New Delhi: Alpenliebe – the iconic candy brand from the house of the global confectionary group Perfetti Van Melle marks 25 glorious years in India. One of India’s most-loved candy brands, Alpenliebe has been helping consumers create sweet memories with its delectable portfolio of deposited candies, filled candies and lollipops.
Introduced in 1995, Alpenliebe made way into the hearts of consumers with its unique deposited candy technology and innovative pillow-pack packaging. Its rich and smooth taste established a strong emotional bond with consumers, true to the brand essence of ‘bringing hearts closer’. Apart from the core offering of caramel candy, Alpenliebe has been extended into multiple formats across the years – Deposited lollipop (2003), Filled caramel candy (Creamfills, 2006), Liquid filled fruit candy (Mangofillz, 2009) and into deposited Jellies in 2012.
To mark this milestone Alpenliebe packs will carry a special commemorative logo throughout the year. Alpenliebe has also planned a consumer engagement contest to help Alpenliebe families create sweet memories. The campaign would be supported by a special TVC aired on TV and digital mediums. As part of the contest, 25 lucky winners stand a chance to win Holiday vouchers worth Rs 1 lakh. Participants can also win Zoop by Titan watches every 25 minutes during the contest period.
Speaking on the occasion, Rajesh Ramakrishnan, Managing Director, Perfetti Van Melle India said, “It has been a great innings for Alpenliebe in India especially on the back of product innovations and memorable campaigns over the years. We have created a strong, innovative product and marketing playbook which caters to the ever evolving consumer needs under the brand portfolio. 25 years later, we can take pride in saying that Alpenliebe has been successful in delighting consumers with its variants and flavours, and the core essence has remained relevant and engaging.”
Commenting on the milestone and the launch, Rohit Kapoor, Director – Marketing, Perfetti Van Melle India said, “It has been an amazing journey for the Alpenliebe where the brand played the role of creating the category. Alpenliebe’s superior indulgent experience, category first innovations and heart-warming communication done over the years managed to win consumer preference. We would like to thank our consumers for trusting us with their love. This milestone besides celebrating Alpenliebe’s 25 years of Indian journey in India also celebrates the journey of the brand going beyond just being a candy but being a connector – for families and relationships. The current campaign is another attempt to engage with our consumers and provide them an opportunity to deepen the family bond”
MUMBAI: The Dutch confectionery and gum manufacturer, Perfetti Van Melle had stepped into the Indian market 25 years back with a unique liquid-filled gum, Center Fresh, which eventually became the category leader in its segment. One of the largest selling gum brands in India, Center Fresh not only tantalised the taste buds of millions of Indians but also gave memorable marketing campaigns and taglines that stay on the tip of the tongue; the most iconic being ‘Zubaan Pe Rakhe Lagaam’
Perfetti Van Melle India director-marketing Rohit Kapoor, in an exclusive conversation with Indiantelevision.com, highlights the glorious marketing journey the brand has been on through these 25 years.
He starts by sharing the initial day story of the brand. Perfetti started the Indian operations in 1994 with the launch of Center Fresh, the first liquid-filled gum of the country. "Over the years we have kept the excitement going on the brand with new campaigns, innovative flavours, and new pack formats introduction to building the category. Center Fresh has managed to play the role of market creator and maintain leadership position in the segment over the years," he says.
During the launch phase, the objective was how to bring in differentiation and consumer-relevant innovation to the market. It was thus decided to launch the first-ever liquid-filled gum experience with a balanced fresh mint flavour. The brand was launched in a jar pack which provided a great tool to place the SKU front of the shop for visibility and also provided longer stability to the product. It also won the acceptance of mass audience.
Speaking about the role of marketing in this success, Kapoor quips, “Center Fresh is one of our power brands and there has been consistent marketing support for the brand to stay relevant with the consumers in the domain of fresh breath confidence. The campaigns ‘Zubaan Pe Rakhe Lagaam’ (better to chew than talk) and ‘Taazi Saans Rakho Paas’ (be fresh breath ready) have helped us a lot to garner consumers love for the brand.” Kapoor further mentions that Center Fresh’s association with the World Cup in 1996 had been one of the key disruption points for the brand.
Initially, the brand was riding the humour wave for its communications. The many ads launched under the ‘Zubaan Pe Rake Lagaam’ umbrella are still unforgettable.
Kapoor believes that humour is an important way to deliver clutter-breaking and memorable campaigns to drive top-of-mind brand recall. He notes, “Our category is an impulse category and it’s extremely important to keep the brand on top of the minds, which drives purchase decision in the market. Humour is an important way to deliver such campaigns, especially when your target group is the youth, who are being bombarded with enormous messages on a daily basis. A campaign with humour has to strike the right balance between the role of the product/insight in the campaign and entertainment in the storyline.”
