Mrinmoy Mukherjee, Chief Marketing Officer - Lifestyle Business, Raymond Limited tells us how the brand has evolved over the years and is now educating consumers about the benefits of wearing wool in summer
By Simran Sabherwal & Saloni Dutta
Q] Wool is synonymous with winter. How are you looking to change this perception with your latest initiative, the Raymond campaign to promote ‘Summer of Wool’?
There are many myths around wool – it is for winter, heavy and itchy. However globally, fashionistas prefer wool as a fabric because it is natural, falls and fits very well. Wool has also seen multiple innovations such as a UV coating which protects against harmful UV rays and the finer count fabrics make the fabric light and comfortable to be worn across seasons. Wool acts as an insulator which helps keep the body warm when it is cold and cold when the weather is hot. Its ability to absorb and lose moisture from the body ensures your body remains cool. The Summer of Wool campaign will intrigue consumers and our multiple sub-verticals will inform consumers about the benefits of wool. Raymond’s strength is the high level of trust it shares with the consumer. We have also brought in various innovations to the marketplace. Our brand equity and large network make Raymond the most salient brand in the apparel fabric space. When we go to consumers with something new, such as the concept of wearing wool in summer, they believe us as we approach them with information and a genuine product.
Q] How are you looking to drive the marketing behind this initiative?
Raymond has over 50% market-share in the wool & poly-wool category in India and while the category has de-grown, Raymond has been able to sustain volumes and increase market-share; therefore, it is imperative for the category leader to drive growth besides extending the brand. From a marketing perspective, we will drive the allweather nature of wool through the year. For our Spring-Summer campaign, we have taken over 750 hoardings across India. We have also taken over top 70 malls with humongous facades. There is a very strong digital campaign backed by Print. As you enjoy summer outdoors, we needed a lead medium that would capture the attention and imagination of consumers when they are outdoors. Therefore, we are driving this initiative primarily through outdoor.
Q] How has the Raymond proposition of ‘The Complete Man’ evolved over the years?
The ‘Complete Man’ emerged during the angry young man era, portraying an accomplished man who is sensitive, trusted yet under-stated with very strong relationships. Various campaigns over the years have resulted in Raymond achieving an iconic status. Today, we see some key changes in the way successful men are perceived in society. While the core values remain the same, there is greater emphasis on trust, relationships and being successful and there is also an emerging ‘Me’ in the ‘We’. The Raymond man of yesteryears was a do-gooder and would put himself in the backseat. The Raymond man today still believes in that, but has his own passions. He has the ability to not just be successful because he is born into wealth, but creates wealth and opportunities for others, effortlessly and elegantly. That is what the campaign portrays, and what keeps the Complete Man contemporary.
Q] What has been the response to Raymond Made-to-Measure?
We piloted Raymond Made-to-Measure in Mumbai and it has been well received. It is driven by the insight that impeccable personalization is given a lot of value by customers. Made-to-Measure combines the best of both worlds - tailoring and ready-made. In custom tailoring, the garment is cut by hand, here it is laser cut. While ready-made is one size fits all, we give a high premium ready-made finish but for one person. We also store the database of the consumer and if there is no weight change, in future he can just come and select the swatch and the style and the garment can be delivered home, it is a zero trial service. Currently, we have over 40 touchpoints and an aggressive plan laid out to grow it across India. The level of retention is about 50% and we find one in two consumers come back to our made-tomeasure brand stores.
Q] Does your communication vary for your ready to wear consumer versus your Made-to-Measure consumer?
The value of Raymond extends across all the segments and the fundamental value remains the same. In addition, made-to-measure has other tangible values – great fabrics which are a class apart, expertise and a platform that is impeccably you. For readymade garments, it is a direct translation of where Raymond is – which is a complete man and that gets taken forward.
Q] What are the key pointers you keep in mind while designing your media mix and what have been the changes in the recent past?
We have made some key additions to our media approach in a bid to connect with today’s consumer and also extend ourselves to tomorrow’s consumer. We now focus on consumers who are in the mind-set of spending, that’s why you see Raymond on the façade of many malls. We have also created a very strong digital footprint on Facebook, Twitter and Google platforms to reach consumers. Our digital objective started with information dissemination and has moved to interaction where we use customers’ feedback to understand their needs. We are also leveraging our loyalty programme, The Premium Circle. Overall, Television and Print are here to stay. From an effective and reach perspective, Television is still the most effective way to reach consumers and you will soon see our new television campaign.
Q] How has Raymond dealt with increased competition, especially from MNCs?
We turn 90 next year and since inception, the organization has believed in certain core principles. The first is commitment to product quality and we will never ever let anything come in the way of delivering quality to the consumer. We were the pioneers of modern retail. Today, we have a network covering over 300 cities, 700+ stores and this gives us the ability to reach our product conveniently to the consumer. We have invested and over-committed ourselves in building brand Raymond. And finally, we are building relationships with the consumer and the trade. We have trade partners who have been attached to the brand for three to four generations. These four factors keep us ahead of the competition. A significant investment has been made on product, retail and brand and this will continue. In the consumers’ mind, brand Raymond is a great product and the imagery of the Complete Man and the aspiration to be like him – wear unique garments and have a fine choice – helps create a differentiation and distinctiveness for Raymond. Our price points range from Rs 400 to Rs 10 lakh and consumers believe that they are buying premium and getting a great deal out of the money spent - that’s what helps us sustain.
Q] How has the Indian male’s fashion sense and consumer preferences changed over the years?
Male garments were meant for occasions – an interview, wedding, party etc. It is now moving to reflect personality. Our research showed two key fundamentals – people buy garments to either stand out or blend in the crowd and this drives consumption. Brands also drive consumption based on fits, design elements, fabric and colour schemes. We as a brand believe in the ability to extend to the consumer something that makes him impeccably him.
Q] You are one of the early movers into small-town India. What is your spread across the country and the consumer sentiment here?
Over 50% of our stores are located in Class III, IV and V towns. We are growing the number of stores in those locations as they have a fairly robust demand. Though the ability to spend is different, aspirationally, the small town consumer is no different from a big town one. The choices are becoming similar given the exposure to media, television and digital, which brings the best available in the world to your home and connects the world to you.
CMO FILE
Mrinmoy Mukherjee, Chief Marketing Officer - Lifestyle Business, Raymond Limited, joined Raymond in February 2011, bringing to the Group a decade and a half of rich corporate experience. Mukherjee has worked in diverse sectors including FMCG(Marico & Eveready), media (Radio City - Star TV), premium specialty retail (Kaya Skin Clinic) and value retail (Aditya Birla Retail) formats in roles encompassing brand management, creation of loyalty programmes, sales and operations. He is a rank holder from Poona University in Engineering and holds an MBA from IISW & BM in Kolkata, specializing in marketing.
MARKETING TIP
Stay true to the consumer of today and keep a keen eye on the consumer of tomorrow
FACTS
CREATIVE AGENCY: FAMOUS INNOVATIONS
MEDIA AGENCY: MADISON INDIA
SOCIAL AND DIGITAL MEDIA MARKETING AGENCY: SOCIAL WAVELENGTH
PR AGENCY: ADFACTORS PR
Feedback: simran.sabherwal@exchange4media.com
