By SALONI DUTTA
Vespa has expanded its product offering in India and premiered its most powerful 150cc range of scooters. What are the plans to market these offerings in India and the insights behind the launches?
It had been sometime since we introduced something that was different from Vespa in aesthetics and yet retained some of the characteristics of Vespa. And as we had done in the past with the 125 CC, we needed to create a premium powerful segment which is not there in the market today. So when we introduced the 125CC it was something new in the market. We want to really pioneer the premium, powerful scooter segment in India where we see a huge gap and therefore opportunity.
We are coming up with something which is a mix of fashion, technology, and also power. These new models, further to aiding the characteristics of Vespa, also have a bigger front wheel, a broader tyre, a brand new digital console and above all, a very powerful 150CC engine. It is the most powerful scooter that we have today in India. Scooters in India have traditionally been 100-110CC; then we launched Vespa in 2012 with a 125 CC and then some other players started to bring their products into that segment. And now we have launched a 150 CC scooter.
The campaign that you see live right now, ‘The Urban Legend’ will be used on billboards and so on. We will use a lot of digital because with our kind of clients, digital is a very effective medium. You can reach them, you can personalise your messaging and it works very well. We will use some press and also some print. And we will use a combination of these three media, maybe even use some cinema. We have not yet decided on TV but so far we are leaning more on Digital and Print.
How do you look at driving premiumization in India through distribution?
We have a pan-national presence but are stronger in south and west. So clearly the idea would be to become stronger in the regions where our presence is not as good as it should be, and we will aim to expand there. We are mainly an urban vehicle, and hence, the talk about Urban Legend. But this doesn’t mean we do not have a presence in the semi-urban areas and here, I am not talking about the rural areas, but the smaller cities and towns, which also see Vespas on their streets. Interestingly, we are also strong in the north-east, because there the users are very fashionable and so Vespa works very well there. So we aim to increase the brand footprint to areas where we are not strong.
You got Vespa’s global brand ambassador Alessandro Del Piero to unveil the new 150CC range. Are there any plans for the brand to associate with a celebrity from India?
At times, we have associations with celebrities here and we also call them from time to time for some specific event or promotion. In this case too we did consider bringing on board an Indian celebrity, but then since we already had Alessandro Del Piero with us, we decided to make the best out of our association with him. Football as a sport is gaining popularity in India and since football is also very well-loved in Italy and hence, the connect with the brand is there too.
What are the plans to increase the brand’s market share in India?
Market share is a relative concept. If you look at the overall two-wheeler market, we are very small. If you look at scooters, we are still smaller. If you look at the 125CC segment, then we are a bit bigger, and if you look at the premium segment, we are big. So it is comparative on what you take as a benchmark. The idea is that we don’t want to be mainstream with Vespa because we want to keep the premium positioning. So then clearly if you are talking about premium you cannot think that you will have large volumes.
How have you seen the media mix evolve, ever since Vespa launched in the country in 2012?
Digital has been coming up every year and more so now. We see the youth and Vespa coming together on digital. The core target audience for Vespa is between 18 and 30 years of age. The youth today, are no longer watching television but are on the move, with tablets and smartphones. So clearly Digital is bound to be more and more important to us at this point.
Today, a good 20% goes to Digital as compared to 5-10% just a couple of years ago. I am sure it will go up to 30% also soon enough. But this also depends on year-on-year, so when we do TV, then of course a big part of our budget goes into TV. And that is why at times, we decide not to have TV in order to exploit the other media better and have an all-round campaign with PR, Events, Digital, Print, and we might also in future, use some other medium that today we are not using.
What are the marketing plans with the upcoming festive season?
We have planned some specific events and promotions. We are also to some extent revisiting our distribution network. We are going to have some novelty in our distribution network, which we are taking as a concept from Italy, and it will open in India very soon, mostly in the next few weeks. It is a special kind of an outlet, within the Piaggio world that will have many different things inside.
ABOUT THE BRAND
Piaggio Vehicles Private Limited (PVPL) is a 100% subsidiary of Piaggio Group, founded in 1884, leader of the European powered two-wheeler market. The Group manufactures scooters and motorcycles as well as three and four wheeled commercial vehicles with an impressive portfolio of brands including Piaggio, Vespa, Aprilia, Moto Guzzi and Apé. PVPL commenced its India operations in 1999, with the launch of the Apé, which became India’s favourite three-wheeler brand in a short span of time. Piaggio invented the Vespa in 1946. Having successfully established itself in the world wide two wheeler segment Vespa was launched in India in April 2012. The Company has a state-of-the-art plant in Baramati, Maharashtra, India where it manufactures the iconic Vespa alongside its wide range of 3 and 4 wheeled commercial vehicles.
FACTS
CREATIVE AGENCY: BBH
MEDIA AGENCY: MEDIACOM
PR AGENCY: GENESIS BURSON MARSTELLER
CMO FILE
Stefano Pelle Managing Director of Piaggio India, graduated in Economics and Political Sciences and started his profession with Johnson & Johnson. His professional career is characterized by a deep knowledge and understanding of the business dynamics of the Asian markets, in particular the Indian one, where he held top management positions. After an extensive experience in Marketing Department for international companies, he joined Perfetti Van Melle Group where he ran operations in India, Bangladesh and Pakistan for 10 years with full responsibility for the business and industrial investments. Before leaving Perfetti Van Melle Group he was responsible, as President for a wide area including South Asia, Middle East Africa. Starting from October 2014, he has been appointed Chief Executive Officer of Piaggio Vehicles Private Limited.
MARKETING TIP
Be patient. Things will happen but it will take time, patience is key.
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