Marketing Case Study

Ground Rules Nestl 4Ps Challenger Case Study

Eligibility

All second year students (other than PPO holders from any company; who have signed out of the process)
are eligible to participate in the contest.

Teams must have 3 members each. At maximum one student who is currently on exchange can be a part
of a team.

Format

The case study would be rolled out on 19th October at 2359 HRS.

Submissions

All teams must provide the following details with their 1st submissions (mandatory):
1. Name of the team
2. Names of the members of the team
3. Email id of One point of contact
4. Contact numbers of all members of the team

Solution should be provided in PDF format (please convert your PPT into PDF. Maximum 2 content slides
for each part separately). Please submit to your place-com SPOC for Nestl.

Last date for Submission of 1st part Solutions 31st October, 2016 (2359 HRS)

What is in store for you?

Selected teams will get to present their solutions to Nestl Panel at their campus on dates that will be
communicated subsequently.

Top 5 teams across campuses get a chance to present their solutions to the Management Committee
members of Nestl India at Nestl House, Gurgaon.

Team Prizes:
1. Campus Winners : Amazon Vouchers of 40K
2. Nationals Runners Up : Additional Amazon Vouchers of 60K & PPIs
3. Nationals Winners : Bragging Rights, Amazon Vouchers of 100K & PPIs

Individual Prizes:
1. PPIs to individual participants at campus or National finals may be given at Nestls discretion.

Best of Luck!!!

Nestl 4Ps Challenger Case Study

MAGGI NOODLES IN INDIA:
Launched in 1983 in a non-noodle consuming culture, MAGGI Noodles today is an essential part of the Indian food
landscape. The product offered a tasty hunger fix for kids & great convenience, customizability for mothers. Over the
years, MAGGI Noodles has moved from being a product meant for kids to establishing itself as much loved across age
groups & socio economic classes. You would have a MAGGI story of yours as well, wouldnt you?
THE MAGGI STORY (1983-2015)
One of the reasons for the rapid growth of MAGGI was its strong proposition. The product was a fun, exciting light
meal for kids & was extremely convenient for the mother. The high customizability it offered was a further plus. This
led to a strong acceptance of MAGGI in India as a hot, hygienic & safe light meal option. Backed by consistent
communication, affordable price points, strong distribution, MAGGI Noodles rapidly grew to a 200,000+Tons brand.
Consumer metrics were extremely strong Penetration @ 80%, Strong market leadership with over 80% Market share
and loyalty in the high 90s. During these years, MAGGI Noodles launched several innovations like MAGGI Veg Atta
Noodles, MAGGI Rice mania Noodles, MAGGI Cup Noodles and much more offering variety, excitement and
strengthening the core franchise. While the core TG remained kids with mothers as gatekeeper the consuming TG
was across age, gender and region. Over the years MAGGI communication started addressing the wider audience and
Competition in the Noodles category started heating up around 2008 with the entry of Foodles, Knorr Soupy Noodles
& ITC. Competition started addressing kids directly an area which MAGGI had not directly addressed. High decibel
campaigns (near parity on share of voice with MAGGI), addressing kids, & regional strongholds saw MAGGIs share
stabilize at ~ 80%.
Exhibit : MAGGI Noodles portfolio

THE BUSINESS CHALLENGE FOR MAGGI:

By 2014, the challenge facing MAGGI Noodles was

Building Frequency of consumption

Addressing the different consuming cohorts: Kids, Teens, Youth, Adults
Address competition from Pastas, Momos, Chowmein, Quick Service restaurants as well as other Noodle
brands

MAGGI Noodles was in a unique space. The brand was not seen as health as homemade snacks like Poha, Upma nor
was it as exciting as Momos, burgers etc. Nestl & MAGGI globally- identified NHW: Nutrition, Health and Wellness
as core pillars for growth. Toward this, the brand undertook a massive effort to strengthen its Noodles portfolio with
nutritionally sound products. The relaunch of MAGGI Veg Atta Noodles and the launch of MAGGI Oats Noodles were
significant steps in this direction.