However, in 2015, the brand moved to a new communication platform called ‘Taazi Saans Hamesha Rakho Paas’. Its newest ad film, celebrating its 25 years in the Indian market, also runs around the same message. Speaking about the change in communication module, Kapoor shares, “‘Zubaan Pe Rakhe lagaam’ as a platform, was a very successful campaign for the brand, started in 2007. But as brand custodian, we have to continue renewing the consumer stories and find ways to continue drive trials and building the category. ‘Taazi Saans Hamesha Rakho Paas’ essentially asks one to be fresh breath ready to impress the opposite gender in the first meeting (fresh breath confidence). The objective with the 25-year celebration film was to bring alive such moments of first meeting and bumping into each other in the college corridor is probably the most universal theme.”
The campaign has been created and conceptualised by Ogilvy & Mather, like most of its previous communications. Kapoor believes the agency has been a big support in making its marketing initiatives a success. He says, “Ogilvy has been a crucial and trusted partner to build many PVMI brands in the category. They have done memorable work on Center Fresh and many other Perfetti brands. They understand what works in the category to drive brand objectives and how to establish the connection with the consumer via compelling consumer stories. The recent 25 years campaign is another example where the Ogilvy team delivered really well on the brief.”
The brand is now looking forward to continuing building the ‘Fresh Breath Confidence’ platform for its other extensions as well. Kapoor highlights, “This journey started with the launch of Center Fresh Mints, our first non-gum offering, and the proposition along with communication has received an extremely positive response so far. So, the communication strategy on new introductions shall be to highlight the product benefit and moment of consumption, consistent with building the brand on fresh breath confidence platform.”
Not just for its flagship Center Fresh, Perfetti has been very creative with its marketing communications for other brands under its umbrella too. Talking about the same, Kapoor says, “The strategic intent is to develop the category, identify need gaps, renovate, innovate, and continue to delight the consumers. Also, superior quality products, ability to bring innovation at a faster pace, driving differentiation, memorable communication, and our robust distribution system have led to the popularity of the brands in the portfolio. Thus, the 7 power brands always get required support on identified demand moment via relevant innovations in the communication platforms.”
He concludes, “Social media and digital space are very important media for us to build brands and have been gaining share in marketing mix spends over the years. We regularly use the medium to improve our reach and drive consumer engagement.”
MUMBAI: Marking the 25th anniversary of Perfetti Van Melle and its chewing-gum brand Center Fresh in India, the brand has come up with a new TV campaign, staying true to its core of ‘Fresh Breath Confidence’. The TVC, conceptualised in collaboration with Ogilvy captures the occasion of first meeting of a couple in college, when being Fresh breath ready makes the moment that much more special.
Through the TVC, the brand is also inviting consumers to celebrate this milestone, with the launch of a limited period mega promotion which gives the mobile-savvy youth of today a chance to win 25 smartphones every day.
Speaking on the occasion, Perfetti Van Melle India managing director Rajesh Ramakrishnan said, “This is a landmark year for the brand. Today Center fresh is one of the leading confectionery brands in the country – a testimony to the love and support that we have received over the last 25 years.”
Commenting on the milestone and the launch, Perfetti Van Melle India director – marketing Rohit Kapoor said, “We look back on these 25 years with a lot of pride and it is a huge privilege to commemorate this special achievement. We thank all our consumers and our teams who have supported us over the years and invite everyone to continue to be with us on the journey ahead. Center fresh packs shall carry 25-year special insignia to inform the consumer and new communication campaign shall be supported extensively on TV and digital medium.”
Commenting on the campaign, Ogilvy executive creative director Anurag Agnihotri said, “Center fresh is now a 25 years young brand and the celebrations are in order and we are taking this opportunity to engage with the consumer. In our communication, we simply celebrate a timeless, universal and relatable moment of how a boy and a girl meet for the very first time.”
MUMBAI: Perfetti Van Melle India has launched Center Fresh Mints, a new offering by the Center Fresh brand in the mint candy segment.
This new offering will provide the benefit of ‘Instant Fresh Breath’ with 3-layers of sugar free mints available in a stylish pocket friendly pack. Center Fresh Mints will be available in peppermint flavour and strawberry mint at a price point of Rs 10.
Perfetti Van Melle India managing director Rajesh Ramakrishnan said, “We see tremendous opportunity for growth with relevant extensions in the fresh breath needed space. I am confident that this launch will strengthen the position of Center Fresh brand in India and help extend its equity to higher price points.”
