BRANDING

                                                                  Cafe Coffee Day

I love cafe coffee day. They make a nice coffee with lots of designs including hearts and leaves.:) :)

 Their store locations are usually spacious and comfortable. I have recently figured out the fact that those who hate the brand are snobs. As the company grows, they start falling into different fields and people should appreciate it.

The above lines were told to me by one of my fellow colleague, when I had to give him a huge lecture regarding his limited knowledge and scope of thoughts!!!!

Originally, CCD was one brand which led to a huge change in the Indian coffee market. It 

narrowed down or almost finished the gully coffee shops (at least for the “DUDE” class 

initially) in and out of every single youth location. In our faded memories, we all have the

 image of those small shops and “tapras” where we used to get coffee for 5 or 6 Rs.They 

used to sell hot,black,cheap,undrinkable,acidic coffee (in the name of strong coffee!!)It 

was fun for us as we used to sip it down speedily. At that moment, we never thought that 

there could be a different place for youngsters, because all that was offered to our limited 

knowledge and all other places were meant for Uncles!! :p 

There were a few places here and there, but they were unable to capture the mass, as regarded boring or not mah type!!! Furthermore these places were hardly inviting, 

comfortable couches with ac and attendants all around, where you can comfortably read

 a book or play a game and carry your laptop around.

CCD is losing its charm!! Forgetting what has made it popular, the brand evolved to a 

further different platform including lounges and unnecessarily open spaces. Each month it

seemed store space had been sacrificed to accommodate a new shelf of junk.

Do people ever purchase those crème rolls and cheesy chips or for that matter the CCD t-

shirt....alas!) They have started with new eat in menus but have forgot to keep the stock 

of cappuccino and Tropic Temptation or Iced Eskimo. Expanding brand requires a lot of

 research & development, keeping in minds the core customer interests. Many a brands 

today are losing the interest of their main customer’s .And now that CCD is expanding into 

all small cities, you can find the store at every corner and street, which is one way 

negative as its losing its diffentiability and uniqueness. Not only CCD, many service brands 

are blindly colliding in the same race keeping the pursuit that the consumer purchasing 

power has increased in the due course of time, some of them have extended with the same 

speed as that of their extended product lines.

When it comes to overextending of brands ,older brands are more prone to face danger because of the related market value and expectations attached to them .Think about the Ponds Toothpaste ,which was a complete failure ,as people relate ponds to fragrance and cosmetics, and they were not ready to except the extension.

As CCD is readily expanding its branches in many states and cities, it needs to soon focus on the major implications it might face soon, with entry of competitors like Starbucks, Costa and Barista, CCD might have to face a tough time soon. Because now “A LOT CAN HAPPEN OVER COFFEE ANYWHERE”. With its unplanned extensions along with annoying music or local channels playing at some of the locations, people find it difficult to differentiate its uniqueness, which was attractive earlier.CCD, has lost its core customers, and now it is hard for it to persuade them to come back.

The greatest Irony for CCD’s success was the absence of other high-end brands in the same game.CCD is a very small brand; these fatalities are even harming large brands like Suzuki which miserably failed in its scooty Access 125 because it is difficult to change the relativity of brand with consumer. We all know the reason of extension is to attract alternate market and consumers, but it is imperative to keep in mind that retaining the old consumers is any day easy and efficient than acquiring new ones. At all times, company needs to be in the shoes of the consumer, to understand the specific wants and the related utility that the brand is providing to him.

With this all I certainly not mean that you should stop marketing, advertising and branding, but yes you can be a little more intelligently focus the Adage of your company to retain the long term bonds with your old and existing customers and mean while can choose using alternative approaches to pull the new customer, keeping in mind your core product. Keeping just to the core doesn’t mean sacrificing expansions, it’s just what you are known for, or for that matter it is actually your Name.