Marketing review

HM launches the new Mitsubishi Lancer Cedia
CK Birla company, Hindustan Motors, recently announced the launch of the all new Mitsubishi, Lancer Cedia at the Auto Expo. The car will be manufactured at Hindustan Motors' state of the art plant at Chennai.

The Cedia is powered by a 4-cylinder 2.0 petrol engine. It has an electronically controlled multi-point fuel injection system. Safety features include tilted power steering, dual air bags with ABS and EBD and multi-link independent suspension. The company says that even at a top speed of 180kmph, the car is stable, adding to the driving pleasure. The driver's seats can be adjusted - even the height - to provide clear all-round visibility to the driver. Its emission standard is BS stage III and it combines a slick 5-speed manual gear shift with plush leather and chrome interiors and keyless entry.

According to the company the Lancer Cedia is a picture of sophistication with touches of glamour - wide, stylish halogen headlamps, stylistic cuts, swoops and ridges on the bonnet, 6-spoke alloy wheels, wrap-around tail lamps and chrome door handles. The car is available in county beige, Ashton grey, French claret, Nordic blue and Black forest green.

The company says the Lancer Cedia is roomier than the existing Lancer models available in the market and can seat five persons comfortably because of a generous head, leg, shoulder and hip room. The plush interiors are similar to Mitsubishi's Lancer Evo. The luxuriant Italian leather upholstery is complemented by premium two-tone beige finish and touches of imitation wood. Door pads, steering wheel, assist grips and shift knob are trimmed with leather. The rear passengers have access to a rear centre armrest with cup holders.

The design of the dashboard is multi-layered and modern with a leather-finish central console, while the Mitsubishi four-spoke steering wheel attracts special attention. The brightness of the instrument panel can also be adjusted as per the comfort of the driver. The cockpit is an elegant combination of wood and titanium.

For the sporting enthusiasts, Hindustan Motors is also launching the Cedia Sports. The car will come in four fiery colours: Chicago White, Black Pearl, Aussie Yellow and the Manchester Red. It will come equipped with a rear spoiler and roof antennae. And of course, no sports car is complete without airdams. The interiors have also been given a sporty touch with carbon finish dash board, sports fabric upholstery and door pads.

Wrigley extends Orbit White sugar free chewing gum
Wrigley, the world's leading manufacturer of chewing gums has extended its Orbit range of sugar-free gums by launching Orbit White in India. The tasty and crunchy teeth-whitening and stain-removing gum is attractively priced at Rs5 for a pack of six pellets. Orbit White is available in a premium blister style packaging with an eye-catching silver design at retail outlets across major cities of the country.

According to the company the launch of Orbit White holds special significance as the public demand for teeth whitening has grown rapidly in recent years. Today's image-conscious urban Indian is more interested in whitening and bleaching than any other dental procedure and Orbit White effectively helps remove stains to whiten teeth.

The company claims that besides whitening teeth, Orbit White, being sugar-free also has the added benefit of helping protect teeth against tooth decay. This is especially important today, as our eating habits have changed tremendously to include more processed foods, snacks and soft drinks, which contain a high proportion of sugar, salt and fat. This leads to the danger of teeth being susceptible to plaque acids, which leads to manifold increase in demineralization.

The company says that it is clinically proven that chewing of sugar-free chewing gums like Orbit White for 20 minutes after meals helps protect against tooth decay by up to 40 per cent by stimulating saliva production. In fact the benefit of chewing sugar-free chewing gums like Orbit White on dental health is recognizsd by the FDI World Dental Federation- the global body representing dentists worldwide.

Godrej launches fully automatic top load washing machine with 'Turbobrush' Technology
Godrej & Boyce's appliance division has launched a new top loading washing machine with Turbobrush technology. According to the company, the 'GDA 902'Turbobrush helps to dislodges the toughest dirt in clothes, provides unmatched cleaning with minimum tangling of clothes, making them last longer.

