinctly visible in such situation. Either exclusively differentiated product or the most cost effective product will get lead in the battle. In high inflationary situation consumer would tend to choose second option in order to control the outflow from their wallets. So brand loyalty earned by various major players will be at stake. Product with very high brand equity could maintain their position till the situation improves. Weaker or moderate brands will be the target of new cost effective products or brands.

Third is the cost leadership. A company's pro activeness towards innovation, rationalization of cost structure, capabilities in manufacturing and in outsourcing gives a long term perspective of their approach towards cost leadership.Take the example of shampoo in which a crude oil derivative is used in packaging shampoos, while PET, a petroleum-based plastic product, is employed in manufacturing hair oil bottles and packaged water bottles. Crude oil derivatives account for almost 17 per cent of the total cost of corrugated boxes. Which company is working towards other innovative solutions? Another cost iscost of distribution which is very high in FMCG sector. So efficiency of supply chain and logistics adds significant value to cost leadership.

Fourth is competition with unorganized sector and regional players. Their overhead costs are much lower than a company with national presence. Being ‘local’ gives them a very cost effective advantage of distribution and logistics. Their presence can be felt at remote rural level. But since they are small the effect of inflation are even bigger for them. Poor management and poor cash flows are other prominent concerns. So a comprehensive consolidation can also be seen in next 2 to 5 years. The companies with better cash will take this.

Let me summaries the performance indicators to address health of a FMCG company in following parameters:

1. Brand equity with competitive advantage
2. Operating profit margin to understand cost advantage
3. Distribution efficiency by evaluating rural presence
4. Proportion of outsourced manufacturing
5. Cash in hand

I personally feel Marico and ITC as good buy. However; feelings apart, I will post my next blog on qualitative analysis of various FMCG companies on above parameter coupled with some technical analysis to recommend my picks in FMCG sector

By Santosh Srivastava

O dyskryminacji kobiet w reklamie można pisać grube tomy a nawet upierać się, że wcale nie istnieje, jak twierdzą niektórzy moi koledzy. Nie będę tu rozpisywać się o tym, co każdy widzi: oddam głos Magdalenie Środzie, która w ciekawym artykule w Wysokich Obcasach porusza ten temat na przykładach. Artykuł można przeczytać TUTAJ.

'Marico industries, a synonym with the house holds of Kerala or rather  to be precise, the blue bottle with the parachute logo has been ingrained in the minds of throngs of customers in the coconut land. For me, a native of Kerala living besides the blue bottle has been a second habit.

There are many insights, which the marico business can lead us to.'

You can read the rest of this article, which i wrote for Indianmba portal here.

But after my article, there have been many moves from Marico. They have diversified and expanded their product range into product gels/ hair creams - which was the usual route to take. 

The same artcile has been linked up by a blogger - Aurobindo on his blog here. He has some good articles on Entrepreneurship too.

How  has  Diwan  instigated  the  company's  ascent  up  the  ranks of  the  region's      distributors since he stepped up to head the operation in 1994? A shrewd combatant in the war for brand supremacy, Diwan says the distributor has thrived due to the strength of regional names and the quality of its portfolio, stretching across the retail channels from modern to down trade. A willingness  to  quickly seize opportunities is a top priority  in  his business  strategy   and he credits the company's rapid expansion to this dynamic brand building mentality.

The Dubai-headquartered firm recently clinched the distribution rights to  Saudia  Dairy and Foodstuff Co (SADAFCO), covering categories including juices, tomato pastes and ice cream.

They used to have their own distribution set-ups, but they  closed it all  down  and  moved  to us with the objective of increasing distribution in adjacent markets.

The company built its reputation for excellence in the marketing and distribution  of  foodstuff and consumable products by increasing brands' market shares, and is now positioned in the top three in terms of turnover volume and the number of cartons delivered, after developing full coverage across the seven emirates.

Backed  by  an extensive  185-vehicle strong infrastructure  in  the UAE - every  month the supply chain handles more than   500 inbound containers,   more   than  850,000    cases of ambient, chilled or    frozen goods are sent to more than 7000 customers -  its impressive list of clients appears almost endless.

In the food, home and personal products segments, the company offers a plethora of regionally and internationally-produced lines including Americana cakes, cheeses, French fries, meats and seafood, CG-Beans, California Garden, Foster Clarks, Gandour, Afia, Jolly Time, Nestle Pure Life water, Napco, Savola Olive Oil, Bosco syrup, Super-Max, Corazzi, Excel Plast, Olite sunflower oil, Karam corn oil and Spitz.

Business has remained robust in the face of intense competition as "we take an active stance in our brands' marketing, the principal and ourselves," by designing and developing consumer promotions tailored to local market needs.

"The key success of our company stems from the fact we don't rely on multinational brands, for example Americana's cakes and meats are brand leaders. We have taken on local brands with small market shares and grown them considerably.

The market share for Savola corn oil has grown from its initial 17% to become a market leader at 48%, Super-Max has jumped from 8% to 35%, and Americana Cake has risen from 8% to 75% during a 10-year partnership.

