Titan industries

Project by Member of www.mbaguys.net

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CO�TE�TS

S.�o Title

1. INTRODUCTION

2. TITAN

3. TITANS BRAND ACTIVITIES

4. TITAN- ADVERTISING & PROMOTIONAL TECHNIQUES

5. TITAN- STRATEGIES

6. COMPETITORS ACTIVITIES- TIMEX

7. CONCLUSION



I�TRODUCTIO�

CO�SUMER I�DUSTRIES

Encompassing everything from dish soap to automobiles, the consumer products

industry is a vast empire made up of the multitude of material products available to

customers, stretching across dozens of related industries. To get a handle on the market,

analysts often divide it into two categories, durable and non-durable goods. As the names

imply, the former comprises items with (relative) staying power, like cars, home

furnishings, jewelry and electronics. The latter category includes more ephemeral

merchandise, with a life expectancy of fewer than three years, like clothing, personal care

items, and office and cleaning supplies. Others break the industry down into products that

are staples and those that are discretionary -- the difference between what consumers

need and what they'd like to have.

WATCHES

Extraordinary things some times make such an everlasting impression on some

ones personality that it becomes a symbol of grace. Watches are one of them which not

only enhance your personality with their luxurious designs but also provide you necessity

in style.



Watches have full line of quality and stylish men and women of internationally

renowned brands also. All these men watches and women watches are designed

according to the changing trends of the life as well as according to the taste of different

people.

Earlier watches were used in keeping time as well as measuring the right direction

while sailing or mobilizing in a war. Now the watches have become a symbol of status

and luxurious necessity of modern life. Watches play a magnificent role in daily life from

ordinary purpose to walking on the moon every one needs them.

The bridge between the years could be crossed only with design innovation, which

is among the biggest differentiators for the watch markets. "Watches are accessories.

They are driven by technology but they make a lifestyle statement.



TITA� I�DUSTRIES

Lord Chesterfield's maxim that if one takes care of the minutes, the hours will take

care of themselves, is a motto for Titan Industries, India's premier watchmaker.

Committing itself to small, continuous improvements, Titan believes, will ensure big

gains.

PROFILE

Titan Industries is India’s leading manufacturer of watches and Jewellery and the

world’s sixth largest manufacturer brand of watches. Established in 1984 as a joint

venture between the Tata Group and the Tamil Nadu Industrial Development

Corporation, the company transformed the Indian watch market, offering quartz

technology with international Styling, manufactured at its state-of-the-art factory at

Hosur, Tamil Nadu.

Leveraging its understanding of different segments in the watch market, the

company launched a second independent watch brand — Sonata — as a value brand to

those seeking to buy functionally styled watches at affordable prices. It also entered the

segment of premium fashion watches by acquiring a license for global brands such as

Tommy Hilfiger. Titan has also diversified into fashion eyewear with its Fastrack Eye

Gear sunglasses. Further, Titan leveraged its manufacturing competencies and branched

into precision engineering products and machine building in 2003. Titan Industries

Limited (TIL) is a dominant player in the Indian branded watch industry.



Titans brand watches

Titan manufactures two main brands viz. Titan for the premium segment and

Sonata for the below-$25 category. The Titan brand architecture comprises several

brands, each of which is a leader in its segment. Notable among them are:

• Titan Edge – the world’s slimmest watch.

• �ebula – in solid gold and precious stones; the Gold and Steel collection.

• Flip – India’s first and only reversible watch with two movements and dial faces.

• Fastrack -In the sporty casual category.

• Raga - Raga 9 to 5 – for the woman achiever.

• Xylys - It is targeted at new generation achievers

• Dash- Children's watch targeting the age groups of 6-14

Images Fashion Forum adjudged Titan ‘Most Admired Brand’ as well as

‘Retailer of the Year’. Titan retained it ranking as the 'No 1 Brand' in the Brand Equity

Survey, in the Consumer durables category.



Titan Raga

Titan Raga, a brand, which deals exclusively in women’s watches, has Chosen

Rani Mukherjee as their brand ambassador. She promotes the Exquisite collection of

women’s watches in TV, print and outdoor ads.

The brand intends to launch 50 new designs, which will be priced at an average of

Rs 1500-5000. Titan Raga wants to promote a range of watches that will be affordable to

middle class women. The brand wishes to promote Indianess, sensuality, beauty and

feminity and Rani Mukherjee embodies all these qualities.

