Sign up for afaqs! Newsletters
An analysis of what creates iconic brands, and how India is now poised to create some global icons of its own
We often come across debates on 'Why we, as Indians, have not been able to create a Nike or McDonalds of our own'. We encounter various arguments, such as "We haven't evolved to that level of advertising"; or some complicated advertising logic, such as "You've got to invest in values that go beyond a transactional relationship, rather than just investing in a commercial agenda." Then there are those who say that 'yoga' and 'basmati' are iconic Indian brands; but maybe we were not as enterprising as our Western counterparts, in patenting and using these brands appropriately.
Is that enough? Or are there even simpler arguments yet to be given? I think a few more are worth sharing here.
This leads to the conclusion that only innovation is not enough; consumer acceptance of the innovation is important too. It becomes even easier if more than acceptance, there is desire -- for a new way to be, or a culture. That's when a product or brand gets a real advantage.
This seems to be an effective base for establishing ideas whose time has come, and therefore, iconic brands. That's when we see a lot of not-so-high involvement categories, which may range from FMCG to the service industry, bringing forth examples of iconic brands. Somehow, it goes beyond just a great product and advertising; it involves various other factors that help and support the brand, which literally rides on those advantages.
There seem to be many sweet spots, not just one. And they go beyond just a good product or good communication. One very obvious reason for any brand to become huge is 'riding on the association with its source'.
For instance, if there are two new wines that an Indian consumer has to choose from, without worrying about the cost; my guess is he or she would go for a 'cheaper' French wine, rather than a slightly more expensive Indian wine, especially in the absence of any other influence, such as a wine expert nearby. This would be the safest choice in that context, in order to create a better impression.
Or, if I ask a person who hasn't even tasted a Nirula's burger, to choose between that and a McDonalds burger; more often than not, he would go for the latter. However, I have personally seen many Delhiites, who have tasted Nirula's burgers, swearing by them. This is not about our bias for foreign stuff; but more about 'origin association' of a particular product.
Another very interesting logic, which works on 'desire for a culture', I feel, is about cultural dominance in a particular area, which leads to economic dominance. This drives preference and association for the products that it brings to the world in the first place. So, French wines borrow their finesse from French culture; while burgers get their fast-lifestyle association from the US, besides being great tasting junk food. The crux of the matter is that first, a country creates an impression on the world; and then, it rides on that impression and also becomes cool.
I recently heard about the film industry and entertainment being a great carrier for the economic dominance of a particular country. This sounded simply profound and rang lots of bells in my head. Just think about the advantages American brands got due to Hollywood. The whole world was ready to consume them, because thanks to Hollywood movies, not only were those brands familiar, but also had 'cool' associations.
I remember feeling faintly like Stallone from Cobra when I got my first bite of a pizza from Domino's; because that was my own first impression of a pizza that came along with cool Stallone. That's a bit ironical too, because culturally, pizza is associated with Italy. However, for Indians, it derived more of its coolness from Hollywood than Italy.
Maybe Rehman and Aamir have a much bigger role to play than just making India proud. While we are making an impression on the world in various fields, such as the technology talent pool, international versions of India such as Slumdog Millionaire, and individual Bollywood stars; we need to understand our key strengths and utilize them in the best way possible. We won't be able to create icons by aping them; but by being ourselves in the true sense, because that's what impressed the world in the first place.
Maybe we have missed some opportunities; maybe some opportunities are waiting to be tapped, such as Ambassador cars, which have remained a true symbol of our indigenous creations. Though they signify for some a symbol of an India that never progressed; the story may have been different, if we had made Ambassadors a carrier of the 'Indian royal' experience to foreign lands, for people who are fascinated by us. Think about it.
Another related example is that of Royal Enfield. While both have gained some success in the international arena; I feel there is much more waiting to be tapped. There are other brands too, such as Thums Up, which are not just cheap alternatives to international brands, but also stand for some values and have a unique Indian identity.
If a brand does not have a strong source association, an essential factor that one must get correct is that, whatever it is, it shouldn't be too easy. This is one of the key reasons why commodities became brands in the first place. It should be unique to us, or there must be signature complicatedness, which only we can get completely correct. A few obvious examples are ayurveda and our expertise in various regional cuisines.
There seems to be universal agreement that India's time has come. Now we have all the opportunities. The whole world's attention is on us, because of many right reasons such as our prowess, and a few wrong reasons such as their crises. And as the whole world is looking up to us as joining the league of extraordinary countries; we need to be extra conscious to not act subserviently and create dominance in whatever we do.
This requires us to be conscious of our strengths and create various icons out of it. It's a great opportunity, and we've been waiting for it for a long time. Our various industry leaders are already busy taking over international brands. The next step should be to create our own signatures on the global map. While I feel we are at the right time, all we need is the right place in this globalised world, to create not one, but many icons that represent us in our way.
(The author is client services director at JWT India.)