Perfetti Van Melle India director-marketing Rohit Kapoor said, “We wanted to introduce a truly innovative mint offering under Center Fresh in India specially approaching 2019 when the brand shall be completing 25 years milestone. It’s the first extension of the brand in non-gum segment. Globally we have seen powermints as a category gaining a lot of traction and we would like to develop the category further in India with the launch of Centerfresh Mints.”
The launch is supported with campaign on TV, extensively on digital medium and visibility tools for retail & modern trade.
Commenting on the campaign, Ogilvy executive creative director Anurag Agnihotri said, “The launch campaign for Center Fresh Mints highlights various relatable situations in the lives of today’s youth when you would need instant fresh breath. We have tried to capture these occasions through a hummable, memorable music track.”
Perfetti Van Melle India Pvt Ltd (PVMI) started operations in India in 1994. The company at present has a diverse portfolio of brands across segments (i.e. candies, jellies, gums & chewies) which it sells through various channels across the country. PVMI is a fully owned subsidiary of the global confectionary conglomerate Perfetti Van Melle, headquartered in Amsterdam.
MUMBAI: Perfetti Van Melle brings up a new and unique campaign for its leading jelly brand Alpenliebe Juzt Jelly which focuses on bear and bottle shaped jellies in the portfolio in an entertaining manner.
The new campaign aims to target the position Alpenliebe Juzt Jelly as the “Enabler of family fun”. The purpose was to feature the two jellies together in the campaign. The film will be aired across major TV channels in India.
Perfetti Van Melle India director marketing Rohit Kapoor said, “At Perfetti, we are constantly reminding ourselves of our mission -‘Always innovating what confectionary can do’. This is evident not just in our product innovations but also in who we are targeting. With this TVC, we wanted to reach out to kids in lively cute manner and also to the entire family to promote shared consumption of jellies.”
McCann Delhi creative head Kapil Batra said, “To bring Alpenliebe Juzt Jelly’s shapes (bottles and bears) alive, we have created a world where these shapes, in addition to being irresistible, also have a mind of their own. Like in this film, how the bottles and the bears try to outsmart each other for their survival in this fun-loving family. We are optimistic about this campaign, and want to take this banterbaazi forward.”
The campaign portrays one such occasion, takes the viewer on a rollercoaster ride of twist and turns, and endorses the idea of family fun centered around these Juzt Jelly characters. The story revolves around a bunch of bears and bottles trying not to end up as the family’s dessert. They try their best to convince the family members to eat the other one in their own unique ways.
MUMBAI: Alpenliebe, the flagship candy brand of Perfetti Van Melle India, has launched a new campaign: ‘Alpenliebe Ghuley toh Dil Milein’.
The TVC is centred around the sweet, rich taste of Alpenliebe and is the result of a comprehensive consumer demand space mapping.
Over the years, Alpenliebe has found its space in the Indian family set up. In India, joint families are still popular and research showed that the inevitable tiffs between generations are still commonplace. The story was thus based on the insight that making the first move to apologise is still the biggest barrier to get family members talking again.
The commercial revolves around a little girl who, irked by the tension between her father and grandfather, uses her grandfather’s love for Alpenliebe to bring the duo closer. Using the candy as a bait, she lures the old man into walking up to the chess table where the father-son would often play each other before the fight. As the grandfather relishes the candy by the chess table, she leads her father into believing something that’s completely the opposite of reality. The campaign also stars Boman Irani to improve campaigns memorability, sweet charm and reinforce the message that Alpenliebe candy is for a treat for kids and adults alike.
Perfetti Van Melle India director marketing Rohit Kapoor says, “The new ad campaign is in a warm and comforting space. The emotional story very beautifully involves the three generations of the family members and conveys the core message powerfully that rich indulgent taste of Alpenliebe triggers resolution of small tension points in the family. The communication tone is very consistent with brand values built over the years and hopefully should connect well with the audience.”
McCann Delhi Creative head Kapil Batra adds, “The task was to dramatise the indulging experience that comes with an Alpenliebe and make it equally relevant to adults as well. With this campaign, we have managed to do that in a fun, light-hearted way.”
The new campaign will be aired across all mainstream TV channels and further amplified on digital medium.
MUMBAI: Perfetti Van Melle India has handed over its media duties account to GroupM’s content and technology agency Wavemaker.
The agency was created from the merger of Maxus and MEC. Maxus (now part of Wavemaker) has been the agency on record and had first won the media mandate for Perfetti Van Melle India in 2006.
