Ib Case Study

Case Study - 2 : Made in India

The story so far: Multinational companies came to India armed with their smug self-belief of many market conquests under their belt. Ran their Made-in-New York strategies, only to run into serious consumer indifference. Today they are suitably chastened and are looking to Indianise their brands. Kellogg’s, MTV, McDonald’s… the list is impressive.

The most fundamental question that arises from this is the validity of the very idea of global brands. In becoming Indian, are these brands becoming less global? If Reebok is available at a very low price point in India, will it compromise the brand in the long run? Is MTV in India a different brand from MTV worldwide?

The Pillsbury Doughboy, for instance cannot possibly evoke the same set of associations in India as it does in England, just as a Gattu would leave a lot of Westerners cold.

Question

So, what are the principles that govern successful localisation? What would make a brand global and local at the same time?

Answer

Consequences of Localisation

            Localisation has both merits and limits. They are enumerated below.

Advantages

1. Reputation – The place where an industry is localised gains reputation and so do the products produced there. As a consequent, articles bearing the name of that location find wide markets such as Sheffield cutlery, Swiss watches Ludhiana Hosiery etc.

2. Skilled Labour – Localisation escorts to specialisation in particular trades. As a consequence, labourers skilled in those trades are fascinated to that place. The localised industry is continuously fed by a regular supply of skilled labour that also attracts new firms into the industry. Further, there is local supply of skilled labour that children of the labourers accede from them. The enhancements of the watch industry in Switzerland, of the shawl industry in Kashmir etc are primarily due to this factor.

3. Growth of Facilities –...