Titan is a major holder in the watch market and their Raga brand contributes to

their sales in a big way, hence they intend to go all out in their promotion for the Raga

brand. They have come up with a new strategy for Raga, which includes a new brand

ambassador, a new campaign and a huge number of new products.

Fast track

Fast Track is a different kettle of fish. This range is broadly aimed at young

Indians looking for watches that are fashionable and stylish. Vying for attention between

the usual array of dignified, restrained steel and gold watches is an eye-catching display

of trendy, young time pieces. The riot of colours belongs to Titan's youth brand, Fast

track, and it's been carefully crafted to draw all eyes to it.

Titan released television commercials for Fast track, the first in 18 months, and

planned extensive activities at college functions and other youth-centric activities. The

ageing of the target customer was important.

"The brand extension was a carefully thought-out exercise, based on in-house

research by Titan. Cell phones, deodorants, sports shoes, sunglasses and handbags were

most popular accessories for youngsters. While successful in its own right, the brand

extension has also helped the cause of the mother brand, helping Fast track gain more

visibility and creating more distribution options.

Earlier, Fast track was known for its steely look, emphasizing that it was sturdy

and long-lasting. But the company's research shows that young consumers --as disposable



incomes in the hands of the young increases, Fast track is again positioning itself as a

college goer's brand -- have other things on their minds, like plastic and bright colours.

They promote fast track by keeping

· Low prices i.e. at Rs 500

· Marketing for the Masala series included sponsorships of college festivals, youth

events, contests and co-branded products and promotions.

Xylys

Xylys is Titan's latest watch collection. Titan aims to bring about a redefinition of

sorts in the premium watch segment with Xylys. It is targeted at new generation

achievers who go beyond the obvious, who know who they are and set their own

standards and live by their own values. It is a style statement for those who stand apart

from the crowd.

Xylys has been created in collaboration with renowned Swiss designer Laurent

Rufenacht and Titan's own design advisor Michael Foley. It is manufactured in a state-of-

the-art factory in Switzerland, which is backed by a heritage of 80 years in the art of

Swiss watch making with all its intricate trappings of exquisite craftsmanship and

impeccable detailing.

Actor Rahul Bose, international supermodel Saira Mohan and tennis star Carlos

Moya are the three brand ambassadors of Xylys.

Sonata

Titan launched Sonata last year as independent of the Titan brand. Sonata was

launched not only as a challenge to Timex and HMT, but also to the grey market and the

small players who cater to the price-conscious consumer. Sonata's pricing ranges

reasonably, between Rs 350-to-1,150. Sonata watches are available in smart plastic, all-

weather leather, hardy stainless steel and elegant gold plated-straps. All watches are

water and shock-resistant and carry a one year guarantee.



The company’s Sonata range is targeted at rural customers, and is part of a strategy

where the alignment of price and reliability are crucial. The range costs between Rs 495

and Rs 1,200, has showrooms exclusively for it, and is sold mainly in small-town India.

Sonata was positioned as a brand for the unconventional achiever - for those who

want to make a unique impression. They believed Dhoni's endorsement of Sonata would

go a long way towards establishing the new communication platform for the brand. They

were confident that this association will help them in further strengthening the connection

between the brand and their target consumers. Dhoni would play a key role in the brand

and product communication on television as well as in print and outdoor media. He

would also feature in various promotions and merchandise that have been planned for it.



BRA�D ACTIVITIES

� Understanding the Indian consumer's psyche has been vital to Titan

reaching its current position of strength.

� The company today has a model for every price segment and every

market, urban and rural, regional and international.

� It is the rural segment within this diverse market that Titan is now looking

to tap. The company’s key to success is getting into the rural market on a

larger scale.

� For its many customers Titan has Tata Signet, a 1,36,000-member club

that looks to build relationships through rewards, regular discounts and

special offers. Customers can also count on a service-centre network that’s

550-strong and spread over 30-odd cities and towns across the country.

The service centres have been deliberately kept apart from Titan’s

showrooms. The business is different and the customer is in two different

moods at the two places.

� Titan is also evaluating the potential to launch a brand priced at Rs 10,000

and above, which offers the ``consumers a set of values distinct from Titan

and competitive in that space they know that they cant fight global brands

in image and stature. So they are focused on fashion and style with

international quality.

