60 |^ Progressive Grocer^ |^ Ahead of What’s Next^ |^ July 2019
Category Watch Snacks
Tapping the potential of popped popcorn
for health-conscious millennials
In financial year
2018-19, Popicorn sold
around 54 million units
with six product flavors,
in ten cities, across the
country. We popped ~ 1300
tons of corn in the year.- Prashanth Gowriraju
CEO, Timla Foods Pvt. Ltd.
Company and brand profi le: Timla
Foods began its journey in 2016
with a simple mission of changing
the way people snack by launching its
premier brand Popicorn – a ready-to-eat
popcorn snack available in six exotic
fl avors. Th e company has stuck to the
promise of providing snacks that are tasty
and better-for-you without compromising
on its fl avors.
Brand’s USP and diff erentiators:
Popicorn’s USP is its taste and longer shelf
life. It is non-GMO; gluten-free; low
in calories; has no added preservatives;
zero trans-fat; full of fi ber and has no
artifi cial colors, makes for a 100% natural
and wholesome whole grain snack fi t
for everyone. Th ese are some of the
specialities that set the brand aside from
other products available in the market.
Consumer segments & demographics:
Popicorn is targeting the millennials as its
TG. As millennials constitute a major part
of the urban demography in Tier I & Tier
II cities of India, the brand has chosen
to target millennials all over the country.
Millennials also comprise over 34% of
India’s population, and they have a marked
preference for better-for-you snacks. Th e
brand is seeing a huge surge in demand
for popcorn as a snack compared to other
snacks available in the market. Also, it
receives great feedback from the age group
of 18-35 years.
Market outlook and opportunity: Th e
overall Indian snacking market is about
Rs. 25,000 crore. Th e snacking market
majorly consists of traditional snacks and
wafers. Popcorn, as a category in Indian
snacking circuit, has a huge potential and
Popicorn is tapping on this very factor.
With consumer interest in better-
for-you products continuing to grow,
the snacks industry has seen a surge
in the better-for-you food category in
the past couple of years. RTE popcorn
in the better-for-you category is still
in its infancy stage but is set to grow
aggressively in the future.
Also, with the growth in organized
retail outlets, better-for-you category
snacks have become more accessible.
Such packaged better-for-you snacks
provide the perfect combination of
taste, nutrition and convenience. Th e
company believes that it is the perfect
time to capitalize on this trend of
better-for-you snacking.Retailing strategy: Popicorn has
penetrated Tier I & II cities and it has
a strong presence in Modern Trade
outlets in these markets. Th e brand
has ensured its presence in all POS
where millennials shop and is available
in hypermarkets, convenience stores,
corporate, airports, travel zones, and
entertainment zones.Millennials are the most frequent
shoppers at MT stores and therefore
the brand’s key focus has been on all the
Modern Trade stores in the country.
Th ere is a prominent presence in all
A & A+ class GT outlets and strong
outreach in B & C class outlets, which
together contribute a major share of the
brand’s revenues.
Popicorn is actively conducting
in-store promotions for generating
customer awareness. It believes that
sales can be accelerated through in-store
promotions as the exercise helps to
improve consumer awareness about the
product as well as educate consumers
about the product’s benefi ts. It is also
conducting tasting sessions for product
experience and feedback as it feels that
such experience give the consumers the
taste of the product’s quality and helps
them to make a conscious decision
about its attributes.Future plans and roadmap ahead: Th e
brand’s aim is to own the better-for-you
category and grow aggressively. In the
coming years, it aims to be the market
leader with the brand being one of the
premier choices under this category.
As part of the business continuity plan,
the brand wants to tie-up with farmers
from diff erent parts of the country to
improve its procurement process. It is
also planning on increasing its current
manufacturing capacity and having
additional manufacturing facilities in
other parts of the country. Th e brand is
aiming to explore the overseas markets
as well in the coming years.