Around the same period the brand undertook a price increase on the MAGGI Masala Noodels range. After decades
of being at Rs 10/- the brand moved to a price point of Rs 12/- which was a massive move in a price sensitive market.
The challenge for the brand was
Protect the core business (Masala) to combat the effect of the price increase and to sustain the large business
Invest in the pipeline for the future Youth, NHW pillars etc.
APPENDIX: Volume contribution by cohort

Volume share Consumption

17%

18%

18%

17%

30%

Kids

Teens

Youth

Moms

Chief wage earners

** Approximate figures.
THE CRISIS:
In 2015, MAGGI Noodles was faced with a legal and regulatory concern. The product was withdrawn from the market
amidst a huge trial be media. The brand was able to make a strong comeback to the market within 6 months and is
now well on the way to winning hearts again. During the crisis, support for the brand was unprecedented with loyalists
strongly pitching for its quick comeback. Chief among these loyalists were the youth who were extremely vocal in their
support especially on social media.
Exhibit : #WeMissYouToo campaign

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wjYA6V9tdbI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKvoZyz23y4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWfvOMK6Mqs

Exhibit: Your MAGGI is SAFE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wuHkXi3xBzY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GAsHxzFPBgI

Exhibit: Nothing Like MAGGI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dDyEP_k65Y

POST COMEBACK:
Post comeback, MAGGI Noodles has accelerated toward market leadership and is now the No.1 Noodles brand in India
again. MAGGI Noodles has approached the comeback in a 3 fold manner
1) Focus on clearing the air about its product strong focus on Mothers, product safety
2) Build back distribution, focus on building back leadership on shelves in the now cluttered Noodles category
3) Launch of a new product focusing on the Youth

MAGGI HOTHEADS:
The youth segment are strong loyalists of MAGGI. With a significant volume contribution, strong connect exhibited
during the crisis and very healthy consumption they represent a key core of the MAGGI brand. However, the brand
had never directly addressed this segment through communication or specific products. The role of the brand in their
lives was under leveraged. It was a hunger fix solution one they turned to when they were hungry & needed a savior.
Also, the multiple varieties of MAGGI they consumed in Out of Home, Dhabas added a new dimension to their
consumption experience. Added to this was the significant options from QSRs and Out of Home which offered them
very high levels of excitement. This was this need state that MAGGI Noodles was missing out on along with the imagery
of trendiness & excitement. The need-state of Pleasure pause one of high indulgence, exciting, tasty light meal fix.
It was essential for MAGGI Noodles to address this key consuming cohort
Recognizing this, MAGGI Noodles decided to accelerate launch a new sub-brand squarely targeted to the youth. The
core of this new sub-brand was to delight youth with their favorite MAGGI Noodles but with a new spicy, kick!
Indians, especially youngsters, love spicy foods and are constantly on the lookout for spicier experiences. They do not
want the ordinary, they want the unboring. MAGGI HOTHEADS was targeted to this audience with the following
premise

4 exciting, aspirational flavors in MAGGI Noodles Peri Peri, BBQ pepper, Chilli Chicken and Green Chilli
Each variant, with a different spicing level, had spiciness coming from unique variants Red Chillies, Bell
peppers, Black pepper, Green Chillies and more
The brand look and feel, nomenclature was all Young and trendy, with the promise of an enjoyable
experience over their longtime favorite MAGGI Masala Noodles.

True to the brand philosophy of being a young, trendy brand- MAGGI HOTHEADS was launched in India with a strong
youth focus. E-Commerce packs, Unboxing with comedians, Digital heavy advertising and a fun TVC that broke clutter.
MAGGI HOTHEADS has opened to a great response Pan India with youngsters leading the trials for this nascent brand.
MAGGI Noodles now looks to scale HOTHEADS in India through consistent support across mediums. However, key to
this brand is the trial, acceptance and adoption by young adults. The task ahead is immense since there is a tendency
for consumers to try new introductions and revert back to their comfort food of MAGGI Masala Noodles. (MAGGI
Masala Noodles does not have codes which talk to the young adult though it plays a huge role in their lives).
It is imperative for brand MAGGI to win with the youth who are- Key volume contributors, a source of upsizing
frequency, loyalists and imagery leaders.
YOUR CHALLENGE: Use MAGGI HOTHEADS as your product lever and explain
How can brand MAGGI win with the Youth?
a. Identify & define on ground activation plans for brand MAGGI to win with the youth.
b. Propose product or variant innovations squarely targeted at this TG
c. Outline a sharp brand plan for maximizing the brands online footprint (Digital and/or E-Commerce
led plans)
CAVEATS:

NHW is the stated growth driver for the business. Any growth opportunities cannot be too far removed from
this stated goal.
Critical opportunity areas for MAGGI to win with the Youth
o 1) Share of Mind - be seen as the Noodles of choice
o 2) Imagery: Need to win vs the Out of Home (OOH) & QSR options.