Thums Up's new thunder

Rupa Datta grew up in a tony neighbourhood in south Kolkata. Like many teenagers of her age in Kolkata, she used to really enjoy a bottle of Thums Up after dinner at home.

But life changed for her when she moved to Delhi in the mid-1990s, and she could not indulge in her favourite drink as the brand was not readily available. Rupa would not settle for another cola and her family had to scout markets to buy a bottle of Thums Up.

Such loyal following, a strong taste, and consistent positioning, has helped Thums Up rule the Rs 7000-crore (Rs 70 billion) carbonated drinks market with a 15.8 per cent market share that is followed by Sprite (14.2 per cent), Pepsi (13.7 per cent), and Coca-Cola 8 per cent).

The mass following for Thums Up, especially in markets like West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh, forced Coca-Cola to renew its focus on Thums Up, which had got diffused after Coke bought Parle's beverages business in 1993 and began pushing its brands.

In 1993, when Coke entered India, Thums Up had a 36 per cent market share versus 26 per cent for Pepsi but many marketing experts believe Coca-Cola did a hara-kiri by trying to push its brands at the cost of Thums Up.

The result: Coke India ceding ground to Pepsi, as Thums Up's market share began to take a precipitous dive. That's when Coke realised its mistake and began pushing Thums Up again. What makes it click?

''Thums Up has a unique, spicy flavour that goes well with the Indian palate while the positioning of the brand, on the platform of masculinity, has been consistent. These two things complement well,'' says Anand Singh, director, marketing, Coca-Cola India.

While the positioning has been consistent, the brand is trying to evolve from a 'rugged macho brand' to a brand with a wider appeal and, yet retain its masculine appeal

A new commercial, featuring Bollywood star Akshay Kumar, takes the 'I will do Anything for My Thunder' attitude to the next level, where Akshay indulges in an extreme sport of 'Parkour', all for his bottle of Thums Up.

Akshay's thirst for his favourite Thums Up is prolonged by a 'Girl' who grabs the bottle of Thums Up to win his attention. Parkour means 'art of moving,' an extreme sport popularised by the French.

Thums up was introduced by the Chauhan brothers, Ramesh and Prakash, in 1977 when Coca-Cola exited India. Its bold new flavour clicked instantly with Indian customers.

The Chauhans first tried variants that tasted like Pepsi and Coke, but launched their version with an orange base and more fizz, which hooked customers. The colas have a base fruit flavour in the concentrate. Pepsi and Coke are lemon-based.

The different taste in Thums Up proved to be a great differentiator.

The stronger, fizzier carbonated beverage has ruled the cola category for much of its life. It had to first compete and defeat local brands like Campa Cola, Double Seven, Duke's McDowell's Crush and Double Cola, amongst others.

When it was sold to Coke in 1993, Thums Up had to share shelf space and mind space with both Coke and Pepsi, and later with other brands like Sprite, Fanta, Mirinda, and Limca. Today, it  is one of the few soft drinks brand with a pan-India presence.

The key challenge for Thums Up would be to retain its leadership as rival Pepsi and clear-lime drink Sprite close in on its position.

Coke's Sprite has quickly become the No. 2 brand in the country and is within striking distance of Thums Up. If the brand  wants to retain its thunder, it needs a strategy to compete with not just colas, but other soft drink flavours in the market.

For Coca-Cola India, it may not matter whether Sprite or Thums Up rules the market, but marketers would be watching it closely.