The company says that in the New Godrej 'Turbobrush' Washing Machine, the drum moves in an opposite direction to that of the pulsator, unlike conventional top load washing machines where the wash drum is stationary, and only the pulsator moves water in one direction. The Turbobrush Technology gives an extra scrubbing action to the entire wash load, dislodging dirt, while keeping clothes clean and untangled. With an introductory price tag of Rs8,990, the company says that consumers can get a fully-automatic washing machine at a great bargain.

Kaya Skin Clinic signs up Pooja Bedi
Kaya Skin Clinic, has signed up television hostess, Pooja Bedi, to endorse its age-control services.

Mrinmoy Mukherjee, head, marketing, Kaya Skin Clinic, said the company is planning a 360-degree campaign, which would include, events, promotions, print and radio spots with Pooja Bedi, to promote its age-control services.

He said, "Pooja's youthful looks and her vibrant personality stands as perfect testimony to our age-control services, and thus, Pooja Bedi became our final and binding choice when it came to a celebrity endorsement."

This Kaya service is reportedly created and tested by the Kaya Skin Advisory that comprises a panel of over 120 dermatologists.

Dish TV package comes free of subscription
Dish TV, a leading direct-to-home service (DTH), is offering a `dish freedom package' that will offer subscribers 40 channels without any monthly subscription fee.

Subscribers to the package have an option to increase the number of channels by upgrading to the next entertainment package offer at a nominal subscription fee.

Sunil Khanna, CEO of Dish TV, said, "Our research indicates that there are large numbers of consumers in smaller cities who first purchase a set top box (STB) to watch fee-to-air channels and subsequently wish to migrate to subscribe to `pay channels'. However, free-to-air STBs available in the market are not capable or compatible of receiving `pay channels' and, thus, make the entire investment of such consumers redundant."

Viewers can now enjoy watching their favourite programmes by making a one-time investment of Rs2,690 for the digi-box, and watch over 40 channels. Dish TV has also come out with more packages, which gives consumers access to more channels by paying as low as Rs2 two per day for a package of 60 channels or Rs5 five per day for a package of over 75 channels.

Birla Sun launches 'Simply Life'
Birla Sun Life Insurance (BSLI) has launched an endowment plan called `Simply Life.' According to the company the product is structured to meet the requirements of the mass market and satisfies the long felt need of our channel partners to sell a plan in an uncomplicated manner to a major segment of customers.

The plan is being launched nationally and will be sold at all the branches of BSLI and its channel partner.

Leyland to enter luxury bus segment
Commercial vehicles maker Ashok Leyland plans to enter the luxury bus market with the launch of its top end vehicle `InterCentury Luxura' by the second quarter of the next fiscal.
The company plans to launch the Luxura in the southern markets by the second quarter of next fiscal. Apart from the metro cities the Luxura would also be launched in Pune. The premium bus would be competitively priced at around Rs50 lakh and the company is eyeing a 50 per cent share of the luxury buses market, which is about 1,200 units a year.

Star News plans greater covereage of smaller cities
Star News, among the dominant Hindi news channels in the four metropolitan cities, is planning to increase its coverage in the non-metros this year. Uday Shankar, CEO, Star News said non-metros are not adequately covered by any news channel and the challenge is to penetrate further into the smaller markets. The channel is looking at increasing its focus in smaller markets such as Lucknow and Chandigarh this year.

The channel has also expanded its morning viewing band to 5 a.m. instead of the usual 6 a.m. In the 5 a.m. slot, the channel will air Pehli Khabar, which would reportedly bring news from the world around that unfolded at night, while Star Savera, aired at 8 a.m, would give an insight of the day ahead.

ICICI Bank signs up Shah Rukh Khan
ICICI Bank has signed up Shah Rukh Khan as its global ambassador almost two-and-a-half years since superstar Amitabh Bachchan began endorsing the brand.

K.V. Kamath, managing director and CEO, ICICI Bank, said, "We are proud to have Shah Rukh Khan as our global brand ambassador. Having established our leadership in the retail business over the last five years, the bank is now poised to scale new heights in the global arena."