In the recent years, MTR Foods has bet big on its breakfast range, specially the three-minute breakfast range, which was launched last year. In India, where the breakfast segment is dominated by the western options like cereals, muesli or oats, MTR’s Indian breakfast range hopes to be a game-changer. 

 

In a conversation with Rushikesh Aravkar, chief marketing officer of MTR Foods, Sunay Bhasin, explains why the three-minute range is relevant to the needs of an Indian millennial consumer who seeks fast, easy-to-prepare but tasty food that can be consumed on-the-go.

 

Sunay Bhasin (SB): In the role of chief marketing officer, I oversee marketing, research and development with regards to packaging and MTR’s eTail and retail business.

 

SB: We are looking at a very

aggressive growth curve ahead of us. We are currently a Rs 800-crore company and we are looking at doubling our turnover in the next three years. This will mainly be through brand expansion.

From packaged masala powders and instant idli mix, MTR has come a long way. Tell us about MTR’s diverse portfolio.

 

SB: As a brand, MTR is completely into ethnic Indian food. We are present across meal occasions, be it breakfast, lunch, dinner, desserts, snacks, accompaniments. We see all these segments as future business growth opportunities. Overall, opportunities in the Indian packaged segment are tremendous. We are not just present in multiple categories but also in multiple geographies in India and internationally as well. All the segments under MTR are core segments which are essential in everyday life of people. What we are trying to offer is a packaged solution that combines great taste and consumer convenience.

 

SB: The Indian food space is evolving rapidly, and so are the consumers. They seek convenience and at the same time, they will not compromise with the taste and quality of the food. Until now, most companies haven’t been able to deliver the convenience to the consumers while ensuring quality. 

 

SB: In the breakfast segment, with the instant idli mixes, we were able to bring down the preparation time from one-and-a-half day to 45 minutes. But in today’s day and age, 45 minutes is too long a time. For the urban millennial always on the run, 45 minutes is a big investment. Plus, preparing Indian food is perceived to be cumbersome, resulting in a reduction of Indian cuisines’ share on the household dining table. So, we introduced the three-minute breakfast range to serve the millennials. Now, with this new range, the Indian breakfast is as convenient as the Western breakfast.

 

SB: The three-minute breakfast segment did not exist until last year. So, one cannot arrive at a growth rate. However, this category is scaling up fast. We see the potential of this segment to reach Rs 800-1,000 crore in the next three years.

 

SB: The challenges are manifold, both at the consumer’s end and at the backend. At the backend, the biggest challenge was that it’s a new category. So there’s no know-how in the industry. There were learning and re-learning, and also the investment of time. You also have to think of packaging materials and packaging machines, their properties, desired and achievable shelf life, and vendor development. These are backend challenges.

 

SB: Coping with the diversity of our country is a gargantuan task. We have introduced six types of products. These six have been developed keeping in mind the geography and taste of that region. So we have two kinds of poha, upma, and we have halwa. We also have Indian oats. We will be building more products in future. For consumers, breakfast is that meal of the day which they are least interested in experimenting. When you are establishing a new category, you have to educate the consumers. It’s very easy to sell noodles because the consumer knows when and how he will consume packaged noodles. In our case, the onus of educating the consumer was on us. It’s not just about the concept of the product but also the preparation, so you have to lay emphasis on both.

 

SB: We have a well-equipped R&D centre. Amit Saurkar leads the packaging team. When you are creating a category, you need to know the problem of the consumer you are addressing and then translate that into packaging solutions. It depends on the rich understanding of the consumer, insights into the consumer behaviour which then gets translated into a brief. Later, the marketing and package development team works on it. In this case, it was very clear. There are three types of situations. First, breakfast for one. For the single-use solution, we have developed a LUP pack pouch. Second, in urban centres, the consumer prepares his or her breakfast and might eat it on-the-go for the paucity of time. For this, we have developed a cup with a foldable plastic spoon. One just needs to add hot water and can eat when one is on the move. The third is the breakfast for the family or a group of people. Here, we required multi-serve solutions. For this, we have developed a box which is similar to that of a Western cereal box. These three solutions have been developed by understanding how it will enhance the routine of consumers and add convenience. Also, we make sure our products have an impact on the shelves.

 

SB: This was a concept brought to life in the time frame of just six months. In that sense, the package development and the product development team did a phenomenal job. In September 2016, we studied the breakfast pattern of the consumers and observed some gaps in that. We had a joint session in September, where the idea was discussed for the first time. We launched the product in March. It took six months from ideation to launch. The advantage was that all teams were on the same page and focused, which made it easier for us to launch a product in such a short span of time. 

 

SB: It had its own set of challenges. It took us three years to bring Laban to India. Laban is a confectionery brand in Norway with 65% market share. We considered this as an opportunity back in 2014 when our team visited Norway to study concepts that we could bring to India. The major challenge was that the product that they sell in Norway is gelatin-based and hence non-vegetarian. So we had to develop a product that was relevant for India. The other challenge was to figure out the kind of line set-up and capability we needed in-house for this product. The third challenge was of flavours. The flavours they use in Norway are obviously suited for their market. We had to localise the flavours so they would appeal to the Indian audience. Due to all these, it took us three years to launch the product. Today, we have an Indian product with the same characteristics that they have in Norway, but it is vegetarian and completely locally developed.

 

SB: In 2012, we set up an in-house flexible packaging and converting plant that houses an eight-colour rotogravure printing machine and converting lines. We convert around 100-150 tonnes per month. We also have a lamination machine, three pouching machines, and a slitting machine. We use different packaging formats such as stand-up pouches, centre-seal pouches and three-side seal pouches. More than 90% of our flexible packaging requirement is covered in-house. Having an in-house setup helps us with agility, faster execution and better control.

 

SB: Right now, our focus is on consolidating and building on the platform we have already created. We are following on the strategic plan for 2020.