50 Biggest product failures in India MAGGI DAL ATTA NOODLES wit sa!"ar taste!a#er How can anyone expect a magi product failure??? Maggi is the most liked product in instant noodle category, an all-time favorite, loved by all.... Our favorite -minute noodle - magi - was launched by !estle in "#$. %n &&' !estle %ndia (imited launched Maggi dal )tta noodles. *ut consumers did not like the taste of these noodles and it was no longer seen in the market
$A%LE M&SST STI'(S +he second product product failure failure is again from from a commonly known known brand name name - arle. arle. ho does not love the dipped in tea arle-/ biscuits??? ho does not love Hide n seek, Milano, krack0ack, Monaco and more - all by arle. %n this long accepted list of arle food products there is a parley product that bombed in the market- arle Must 1tix. %t is said that the product failed because there was no product di2erentiation, it was an imitation of nurture and the product name Must was detracting. *ut arle relaunched this product and it was named as 3ull +oss. +o read more click here
'ADB&%) $E%( MINT Most of you might not have heard of Mint erk - a 4adbury product which was once launched in a mint 5avor and it failed to 6nd customer acceptance and it was discontinued from the market.
SA**OLA +EST 1u2olk - a name that is well known for cooking oils entered the market as a health and wellness brand. 1oon under the health label they launched more products sca2old low sodium salt and )tta for diabetics which did well in the market. %n &"& sca2old launched sca2old oats and a low calorie and low carbohydrate packaged rice brand - 1abol )rise which is still continuing. *ut in &&# 1u2olk launched a product that failed miserably - 1u2olk 7est - a baked salty snack, which was the 6rst product in the snack food category. %t was 8uickly withdrawn from the market in 9ec &&#. ell the munch idea did not work for sca2old
MONA'O SAM%T ',I$S How many of you remember the two commercial in which )amir 0umped from one place to another o2ering an oversi:ed +-shirt to people eating unhealthy fried chips??? %n the ad )amir bring in a healthy alternative to fried chips - Monaco 1mart 4hips by arle.
*ut the product got a tepid response from the consumers and it was withdrawn in )ugust &"". arle snacks did not 6nd the customer acceptance like their biscuits do.
-anilla 'o#e +he brand was targeted at the metro youth was di2erent. %t was di2erent in taste, promotion, package, price etc. ;anilla 4oke was promoted in retro style. +he brand had ;ivek Oberoi , the then bollywood 5ame endorsing the brand in an unusual style. ;ivek sported the retro look with typical combination of apoor style in an Old (amby 1cooter screaming akaw. %t failed because. +he campaign was not targeted at the right segment. +his campaign had its fair share of critics also. +he brand was priced at a premium over the ordinary coke. +his may have discouraged the +/ from checking out the brand
Godre. Ganga Soap /anga had a revitalisation e2ort in "## when /odre0 tried to relaunch the brand under the name 9oodh /anga. *ut those e2ort went in vain. +he primary reason why the brand failed was that the di2erentiation was not sustainable over time. )lthough Hindu@s are very religious in nature and rivers the tradition but the consumers are discerning when it comes to purchasing products
Tata Sierra 1ierra primarily failed in the market because of its steep price. riced around As B lakh, the brand failed to appeal to the value proposition of the %ndian consumer. 1ierra can be said as a brand that came too early. +he %ndian market was not ready for this concept.
(inetic Bla/eSortcut to fa!e *la:e is so far the most powerful scooter in %ndia. +his "'B cc mean machine is huge and heavy. *la:e was all set to rede6ne the scooter market in %ndia +he launch ads C+;4D was nothing but a marketing disaster. +he agency 0ust killed the product. +he ad talks about Aohit ;arma. +hen the baseline says 1hort cut to 3ame. %t is one of the lousiest positioning statements ever.
Maruti -ersa +he brand was positioned as +wo luxury cars for the price of oneE. +he ads talked about twin )F4, comfort and space. ;ersa was launched with a "G&& cc engine which was the same used in Maruti
9espite the dream launch, ;ersa failed to generate volume. +he basic issue was the price. ;ersa was launched with a price of As B."B lakh for the base model and the top end model costs around As ' lakh. +hose enthusiastic customers who 5ocked the showroom after viewing the ads was shocked by the steep price of ;ersa. ;ersa was priced at par with Maruti
,onda Street 1treet was the %ndian version of the world famous Honda 4ub series. Honda 4ub was the world@s largest selling single model bike which has sold more than .B crore units. +he case is about marketing mistake. +he product failed in all aspects of marketing mix except the distribution. +he product was not good enough. %t looked like a glori6ed M$& from *a0a0 which was used by 3ish vendors and the like. +he campaign was also not successful. +he initial campaign tried to teach the customers the new 4lutch less gear system and its ecacy, the customers was not impressed with this feature.
