Southeast Asia: CP-Meiji unveils plans to double market share

"In the past, our marketing focused on teens only," said product manager Wuttichai Uthairatana. "Our biggest market will still be 16 to 20 year olds, but we will now also reach for a secondary market of 20- to 30-year olds."

Meanwhile, focus on the functional benefits of yogurt will differentiate CP-Meiji's advertising from market leader Dutch Mill's 'emotional' approach, he said. Dutch Mill holds a 60 per cent share of the 1.5 billion baht yogurt market, followed by CP-Meiji and Foremost with 10 per cent each.

The company also plans to add three flavours - including mango and longan - to its current six in the second quarter of the year, said Wuttichai.

The launches will be backed by fully integrated marketing campaigns that will run alongside a branding campaign, creating excitement for and awareness of the brand, Wuttichai said.

Yogurt consumption per capita in Thailand is less than one kilogram per person per year, compared to 20kg in Japan, but is registering double-digit growth each year. Last year, the market ended up 20 per cent.