The brand portfolio has leapt more than six-fold since the company's origins from four to 25, manned by more than 600 employees.

Al Aqili Distribution has a systematic system to control replenishment, orders, supplies and relationship management, and more than 300 employees have been recruited for the direct sales force, which has been built to international standards.

Led by a multicultural management team with experience at multinational companies and a long-term view and willingness to invest in people and assets, the company has added a number of significant strings to its bow.

"Our strategy is to add three to five brands every year, and over the past three and a half years, we have doubled our business. The market in Dubai is believed to have grown by 20% over the past three years.

"Approximately 95% of the products we distribute are branded, such as California Garden, Americana and Nestle Pure Life Water, and we have a very good relationship with key accounts such as Union Coop and Carrefour. We have several market leaders and we have the muscle to sign the best deals.

Expanding the volume of business was "the only way to sustain the business and continue in this competitive market because of inflation and the currency situations which squeeze margins for distributors," according to Diwan.

In which markets does Diwan recognise lucrative possibilities in the Middle East?

He has now directed his attention to the Iraqi market, where it is positioned as the largest distribution company and the only player with full national coverage, and appealing demographics among the 27 million strong population have driven his thought-out strategy.

"We have been distributing in Iraq for more than 20 years, and the potential there is obvious from the higher disposable incomes among the population. Consumers can buy today. We are also developing our presence in North Africa at the moment, and maybe moving into Algeria and Morocco," he says.

To increase the pace of its international expansion, Diwan has invested heavily in technology to drive down costs and increase margins. Handheld terminals deliver daily sales and distribution reports, and organise the top 20 customers, call cycle reviews, promotion analyses and efficiency rates.

"Another key strength of ours is our workforce, there are people who have been working here for more than 20 years. Bringing in fresh talent is something that we take that very seriously as a local company, we are developing young blood.

"We are looking into expansion all over," he says, including new warehousing and an extension of its current site at its Al Quoz facility in Dubai. "Business has been growing by 30% year-on-year for the past three years," he adds.

The video within the website and online ads were filmed using green screen sets with actors (currently in Emmerdale and Hollyoaks), which allowed the very talented creative peeps to create a futuristic salon/police station.

The internet marketing strategy objectives for this campaign are to increase Purchase Intent and the site is doing very well. Rich media ads are also on websites such as MinistryofSound.com.

Paul Mallett (online strategy consultant) and Andrew Brown (digital creativity consultant) recently presented this work as a case study at the IAB Engage Conference in Manchester. They talked about how taking a thorough approach to return on investment for FMCG brands, it doesn’t mean you have to skimp on creativity and engagement.

So, if you weren't at the conference, here is the video....Enjoy  :-)

Sebuah perusahaan besar yang bergerak di bidang industri Detergent dan Consumer Goods, berlokasi di Bogor, membuka lowongan kerja sbb :

Supervisor R&D (Researsh & Development)
Persyaratan :
- Pria / Wanita, usia max 35 tahun
- Pendidikan min S-1 Kimia / Teknik Kimia
- Berpengalaman di bidangnya min 3 tahun
- Menguasai bahasa Inggris aktif

Staff R&D (Researsh & Development)
Persyaratan :
- Pria / Wanita, usia max 30 tahun
- Pendidikan min D-3 Kimia
- Berpengalaman di bidangnya min 1 tahun
- Menguasai bahasa Inggris pasif

Bagi yang berminat dapat mengirimkan lamaran kerja ke :

info.rndd@gmail.com

Areas of Work: Preferably from manufacturing industry like Cement /
Construction / Ceramics / FMCG products.

Job Profile:

1. Managing dealer and distributor network
2. Meeting dealer points regularly for taking orders.
3. Business promotion activities and organizing various schemes for dealers
4. Planning for the targets and achieving targets in time
5. Dealer network expansions
6. Ensuring timely payments by the dealers for the stock received
7. Conducting architects, Engineers, Mason meets
8. Meeting Builders, Architects, etc., regularly for promotion of product
9. Motivating and Training dealer's sales staff
10. Giving presentation in Government Departments and other institutions and making specifications for usage of the product.

Work Areas:

Bhimavaram (W.G.) - 1 Position
Amalapuram (E.G.) - 1 Position
Kurnool - 1 Position
Chitradurg (Karnataka).- 1 Position
Sholapur - 1 Position
Chattisgarh - 1 Position
Jadalpur - 1 Position
Salary: Negotiable

Herbata dobra jest na wszystko, wiadomo nie od dziś. Ma wiele atrakcyjnych odmian, a w krajach Dalekiego Wschodu jest wręcz napojem "kultowym". Dziś zatem wezmę pod lupę dwa serwisy poświęcone butelkowanym herbatom, które jawią się jako zdrowsza, bardziej "zen" alternatywa dla coca-coli i pokrewnych napojów.