Wavemaker managing director South Asia Kartik Sharma said, “We are extremely delighted to continue our decade-long partnership with Perfetti. It is a huge moment of pride as this is the first win for us as Wavemaker. We couldn’t have asked for a better start to this year.”
Perfetti Van Melle India director of marketing Rohit Kapoor says, “Wavemaker (erstwhile Maxus) team has played a significant role in building our brands over the years. We are excited to share that our partnership with Wavemaker will continue after a comprehensive media agency validation process. Wavemaker has consistently demonstrated adequate capabilities to support us to achieve key business objectives, drive performance and innovation rigour.”
The pitch was for the entire portfolio of brands and involves only offline duties. The multi-agency pitch saw participation from other leading agencies.
MUMBAI: Perfetti Van Melle India has announced the launch of Center Shock in the Indian market; a sour flavoured gum in line with the growing sour flavours trend worldwide.
Center Shock was launched in 2002, and created an excitement in the gums category with a sour flour and ‘shocking’ consumption experience. The brand created its own set of followers with a differentiated taste profile and entertaining advertising. It was later phased out in line with business plans.
Center Shock will be available at Rs. 2 per gum in an attractive jar for high in shop visibility and will be supported with a campaign on digital media to build awareness.
Perfetti Van Melle India director – marketing Rohit Kapoor says, “Consumers are accepting sour flavours more now, and so we have worked to get to launch Center Shock. It’s a joy to bring back a brand on the basis of consumer demand. We will be supporting the launch on social media exclusively, with the same loved communication (designed by Ogilvy) as before. It will be available as a limited edition.”
MUMBAI: It’s a Fun campaign. Perfetti Van Melle will surprise consumers with its tongue tickling sweet and sour taste in delicious Strawberry, Raw Mango and Mixed Fruit flavors. The distinctive shapes and textures of both the products naturally lend themselves to playful consumption.
The communication for the new launch encapsulates the brand philosophy of ‘Fun ko seriously lo!’ (Taking fun seriously). The campaign will air across all major national and regional channels and digital media as well.
In a statement, Perfetti Van Melle India MD Ramesh Jayaraman said, “Our recent launch, Chupa Chups Bubble Gum Filled Lollipops, has received a very positive response. With this launch now of Sour Bites and Belts, we are raising the innovation bar. The Chupa Chups fun personality is inherent in these offerings and their distinctive shape and textures offer great scope for playful consumption.’’
Marketing director Rohit Kapoor said, “These are extremely successful formats in some international markets and it was indeed a challenge to bring these delightful offerings at mainstream price points in India. The launch will be supported by a communication campaign on ‘take fun seriously’ platform, that includes a new TVC, point of purchase material in general trade, visibility drive in Modern trade and digital campaign targeting the brand’s core teenage audience.”
Ogilvy ECD Anurag Agnihotri said, “It’s a delight to create a fun piece of communication for a product that’s so true to its brand philosophy. The new Chupa Chups Sour Belt and Sour Bites commercial brings alive the positioning of ‘Fun ko seriously lo!’ in a cheeky and humorous manner.”
MUMBAI: It’s a Fun campaign. Perfetti Van Melle will surprise consumers with its tongue tickling sweet and sour taste in delicious Strawberry, Raw Mango and Mixed Fruit flavors. The distinctive shapes and textures of both the products naturally lend themselves to playful consumption.
The communication for the new launch encapsulates the brand philosophy of ‘Fun ko seriously lo!’ (Taking fun seriously). The campaign will air across all major national and regional channels and digital media as well.
In a statement, Perfetti Van Melle India MD Ramesh Jayaraman said, “Our recent launch, Chupa Chups Bubble Gum Filled Lollipops, has received a very positive response. With this launch now of Sour Bites and Belts, we are raising the innovation bar. The Chupa Chups fun personality is inherent in these offerings and their distinctive shape and textures offer great scope for playful consumption.’’
Marketing director Rohit Kapoor said, “These are extremely successful formats in some international markets and it was indeed a challenge to bring these delightful offerings at mainstream price points in India. The launch will be supported by a communication campaign on ‘take fun seriously’ platform, that includes a new TVC, point of purchase material in general trade, visibility drive in Modern trade and digital campaign targeting the brand’s core teenage audience.”
Ogilvy ECD Anurag Agnihotri said, “It’s a delight to create a fun piece of communication for a product that’s so true to its brand philosophy. The new Chupa Chups Sour Belt and Sour Bites commercial brings alive the positioning of ‘Fun ko seriously lo!’ in a cheeky and humorous manner.”
