The re-naming of Cadbury India to Mondelez.

The Re-naming of Cadbury India To Mondelez: All About Brand Recall And The Indian Sweet Tooth

When Kraft took over British confectionary giant Cadbury in the year 2009, many experts wondered as to whether the collaboration would yield rich results for them. What is now causing a lot of debate is whether the re-naming of Cadbury India to Mondelez has been a good move or a bad one. The crucial point of concern has been brand recall. Since 1948, Cadbury has been captivating Indian taste buds through its numerous products. Over the years, everything from the perennial favourite 5 Star to Gems and Dairy Milk have become synonymous with chocoholics in India. Indian consumers have a deep connect with Cadbury and before the emergence of contenders such as Mars and Nestle, this firm was making hay while the sun shines.

But with increased competition from rivals and the imminent re-naming of their brand, Cadbury now faces a new challenge. The challenge is to make Indian consumers fall in love with Mondelez International. This will not be easy. Plans to rename the brand Mondelez India after its US owners have taken over the firm in 2010 can have grave implications for the Indian market. Sales margins have not been impacted in the past years however. Maybe this is because Mondelez India has not become associated with the brand as of yet. What’s in a name, critics may ask? Plenty as it seems. When UTI Bank changed its name to Axis Bank in 2007, it acquired a different personality. The name of a company can influence its brand recall. In 1999, Ayurvedic Concepts changed its name to Himalaya Herbals. The latter name is so much more symbolic of the healing power of ayurveda as compared to the latter.

Kraft Food split into two firms namely Mondelez International and Kraft Foods. All snack businesses were relegated under the Mondelez label and groceries were neatly stacked under Kraft Foods. This split was engineered by the parent company with the aim of organizing the industrial operations of both companies. Mondelez International’s Indian subsidiary was named Mondelez India and many more changes took place in the Cabdury house as well. Along with Bournville Apartments, it was sold to diamond merchant Dilip Lakhi for nearly 400 crore rupees. Household brands such as Gems and 5 Star now accompany new additions such as Oreo and Tang.

As a British firm that acquired a loyal Indian clientele, Cadbury had captured the Indian market since its arrival in 1948. Its name was the ultimate when it came to chocolates in India. It became one of the leaders in the snack and confectionary market in India. MNCs in India have always been in transitions when it comes to identities and ownership. In 2007, Unilever was rechristened as Hindustan Unilever.

Brands speak in ways that are hard to predict and any negative news has the capacity to dent brand value as well.In 2003, worm infested Cadbury chocolates were found in some retail stores in cities such as Nagpur in Maharashtra. While Cadbury officials indicated that this was due to the improper storage of the chocolates by the retailers, it changed public perception of this firm for some time. The battle to regain lost ground was a hard one. But, with a lot of effort, the sales and marketing team at Cadbury India were able to make up for the losses. When the ownership of Cadbury changed hands, so did the economic climate in India.

When new chocolates made by foreign companies such as Nestle and Ferroro Rocher emerged, domestic brands such as Amul used new strategies such as discounted prices to attract the growing consumer market in India. With the name change becoming an imminent fate of the Cadbury India unit, over the years, it has become more of a effort to retain market share in recent times. This could be due to the opening out of the Indian economy and an increase in the number of exports by foreign chocolate companies.

The Indian consumer has also become sophisticated in his or her preferences. Among the burgeoning middle class, the clarion call is that any product should be worth its price. Chocolate itself is under extinction, to add to the woes of confectionary companies such as Mondelez. Cocoa shortage could make chocolate a thing of the past by the year 2020. Cocoa crops are being replaced by rubber plantations in recent times because the latter are more profitable. What impact changing times will have on the prospects of Modelez India is a matter of debate. Perhaps re-naming their Indian unit is only a small part of the larger picture when it comes to brand recall.