Classmate Expression

Group

33

CLASSMATE

Industry Presentation

Group

33

Situation Analysis Primary Research & Customer Behavior

Segmentation and Target Markets Brand Positioning 4Ps Problems &

Challenges Recommendations

S No

Company/Brand Products

1 Camlin Colours,Pens,Pencils,Notebooks,adhesives etc.

2 Navneet Notebook, Books-syllabus & non-syllabus, Pencils etc.

3 Faber Castell Colours, Pens, Pencils, Markers

4 Natraj Pencils, Erasers, Sharpeners, Pens.

Competitors

Classmate; 30%

Navneet

; 20%

Natraj; 12%

Faber

Castell

20%

Cam-lin; 18%

Market Share- Split-up

Parent Company ITC

Head Office Kolkata

CEO/MD Chand Das

Products Notebooks, Pens, Pencils, Geometry boxes, erasers, sharpeners

Classmate- A Snapshot

The Brand and the competition – An Over view

2003

2007

2013

Around 700 Crores turnoverAround 65000 outletsNew notebook brands such as ‘Classmate Stripes’ aimed at Youth

Addition of new products such as pens, pencils, geometry boxes etc.100 Crore turnover in 2006Largest notebook brand in the country

Brand Launched with the notebooks category30 Crore turnover in the first year

Strengths ITC’s Brand Image Robust distribution

network

Weaknesses Lack of brand

awareness Lack of Connect

among customers

Opportunities Educational

industry fast growing industry (18%) in India

ITC’s rural presence

Threats Established brands Emergence of lower

priced local brands

SWOT

Classmate – Over the years

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• Stationery Industry is a very heterogeneous group of business usually associated with the Schools, Collages, and Office.

• It is expected that Stationery industry has a flourishing future in it's coming years in India and over a period is estimated to grow at 10 to 15% p.a.

• • Consumers for the stationery has a very wide range of the following: Students Schools/colleges Office Elite Stationery Personalised Stationery

• Classmate has 900 distributors who make the products available in over 70,000 outlets in India.

• Classmate Ideas for India challenge plans to reach out to 2.5 million students across 30 cities, 500 schools and 200 colleges across the country.

The Context, Consumer and Collaborators

CONTEXT

CONSUMER

COL L ABORA TOR




Group

33

Number of Consumers

62

Methodology used Online & Direct interaction

Age of the respondents

8-42*

Number of school children

18

Number of college students

44

80% of the respondents do not stick to the same brand while buying different products of stationery

60% of the respondents prefer bulk purchase of stationery

Most of the respondents, especially school students ( 75% )discuss about the various brands of stationery they use and among friends and take inputs

Brand

Visibilt

y in th

e store

Price

Satisfacti

on from pre

vious use

24% 21% 26% 31%

Brand Visibilty in the store

Price Satisfaction from previous

use

24%

2%

12%

62%Notebooks Pens

Most important factor that influences the purchase decision

*24% of the respondents consider brand as the most important factor while purchasing a notebook

*Students’ parents were interviewed

Primary Research and Consumer Behavior findings

Inputs were taken from Stationery store keepers, Sales staff in retail stores etc.

Students from different geographies- Mumbai, Bangalore, Kolkata and Lucknow were covered

Primary Research- A snapshotKey Findings




Group

33

Faber Castell,

36%

Cam-lin; 12%

Natraj; 45%

Classmate; 5%

Class Mate, 60%

Navneet;

10%

No par-

ticular brand, 31%

Pencils, Erasers & Sharpeners

Camlin; 52%Faber Castell ; 33%

Others; 2%

Classmate; 12%

Cello; 45%

Fabercastell; 17%

Reynolds; 31%

Classmate; 7%

Preference for Classmate products vis-à-vis Others

We identified 4 major sub-categories in stationery products offered by Classmate

Classmate’s quality and aesthetics rated the best

Higher preference among college students

Natraj has the maximum brand recall Among consumers who prefer Classmate

those who buy mechanical pencils is the highest proportion

‘Cello Grip’ is registered in consumer minds

35% of the respondents not aware of Classmate pens

Classmate has the lowest shelf space in most of the stores

Notebooks Pens

Camlin’s brand image built over a long time.

