KFC India – Relishing on Consumer Learning?
“Typically, super consumers are responsible for 30 per cent of category sales, 40 per cent of category growth and 50 per cent of category profit. They are well-informed about the category, talk a lot about it, give their opinions, are active on social media and experiment a lot within the category.”
-- Roosevelt D’Souza, Senior Vice-President, Nielsen India
“Earlier, there was a reverence for anything foreign because local products were of terrible quality, but as the market developed, the focus started shifting from the product to the brand. Customers started patronizing a brand only if the product suited them. So the need arose for companies to adjust their products to customers’ requirements.”
-- Abraham Koshy, Professor, Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIMA)
“There is a huge scope for consumer engagement in the online space and KFC, one of India’s most loved QSR brand and the biggest digital brand in the category, is excited to indulge their loyal fan base with exciting engagement and content to bring them closer to their motto — life is So Good!.”
-- Dhruv Kaul, Director, Marketing, KFC India
KFC evolved from being a road side eatery joint to be ranked second amongst the Top 10 Global Food Brands listed in Forbes. While KFC has been on consumer’s wish list in many countries, its Indian story has largely been that of ‘Made in India vs Made For India’. Since its entry in 1991 and re-entry in 2003, KFC not only learnt to re-orient and re-discover itself but also co-created several consumer engagement initiatives with Indian consumers. While KFC learnt from its experiences, Indian consumers learnt from KFC’s engagement initiatives. However, many wonder if the same tempo can be sustained over a long time horizon? While India’s demographic dividend, with a median age of 28, is unquestionable, can KFC be the preferred destination for discerning and demanding Indian consumers?.....
KFC in India: Entry and Re-entry
Headquartered in Kentucky, US and founded by Colonel Harland David Sanders (Col. Sanders) in 1930, Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) specialized in serving fried chicken to its customers. Yum! Brands (Yum), acquired KFC and also owns Pizza Hut and Taco Bells chain of restaurants. Yum had over 41,000 restaurants globally with total sales of $11,324 million5 and revenues of over $13 billion6 by the end of 2014 (Exhibit I)............
Smooth Landing, Hard Takeoff…
When KFC started its operations at its outlet in Bangalore, the locals backlashed claiming that western culture would uproot Indian culture and tradition. Activists and local farmers protested by holding placards and shouting slogans to quit operations in India. Many violent protests and attacks from health and animal activists ransacked and vandalized the outlets causing severe damage...........
Global Appeal with India Centric Retailing
KFC returned to the Indian shores in 2003 and once again commenced its operations from the Bangalore outlet. Until 2004 it operated as a sole outlet in the country. Based on Indian consumer preferences, KFC customized and modified its menu. “Some product categories are more conducive to local interpretation. If you don’t honor that, you’re likely to remain on a slow growth curve..........
Super Consumers and Consumer Learning
KFC India was ranked as number one restaurant brand on social media in 2014 with around 6.9 million Facebook fans and with the engagement rate increasing to three times the industry average. Analysts opined that KFC’s social media campaigns wooed the target audience, which was the youth (aged between 20 and 28 years)............
Hunger for Gaining Momentum?
As a part of its expansion strategy the chain moved to more than 500 tier II cities and rural areas such as Lucknow, Cochin, Jalandhar, Amritsar, Coimbatore and Vizag. “We think small-town consumers may not be willing to splurge, but our experience has been completely different from our perceptions”, said Varma............
Assignment Questions
I. Are there any differences in the way people learn generally and they learn as consumers? Substantiate your opinion with relevant arguments. Would there be any difference between the way an individual consumer learns and the way a group of consumers learn?
II. What do you understand by behavioral learning and cognitive learning? How do you think KFC India’s initiatives exemplify the purport of these two types of learning?
III. ..............
Exhibits
Exhibit I: KFC Timeline
Exhibit II: PETA Protests at KFC Bangalore Outlet
Exhibit III: Range of Vegetarian Items included in Menu
Exhibit IV: Vegetarian Campaign
Exhibit V: KFC Flaming Crunch made from World’s Hottest Chilli – Assam Ghost Pepper
Exhibit VI: KFC Social Media Initiatives and Campaigns
Exhibit VII: Awards and Recognitions Won by KFC India
Exhibit VIII: Total Number of KFC Outlets in India