� The company has made efforts to ensure that it is present in all product

segments, and has thus shifted its growth strategy from equipment and

manpower addition to increased production through fresh ideas and

greater operating efficiency by adopting the best practices followed

globally.



� It has started company-owned customer care centers apart from authorised

franchisee service points across the country.

� Its after sales service is itself a benchmarked operation with a network of

over 616 service centres and has one of the world’s fastest turnaround

times.

� The franchisee is a critical cog in Titan’s retail matrix. The company

organises various programmes for franchisees, their managers and

customer relationship officers. These include training workshops and

seminars on market trends, visual merchandising, store operations and

maintenance, and customer service initiatives.



COMMU�ICATIO� TECH�IQUES

Tweaking the tunes

Ad agencies are modifying jingles to reflect the brand personality and the mood of the

communication.

The Titan signature tune - from Mozart's Fifth Symphony - quickly became

something of an `earworm': the tune stayed in people's heads, and everyone hummed

along when the tune appeared. Today, the Titan tune composed by A.R. Rahman is

among the most popular mobile ringtones. Given our inherent love for music, jingles

have been used by advertisers to sell everything from detergents to desktops. But ad

agencies have begun to have fun with jingles, while also making a serious effort to tie

them to the branding.

While any communication is a `multi-sensory stimulus' comprising audio and

visual elements, the audio part essentially enhances the visual element of the

communication. Therefore, its form changes with time, but it is even more of a constant,

and even more intrinsically linked to the brand than the visual element, and so there is a

need to keep it relevant. It shows that a switch to a different musical style makes an ad

more distinct, and changing the tempo or the pace of the music helps catch the attention

of the consumer.

The tune has been used in different ways: for example, in the `gifting'

commercials, the music only begins to play at the moment the person - daughter, parent

or wife - realises he or she has been gifted a Titan. The tune is so well-known, that when

Titan celebrated the milestone of 50 million watches in January this year, consumers

could walk into Titan watch showrooms or call in radio stations and hum the tune and

win a watch.



Visual Merchandising

Titan, which has retail outlets in 170 locations, has to keep engaging in clever

visual merchandising (VM) to ensure excitement and freshness of the product. Flashing

back in 1987 watches as a category was need driven. Retail outlets were very small and

extremely poor presentation of point of purchase (POP) merchandise.

Today, although is a different scenario. Customers of today are driven by desire

and latest trends. Stores have become a lot more glamorous. In the current day and age,

VM will become increasingly significant with more and more international design trends

entering the Indian market.

Titan also changes its positioning and evolved from 'Titan' to 'The World of

Titan' which averred made a world of a difference. Another point in note for store design

specifically was that what was correct today might not be relevant tomorrow. Also,

showing less did not mean selling less. Clusters of product are a definite no-no. On the

display window, it is essential only to showcase a few and the rest to be displayed on the

counter.

VM in India is going to be the link between brand communication and the product.



TITA�S ADVERTISI�G TECH�IQUES:

Titan only made people wear sleek watches who were used to wearing watches

that looked like tawas earlier. The customer suddenly discovered he could actually buy

his Titan watch in a relaxed and friendly ambience; one that he had been hitherto

unaccustomed to. The customer also discovered the power of advertising. So much so

that he would actually carry the ad with the model number and shape of the watch he

desired, to show the sales person at the showroom.

Titan had a dream run for several years. Its spirit of innovation guided its fortunes.

It pioneered the concept of gifting watches. People gifted watches and only watches to

parents, spouses, girlfriends, boyfriends and children. The brand was the market leader by

far, and dominated the category. People got used to the stylish faces and looks of the

Titan watch. Everybody seemed to possess at least one. People seemed to be traveling

more often than not and were exposed to cheaper, and in some cases, better-looking,

watches.

Titan launches off-season discount scheme

With a view to riding out the impact of the off-season due to the monsoon,

watchmaker Titan Industries Ltd is launching a hefty discount scheme for its watches

during monsoon season. The scheme has been structured in such a way that higher the

value of watches purchased, greater would be the savings. The scheme would be in

operation across the country. Explaining the logic behind the discount structure, the

company has introduced a multi-tier discount scheme for the off-season. The discount

offer was not applicable on its premium brands - Xylys, the Swiss-made watch offered by

Titan and Nebula, the 18k gold watches that have a different gift scheme.