Ta!arind Aiding on the pulling power of Hrithik Aoshan, +amarind had a huge brand recall during the launch. +amarind was positioned as a fashion wear. +he clothes were designed by the famed (ondon based designer Iohn aul ;ivian. +he brand had the tagline +he 3lavour Jou ear . +he brand was designed to be a fun, fashionable trendy brand. +hree ma0or factors was the cause of this brand@s failure. rice and 9istribution and 9i2erentiation.
Su"i#sa +rouble for 1ubhiksha began in late &&$ when the company ran out of cash, bringing its operations to a standstill. 1ubhiksha faced severe 6nancial crisis pertaining to li8uidity. +he cash shortage eventually resulted in 1ubhiksha closing its nationwide network of ",'&& supermarket stores, and defaulting on loans, vendor payments and sta2 salaries. +he overextended chain imploded and all stores across the country were shut down, most likely never to open again
Su/u#i #i/asi +he mid-si:ed sedan segment is super crowded with focused products at the same price point as the >i:ashi. 4ompound this with the fact that the >i:ashi often shares showroom space with superior products, which means salespeople are less motivated to focus on a car that is less likely to result in a sale.
1u:uki has never been known in the K1 for luxurious or sporty vehicles, and there are few dedicated 1u:uki dealerships, often combined with other brands like Hyundai or 1ubaru that have more appealing product.
Su/u#i grand 1itara Maruti 1u:uki /rand ;itara has been a market failure in %ndia. /rand ;itara had engine problems, steering control problems and it was a petrol version when launched in %ndia which gave the average of -"&kmpl. (earning from the failure, 1u:uki has launched diesel variants and recalled the cars with the problems and repaired it worldwide.
Maruti su/u#i /en classic Maruti 1u:uki launched a limited edition model of the mega hit 7en. +he %ndian car buyer is known to be potentially resistant to retro looks when it comes down to cars. 7en classic was launched in the year &&&, when its competitors were catching the %ndian car buyer. +he mass wanted to switch to more technological advancements in their four wheelers. +his is what went wrong with this product. 7en classic design was more to attract eastern
%asna oran.olt Oran0olt needed to be refrigerated. +he problem was that %ndian retailers tend to switch o2 their shop refrigerators at night. )s a result, Oran0olt faced 8uality problems. +he product has a shelf life of three to four weeks where other soft drinks were assured a shelf life of over 6ve months. 1ervicing outlets was also a problem. Aasna failed to anticipate the 8uality problems it faced as a result of retail practices.
$ond2s Tootpaste onds toothpaste is a classic case of product failure by extension. *rands need to be careful to choose the territory in which they tread. *rands need to be cautious while choosing the territory in which they tread. (ack of proper research before entry into a new market or segment can lead to catastrophic results which include wasting of big sum of money on product development and marketing.
(inetic Bla/e *la:e is so far the most powerful scooter in %ndia. +his "'B cc mean machine is huge and heavy. *la:e was all set to rede6ne the scooter market in %ndia +he launch ads C+;4Dwas nothing but a marketing disaster. +he agency 0ust killed the product. +he ad talks about Aohit ;arma. +hen the baseline says 1hort cut to 3ame. %t is one of the lousiest positioning statements ever.
,arle3 Da1idson $erfu!e Harley-9avidson launched a perfume range. +he idea in itself created a confusion in the masses. %t wasnLt clear if it is meant for bikers who donLt want to smell like
bikers, ores it for the people who want to smell like bikers. 1imultaneously Harley 9avidson launched wine coolers, after shave. 3or brands that inspire strong loyalty, the temptation is to test that loyalty to its limits by stretching the brand into other product categories.
-irgin cola ;irgin 4ols was priced "B& percent lower than the two leading brands, not enough consumers were being won over. art of the problem was distribution. 4oca 4ola and epsi managed to block ;irgin from getting crucial shelf space in half the K>Lssupermarkets
Groupon /roup-buying deals site /roupon in )ug &"", shut down "G of its outlets in 4hina and 6red over G&& full-time sta2. /roupon now holds a minority share, of the local 4hinese daily deals website site /aopeng which it launched in partnership with +encent. /roupon is an example of a western internet company to fail in china. %t can be inferred that the company lacked local understanding which resulted in its failure (ack of local understanding - One example is /rouponLs sales team in 4hina. %n the beginning it urged that the partnering vendor split pro6ts B&NB&. %t neglected the group buying attitude of 4hinese customers. ith many seasoned players in the market, the upper hand lay with the vendors when negotiating with group buying operators and the percentage of pro6t is only "& as opposed to B&. (ocal vendors were so taken back by /rouponLs aggressive sales tactics that they often told the companyLs sales people to calm down and come back later with more realistic expectations.