Students’ parents relate to Camlin more on comparison with other brands

Classmate brand is really young in this category

Colors/Crayons/Paints

Consumers primarily relate Classmate to notebooks




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Segmentation

Tier I & Tier II CitiesAge 0-6yrs 6-12yrs 13-23yrs 24-49yrs =50yrs

Life StagePre School/Elementary School Goers

Junior School Goers Secondary School/College Students

Working Professionals

Old Adults/RetiredIndividuals

Behavioral&

UsageCharacteristics

•New consumer•Attracted by colorful exterior•Functionality not a priority•Single purchases•Medium Usage

•High involvement purchasers• Experimental•High Peer influence•Aesthetics important•Hedonists• Bulk purchases•Heavy Usage

•Dreamers•Career oriented•Noticing the opposite sex•Functional & aesthetics important•Bulk purchases•Heavy Usage

•Low involvement consumers•Functional Buyer•Prefer premium brands•Single purchases•Medium to Light Usage

•Low Involvement purchasers•Non experimental•Highly Functional•Sparse single purchase•Light Usage

Influencers;Purchasers

Primarily Parents Self; Parents Self Self Self

Stationery Products Sought

Wooden Pencils, notebooks, Erasers,Sharpener, Crayons

Pencils, Pen, Erasers, Scale, NotebooksSharpener, Geometry Case, Paints

Pencils, Pens, Erasers, Scale, NotebooksSharpeners, Geometry Case, Paints

Pens, Notebooks especially spiral bound

Pens, notebooks




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6-12yrs 13-23yrs

•Junior School Goers•High involvement purchasers• Experimental•High Peer influence•Aesthetics important•Hedonists• Bulk purchases•Heavy Usage

•Secondary School and College students•Dreamers•Career oriented•Noticing the opposite sex•Functional & aesthetics important•Bulk purchases•Heavy Usage

Target Markets




ClassMate’s Target Segment

Products superior in terms of quality Notebooks particularly well designed Emphasis on aesthetic appeal Social Awareness

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Points of ParityRange of products- Classmate has similar range of products within each category such as notebooksProduct prices -Classmate products’ prices are comparable to that of other brandsProduct Quality - Classmate product quality is similar to other brands




Points of DifferenceVariety of products- Classmate brings a wide range of different products such as notebooks, pens etc unlike other stationery brandsITC brand- One of the most trusted brands in IndiaBetter aesthetics – Classmate products have better aesthetic feel to themSocially responsible brand - ITC is a socially responsible brand. A part of the price I pay is used for a social cause

Comprehensive stationery portfolio

Products for every student need

Excitement and fun of discovering and nurturing one’s talents

Confidence and uniqueness in every student

Functional benefit

Attribute

Emotional benefit

Value

How does the brand position itself?

Brand Ladder

Positioning Statement

For all studentsClassmate is a complete stationery needs providerthat helps bring out his/her unique creative potential Because it comprises of quality writing and painting instruments to suit all purposes.

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PRODUCT WIDTH

Classmate Notebooks

Classmate Pens Pens

Classmate Pencils

Classmate Mechanical Pencils

Precision Instruments

Erasers & Sharpeners

Product- Mix

s

v

LIN

E 1

LIN

E 2

LIN

E 3

LIN

E 4

LIN

E 5

LIN

E 6

•Stripes•190 x 155 mmHard Co 190 x 155 mm•Soft Cover 210 x 170 mm soft cover•210 x 170 mm Hard Cover•Drawing Books•Graph Books•Scrap Books•Pocket Memo

•Geometry Box•Scales

•Locus 0.5 mm Pencil• Rite script 0.5mm pencil• Trilobe 0.7mm pencil•Clutch 0.7mm pencil•Da Vinchi 0.7mm pencil•Da Vinchi 0.5mm pencil• Neat script 0.5mm pencil

•Gel Pens•Fluid Ink Pens•Ball Pens

•Rubber Tipped Pencil•2B Trilobe Pencils•Carbon Black Pencils•HB Jet Black pencils•HB Bounded length pencils

•Big Eraser•Small Eraser•Long Point Sharpener•Regular Sharpener




Group

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Potential Product: Stationery bundle

Augmented Products: Graph Book, Scrap Books, Geometry Box

Expected Products: Pen, Pencils

Basic Product: Notebooks

Core Benefit: Quality School stationery product

Product levels

Five

Pro

duct

Leve

ls• Classmate is currently at the augmented product level.

• It is a Convenience and Purely Tangible Good • It lies currently between Introduction and Growth Phase in its Product Life Cycle




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Procurement & Packaging• Sourced from small-

scale manufacturers, Focus on delivery and quality capabilities.

• Paper and recycled board are sourced from ITC’s Units, which use pulp sourced from renewable forestry

Regional Warehouse

Distributors• C&F and Agency

Dealers• Available at more than

75,000 stationary retail outlets across the country.