PROMOTIO�AL ACTIVITIES

� Titan Raga, a brand, which deals exclusively in women’s watches, has

Chosen Rani Mukherjee as their brand ambassador. She promotes the

Exquisite collection of women’s watches in TV, print and outdoor ads.

� Titan Raga wants to promote a range of watches that will be affordable to

middle class women. The brand wishes to promote Indianess, sensuality,

beauty and feminity and Rani Mukherjee embodies all these qualities.

� Titan released television commercials for Fast track, the first in 18

months, and planned extensive activities at college functions and other

youth-centric activities.

� Titan promotes fast track by keeping

· Low prices i.e. at Rs 500

· Marketing for the Masala series included sponsorships of college

festivals, youth events, contests and co-branded products and promotions.

� One of the promotional strategies adopted by Titan Xylys was to endorse

Actor Rahul Bose, international supermodel Saira Mohan and tennis star

Carlos Moya as their three brand ambassadors.

� Titan believed Dhoni's endorsement of Sonata would go a long way towards

establishing the new communication platform for the brand. They were

confident that this association will help them in further strengthening the

connection between the brand and their target consumers. Dhoni would play

a key role in the brand and product communication on television as well as in



print and outdoor media. He would also feature in various promotions and

merchandise that have been planned for it.

� Titan, besides the franchisees and its own showrooms, it also sells its

products through other outlets. Among them are the Time Zone stores, which

stock all the leading brands, and the Value Mart outlets, which operate in

Bangalore and Chennai and sell surplus-to-export watches at a discount.



TITA�’S STRATEGIES

� In October 2004, Titan Industries Ltd. (TIL), a leading manufacturer and

marketer of watches, jewelry, eyewear, and other lifestyle products,

appointed Aamir Khan (Aamir) as the brand ambassador for its Titan range

of watches. The company decided to use Aamir in brand and product

communication on television and in the print and outdoor media.

� TIL hoped to promote the latest trends in the industry. The idea was to make

watches that would be seen as style and fashion accessories rather than just

utilitarian devices.

� Titan captures the single-minded objective of increasing the style quotient of

watches amongst grooming accessories.

� Titan offered consumers quality products that blended classy designs with

superior technology; it became a byword for success stories.

� Outstanding service, a wide variety of models, and effective marketing has

helped Titan consolidate its early gains, to the point where the company is a

force to be reckoned with beyond Indian shores.

� Understanding the Indian consumer's psyche has been vital to Titan reaching

its current position of strength.

� The company today has a model for every price segment and every market,

urban and rural, regional and international. Titan’s mother brands Nebula,

which comes draped in 18-carat gold; the exclusive Insignia; and Raga,



which has been designed exclusively for women. Titan’s focus has always

been on India.

� It is the rural segment within this diverse market that Titan is now looking to

tap. The company’s key to success is getting into the rural market on a

larger scale.

� The company’s Sonata range is targeted at rural customers, and is part of a

strategy where the alignment of price and reliability are crucial. The range

costs between Rs 495 and Rs 1,200, has showrooms exclusively for it, and is

sold mainly in small-town India.

� Fast Track is a different kettle of fish. This range is broadly aimed at young

Indians looking for watches that are fashionable and stylish.

� Dash, a range that Titan launched for children. Introduced in early 2000,

Dash is priced low, but it hasn’t sold too well. The company plans to change

that with enhanced advertising and a different marketing strategy.

� Titan had also planned extensive ad campaign during the year for the

different brands of watches. The ad spend, would go up from Rs. 70 crore

last year to Rs. 100 crore with watches going up from Rs. 50 crore to Rs. 70

crore.

� The Titan umbrella brand had mapped out the marketing strategy for its

different sub-brands — Raga (for women), Fastrack (youth) and Tommy

Hilfiger (high-end), besides Sonata, the second brand of the company.

These products, commanded a share of 50 per cent of the organized

market. Of the Rs.1135 crore revenue, exports were Rs. 80 crore and it

was a "significantly" growing market.



� Titan has come up with a new strategy for Raga, which includes a new

brand ambassador, a new campaign and a huge number of new products.