Life Sa1ers soda Jear launchedN "#$&s hy it bombedN +he candy-5avored drink fared well in taste tests but tanked on the shelves. 1ome customers found it too sweet, while others avoided purchasing it altogether, assuming it would be akin to drinking Pli8uid candy.E
Microsoft +une Jear launchedN &&' hy it bombedN +he 7une, developed in con0unction with +oshiba, was MicrosoftLs answer to the hot new iods that )pple was pushing. *ut the clunky 7une failed to swipe enough market share, as the iod took around 'B. On Oct. G, &"", Microsoft announced the discontinuation of all 7une hardware, encouraging users to transition to indows hone.
'olgate (itcen Entrees
Jear launchedN "#$ hy it bombedN 4olgate decided the logical way to pivot its toothpaste empire was to launch a line of fro:en dinner entrees. Knfortunately, customers didnLt exactly rush to get their hands on stir-fry churned out by the same people who put peppermint paste in a tube.
Apple 4uic#Ta#e ca!era Jear launchedN "##Q hy it bombedN One of the 6rst digital cameras, )ppleLs Ruick+ake C"##Q"##D was a &.G-megapixel camera that took 'Q& S Q$& resolution images, of which it could store eight. +he camera had a built-in 5ash, but no focus or :oom controls. Other than downloading the photos to a computer, there was no way to preview them on the cameraT it also retailed for a pretty steep U'&&UB&.
'os!opolitan 3ogurt Jear launchedN "### hy it bombedN Jes, like the maga:ine. +he famously titillating ladymag once made an ill-advised foray into dairy products, introducing a Psophisticated and aspirationalE yogurt brand. +he only thing 4osmo-gurt aspired to, however, was a short shelf lifeN %t was discontinued after a mere "$ months.
'r3stal $epsi Jear launchedN "## hy it bombedN 4rystal epsi was marketed as a ca2eine-free Pclear alternativeE to normal colas, e8uating clearness with purity and health. Aevenue bene6tted from its novelty soon after its launch, but sales 8uickly nosedived. JumV *rands 4hairman 9avid 4. !ovak, whoLs credited with the 4rystal epsi concept, said in a && interviewN P%t was a tremendous learning experience. % still think itLs the best idea % ever had, and the worst executed.E
Tirst3 Dog "ottled water Jear launchedN &&$ hy it bombedN 9oes your pet really need his or her own
McDonald2s Arc Delue Jear launchedN "##' hy it bombedN Mc9onaldLs launched the Padult-orientedE )rch 9eluxe, which featured a circular piece of bacon, slivered onions and a PsecretE mustard and mayonnaise sauce, with a U"B& million ad campaign W one of the most expensive
advertising campaigns in history. However, customers were turned o2 by the high price and unconventional ads, and consumer groups were upset by the higher caloric content. More like )rch 9e-9K9.
,arle3Da1idson perfu!e Jear launchedN &&& hy it bombedN +he famous motorcycle line debuted a line of colognes W *lack 3ire, +erritory, 4ool 1pirit, 9estiny, Hot Aoad, and (egendary W that failed to capture the wallets of its rough riders.
4wi#ster Jear launchedN &"" hy it bombedN %n 1eptember &"", !et5ix 4
*ritoLa3 6O67 cips )ear launced8 9::; hy it bombedN 3rito-(ayLs new line of fat-free snacks sure sounded too good to be true, and it kind of wasN +he company replaced the fat in its popular snack brands with a compound called Olestra, which subse8uently caused ma0or cramping, Panal leakage,E and other digestive complications for many people. J%><1.
New 'o#e Jear launchedN "#$B hy it bombedN 4oca-4ola tried to improve the formula for its 5agship cola product, but many customers 6ercely re0ected Pthe new taste of 4oca-4ola.E Many of the backlashers were 1outherners who considered the drink a fundamental part of regional identity, and soon 4oke faced public protests, boycotts, and bottles being emptied into the streets of 1outhern cities. +he company soon reintroduced its original formula, calling it P4oca-4ola 4lassic.E
