Ad battles fail to push cola brands up in poll

<p>NEW DELHI: Despite last summer's spending spree and advertising </p><p>battles waged in court, the cola giants only made it as high as the </p><p>fourth spot in a survey of India's most trusted brands conducted by The </p><p>Economic Times. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Thums Up, Coca-Cola's local brand in India, emerged as the fourth most </p><p>trusted brand, the highest placing earned by a drinks brand in the </p><p>survey. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Lux had the highest trust rating followed by Colgate and Rin, a </p><p>detergent. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Coco-Cola managed an eighth placing, while Pepsi had to content itself </p><p>with its ninth position. The survey found Coke and Thums Up ahead of </p><p>Pepsi in the east, west and northern markets. Pepsi was well ahead of </p><p>both brands in the south - it placed fifth against Thums Up's 15th and </p><p>Coke's 16th position. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The findings will come as a further disappointment to Pepsi India, which </p><p>had billed 2001 as the year when it would break even after eight years </p><p>in the country. Instead, one of the mildest summers in a 100 years has </p><p>seen cola sales nosedive. ButPepsiCo's new president Indra Nooyi is not </p><p>discouraged. "We are continuing to invest in India as an act of faith," </p><p>she said. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Commenting on the survey, Pepsi trotted out findings of the Indian </p><p>Market Research Bureau, which placed its share at 51 per cent against </p><p>Coke and Thums Up's combined 49 per cent share. The soft drinks market </p><p>in India is estimated at a little over US$1 billion, 60 per cent </p><p>going to colas. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The story is equally grim for Coke, which wrote off US$405 </p><p>million in India last year. Coke's India president and chief executive </p><p>Alexander von Behr said the company would turn a profit this year, but </p><p>sceptics argued that it would take another five years. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Coke blamed its lag in the south, as noted in the survey, to the </p><p>market's preference for its other brands - Sprite and Fanta. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Coke and Pepsi have been waging a ferocious battle, using every possible </p><p>medium, including the courts. In March, Pepsi took Thums Up to court, </p><p>alleging that it had insinuated that Pepsi was the choice of babies. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The Leo Burnett campaign had taglines such as "Still getting toys for </p><p>your birthday? It's not your fault. It's your cola." According to Coke, </p><p>the "Grow up to Thums Up" campaign was created for the youth segment and </p><p>played up the brand's "grown-up taste". </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Pepsi has since unveiled its "Dark Avenger" campaign, fronted by movie </p><p>star Amitabh Baachan, who is enjoying a new burst of popularity with his </p><p>hosting of Star India's top-rated Who Wants to be a Millionaire </p><p>show. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Stuck for growth, both players may find that their main chance lies in </p><p>the $149 million mineral water market, although it has more than </p><p>1,000 local brands. But Ramesh Chauhan, owner of market leader Bisleri, </p><p>predicted that this category would outstrip colas in three years' time. </p><p>Chauhan had earlier sold Thums Up to Coke. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Additional reporting by Praveer Shukla. </p><p><BR><BR> </p>