� The company has made efforts to ensure that it is present in all product

segments, and has thus shifted its growth strategy from equipment and

manpower addition to increased production through fresh ideas and greater

operating efficiency by adopting the best practices followed globally.

Titan Industries joins MTV

Titan Industries joins MTV to launch trendy unisex watches, which Maps out

marketing strategy for sub-brands ENTICING YOUTH. Titan Industries in association

with MTV launched the "masala collection" — ten trendy unisex watches, all priced at

Rs. 500 each.

Titan Industries is looking at a modest Rs. 50 crore this year from the sale of its

re-launched Fastrack collection. This would take Fastrack’s share from five per cent to

nine per cent in the overall revenues of Titan. The strategy was simple — price

positioning and different distribution network, away from the traditional selling points.

The points of sale would be youth hangouts such as malls and cafes where the company

planned to set up kiosks and promotional activities. The move was clear-cut as "impulse"

was the driving point for purchases made by the youth.

These watches have been conceptualized and designed by Titan Design studio

and endorsed and promoted by MTV. The brand also revealed a new logo, which

signifies the spirit of bonding among today's youth.



MARKETI�G RESEARCH

Research reveals some interesting facts and figures about this heterogeneous

market. The Indian market is estimated at 25 million watches a year, with 50 per cent

being sold by the organised sector. Titan is the runaway market leader, with domestic

sales of 6 million watches a year. There are 190 million watch-owning Indians; between

them they own about 210 million watches.

Urban India accounts for 120 million of these watches and 90 million are on rural

wrists. More men than women own watches in India, and more working women than

housewives own watches.



COMPETITORS ACTIVITIES

The Timex Corporation is a privately owned company headquartered in

Middlebury, Connecticut, USA with affiliate offices located throughout North America,

South America, Europe, and Asia. For over 150 years, Timex has been providing

innovative, well-designed, affordable, and reliable timepieces. With hundreds of styles

among its Fashion, Sports, Outdoor and Youth lines, Timex is the largest selling watch

brand in America and has sold more than one-billion watches worldwide. Brand Timex is

well-known in India for its sporty, techie and fashionable watches

Titans average purchase value has had a comfortable lead over rival brands such

as Timex and HMT. The average value of a Titan watch sold is Rs 1,100, while that of

Timex and HMT is Rs 700 and Rs 550 respectively. Interestingly, Timex claims that its

average purchase value has climbed steadily to Rs 1,050 from Rs 650 two years ago.

There will be some upward movement in the case of Timex mainly because of its shift in

focus to the segment priced above Rs 1,000. Until last year, Timex in India was seen

largely as a player in the mass market, where watches are priced below Rs 1,000, and

addressed to budget conscious buyers. The brand recently revamped its portfolio, aiming

for a major push in the price bracket of Rs 1,000 to Rs 5,000.

Two years ago, about 90 per cent of Timex’s sales in India came from the mass

market. Now, we sell 62 per cent of our volumes below Rs 1,000, 35 per cent between Rs

1,000 to Rs 3,500 and three per cent above Rs 3,500. We expect volumes in the Rs 1,000

to Rs 3,500 bracket to be the mainstay of our business in the years ahead.

Timex claims to be present in 5,000 odd retail points, which include 27 exclusive

showrooms. The brand is poised for an aggressive expansion by foraying into non-

traditional outlets and expects to add another 300 retail points through this route before

the current year ends.



Timex made a conscious effort to launch products that met the needs of the

younger generation at prices that they could easily afford.

CO�CLUSIO�

Titan Industries is India’s leading manufacturer of watches and Jewellery and the

world’s sixth largest manufacturer brand of watches. Titan has over 60 per cent of the

domestic market share in the organised watch market. Its exclusive retail showroom

chain – World of Titan – is amongst the largest in its category. Titan watches are sold

through over 9,000 outlets in over 2,300 cities and internationally in over 30 countries.

Titan’s retail operations are a mix of company-owned and franchisee outlets, with the

idea being to ensure a dominant presence in all market areas through different kinds of

stores, and to assure the availability of every Titan product.

Titan retained its ranking as the 'No 1 Brand' in the Brand Equity. Titan was

adjudged 'Most Admired Brands' as well as'Retailer of the Year' by Images Fashion

Forum.



Lifestyle

Titan industries