Serwis herbaty Nestea Vitao prezentuje trzy rodzaje herbat - białą, czerwoną i zieloną - każdą na inną okazję. Serwis zbudowany jest na bazie filmów wideo, pokazujących, jak herbata działa na zabieganą, nowoczesną kobietę - pozwala jej się zrelaksować lub ożywić czy to w domu, czy to w pracy. Serwis stworzony jest wokół hasła "10 minut w rytmie VITAO!" - proponując poświęcenie 10 minut dziennie, które pozwolą się wyciszyć się i poczuć jak na afrykańskim stepie lub chińskim polu ryżowym. To swoista medytacja odrywająca od tempa i stresów biurowego i domowego życia, zwana "trendem vitao". Każdy rodzaj herbaty powoduje inny efekt - biała  pobudza, zielona chroni, czerwona uspokaja. Strona, mimo że oparta na ciekawym pomyśle strategicznym, ma jednak sporo niedociągnięć. Pierwsze z nich jest prozaiczne, ale bardzo istotne - nie sposób znaleźć jej w wyszukiwarkach. Co powoduje, że można na stronę trafić tylko poprzez reklamy. Po drugie, wideo, mimo że ładnie zrobione, jest dość nudne. Długie sekwencje, podczas których główna bohaterka - konsumentka herbaty robi rozanielone miny i wykonuje prace biurowe lub domowe, po prostu nużą. Przydałoby się więcej akcji i jakaś estetyczno - emocjonalna wartość dodana. Niestety tego brakuje. A przecież wokół niezwykle chwytliwej "filozofii vitao" można by zbudować naprawdę angażującą stronę, na którą konsumentka często by wracała.

Kolejna strona poświęcona herbatom z butelki to strona tradycyjnej Nestei. Ciekawa animacja, prezentująca w atrakcyjny sposób filozofię i historię herbaty, możliwość zasadzenia własnej roślinki, animacja relaksującego ogrodu, prezentacja produktów. Strona niewątpliwie ładna, ale właściwie nie wiadomo jaki jest jej cel. Można wejść, poklikać, wyjść i już więcej nie wrócić. Denerwują długie czasy ładowania. Żeby przeczytać cokolwiek o rodzajach herbaty trzeba się nieźle natrudzić z obsługą flashowej animacji. Podczas gdy Vitao, mimo wszystkich swych niedociągnięć, ma spójne przesłanie, to stronka Nestei nie tworzy żadnego szczególnego klimatu. Ot, takie pudełko z różnymi czekoladkami, które można szybko zjeść i zapomnieć. Dlatego też trudno jest mieć do produktu jakiś emocjonalny stosunek.

Herbata w butelkach to napój o wciąż niewykorzystanym potencjale, napój który mógłby stać się w Polsce o wiele bardziej popularny. Przydałyby się strony, które są nie tylko ładne, ale też angażują konsumenta, wpisując się w jego codzienny styl życia. W sprawie strategii dla FMCG można pisać do mnie :)

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Alarming facts:

Few days back I saw a documentary of Talat Hussain (The famous Pakistani Journalist). He was conducting survey of markets of areas adjacent to Afghan border. He showed shops thronged with products especially FMCGs which were:

1. Smuggled directly from Afghanistan or Iran

2. Bought from Pakistani cities but routed through Iran or Afghanistan because the highways joining these areas are troubled due to ongoing war between local Talibans & Pakistani militia.

Fuel was also being brought from these two countries because its cheaper than the one the get Pakistan.

During the interview, shopkeepers, customers & general public expressed their frustration about Pakistani government over its negligence to facilitate them with basic amenities. Few extremists also said that when they have to rely on Afghanistan for all their basic needs, then why don’t the govt. let join Afghanistan.

---------------------------------------------------------

“The Nations who forget their history, their geographical boundaries are changed very soon.”

Great user experience, connection and engagement with the brand in a highly entertaining delivery environment.

I'd write more, but I'm off to buy a Twix right now!

More webcam interacting with product to get stuff... stuff. This time you scan the barcode on the back of your product and you have a free track... with an visually interesting player to boot. Music in a bottle.

Via: The rubbishness of Rubbishcorp.

Retailers are getting such a strong control over FMCG that in cause is the future of many brands giants. In UK for instance (and many other countries), Tesco, Marks and Spencer and other retailers are having a whole portfolio of products ranging from low priced to premium products, presenting consumers a wide variety of interesting products at the same level of other brands.

Well developed retail stores with only their own brands are leaving no reason to choose others, and new concepts arise on the marketing of these brands and stores, making everything effectively more attractive. The knowledge and connection retailers can have on the consumer is huge.. targeting well which products should be on the shelves and how to market them.

On the side of the consumer, he or she is more rational on this type of shopping, rather than emotional - making some brands more vulnerable. When quality reaches the same point of well known brands, with lower prices or higher added value, their decision changes.

In the future I envision a P&G supermarket. A direct connection with consumers on a physical platform or a effective online shop spurring sales within new channels for this organizations - their own channel.

The cost of implementation could be crucial, the deterioration of relations with retailers would be a major factor, but maybe the cost of today's profit shrinking is a sign change will happen.

: : :