Customers

Place / Distribution Channel

•The company follows an Intensive distribution model•The channel design of the product is the Push strategy.•The channel design is the Vertical Marketing Systems where the product is marketed under the classmate brand.•The company is using 2 Level channel strategy.•The packaging of the product gives the product a quality and in terms of look and feel

Distribution Strategy- Highlights




Group

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Market

• The target market is the school going children and college students in urban areas involving primarily tier-1 and tier 2 cities.

Message

• The tagline of the brand “because you are one of a kind” signifies that brands stands for celebrating the uniqueness of every child. Its communication has an emotional appeal.

• The brand has a social message too wherein it contributes a portion of its sales for children in rural areas.

Media

• Classmate uses TV advertising for promotions.

• The message is communicated by choosing real life characters like school children.

• Cross promotions through its notebooks for promotion of its other products like pens and pencils.

Metrics Money

• The firm has a sizeable promotion budget.

• Of the Rs 35-50 crore advertising budget, a lion's chunk is being spent on consumer connect.

Mission

• To provide the consumers with quality stationary .

• The brand wishes to achieve its objective of quality through sustainable means which the core value of the brand.

Promotion/Communication Strategy

• The sale of notebooks along with other stationary items is an important metric to measure the effectiveness of promotions.• Brand recall in

terms of the repeat purchases is another important metric for measurement.




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Pricing

•Classmate notebooks in general contribute a almost 90% of the revenues of the brand. In the notebooks category it faces direct competition with the brands like Navneet, which are large players in this market.•In the notebook segment there are other small local and regional players which compete directly with classmate across different regions of the country.•In comparison to its competitors Classmate Notebooks are priced slightly less as those of its competitors. Thus it follows a Discount Pricing.•According to the Nine Price Quality Strategies Classmate follows a High Value strategy by providing high product quality and charging a medium price for its products.

190 x 155 mm Hard Cover

190 x 155 mm Soft Cover



Drawing Books (60 pages)

Navneet 35-90 20-65 18-42 20-52 30Camlin 35-85 25-60 18-40 20-45 30Classmate 30-75 18-60 15-35 18-45 27Local Players 28-65 15-45 12-35 15-40 20




Group

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Less recall for products apart from notebooks

The product width being high does not attract enough attention to each and every product. Notebooks have the highest unaided recall.

Writing and art instruments – Presence of established

brands

Existing brands like Nataraj , Cello and Camlin have been in the market for long and so have a better brand recall

Notebooks - Widely considered as a low

involvement commodity category

Local and regional players had a deep reach into the market. Anything sold at a convenient price and location gets picked up by the consumer. The challenge is

category conversion from commodity to branded product by bringing in a brand proposition.




Seasonality of demand The demand for notebooks peaks during the school reopening season and the demand for art material peaks during the summer vacations.

Lack of deep reach in all geographies

The current competitors have a very deep reach in certain geographies. So the challenge is to be quick, agile and reaching out to all geographies.

Challenges faced by Classmate

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33

Recommendations

Marker Pens & Highlighters Most schools/ colleges switching to white boards-

huge market Majority of students surveyed indicated that they like

to highlight important lines while reading

Premium Pens Targeted at College students To tap the ‘gift’ market Very few well known brands such as

‘Parker’

Tie up with schools Majority of urban schools now offering notebooks and other stationery.

Tie up with school chains will help to tap this market Steady revenues High Customer retention

Tackling Seasonality of demand

Water Colours Completes the product mix of this category Large market- children aged 8-15 prefer

water Colours

Products



Challenges RecommendationsProblems & Challenges

“School fun“Stationery Kit A bundle of 5 Pens, 5 Pencils, sketch pens, 5

erasers, 5 sharpners and a geometry box along with 6 notebooks

One package that will be bought every time a student needs fresh set of stationery

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Classmate to rural India Leverage on ITC’s strong rural presence through ITC-e-Choupals 70% of the Indian students are from rural areas

Reaching more Geographies

Classmate Whiz-kid contest Competition for Students which will test knowledge, artistic skills Leaves lasting impression in the students’ minds Many success stories such as Bournvita Quiz,

Classmate WHIZ KID Contest

Classmate Facebook Page Almost every student above age 12 has a Facebook account.( Increasingly large

number of students below 12 also have Facebook account) It will have daily GK quizzes, puzzles etc. with exciting prizes Very dynamic and happening page that will create a buzz among the students

Separate Website for Classmate will also help in brand building

Brand Building

*can be benchmarked

Recommendations




Documents

Classmate Expression