… and then there was Olpers!

The milk sector in Pakistan is Huge and that is putting it lightly. According to SMEDA we produce about 28 billion liters a year and Packaged Milk is just a dent on this number. 92% to 93% of milk is open milk. Because of various socio economic factors Packaged Milk is still not that popular here. It is the potential to see a need in the market and the drive to turn that need into profit that defines the success of a Good Business and Olpers saw that need.

Before them there was Nestle MILKPAK, which was the king of the castle and Haleeb who was happy to be second best. Businesses sometimes forget and become too comfortable with given scenarios, they forget strategic vision and analyzing the market and that is exactly what happened. Companies sometimes become used to their situation they develop what this writer would put as couch potato syndrome. A simple example of this would be a household scenario where the wife is shouting at the husband that you need to mow the lawn and the husband is all comfy on a couch saying “I”LL DO IT TOMORROW!”
Olpers with huge financials behind them (thanks to ENGRO Foods) came in and mowed that grass from under the feet of Nestle and Haleeb. In doing so they did something else that was wonderful; they enticed, they invigorated and delighted their customers into becoming more health conscious and purchase savvy.
Olpers swept the rug right out from under Haleeb’s feet and they lost their market share and their place as second best. It was an all out war of the worlds and Olpers came prepared. A barrage of line extensions and big budget spending saw them become  one of the most recognizable brands in Pakistan, and that too in just two years. Their presence was everywhere on shelves, on billboards… you name it! Olpers was everywhere!

This isn’t just some kind of advertisement for ENGRO Foods that I am trying to put out here, and neither I get a paycheck after writing this from ENGRO, but it is recognition for what people can achieve when they put their minds to it. We may see Olpers, as maybe, just another brand but we sometimes fail to acknowledge that it was the people behind the brand who made it all possible. Their determination, their belief and their spirit got them this place that Olpers has today on the shelves, in our homes and in our lives.
Every marketer, every company and every organization has the ability to become a part of something bigger when it realizes that becoming more customers centric and getting back to the basics is what determines success. Our market is ever expanding and it has needs, and if we recognize and serve these needs, then we become part of something bigger! We understand the need to connect with our customers, and that ladies and gentlemen, is known as pure SUCCESS in today’s era.

Tags: advertising strategy, all out war, billboards, brand, connect, consumers, couch potato, determination, economic factors, engage the consumer, engro foods, financial, good business, Haleeb, king of the castle, line extensions, market, market share, Marketing, milk, Milkpak, need, Nestle, nestle milkpak, Olpers, packaged milk, pakistan, paycheck, product launch, recognizable brands, strategic vision, strong, success

Category: Brands, Other Stuff