Biscuit Battle: Parle Bets On Premium Biscuits as Competitive Strategy

Confectionery major Parle Products said it's aiming at garnering more revenues from its premium biscuit brands in the next 2-3 years as the sales in the mass-based category is declining. "While growth in mass products has plateaued, premium products are growing at over 20 per cent year-on-year. We are looking at a share of premium products in turnover to grow to 15 per cent in 2-3 years from less than 10 per cent at present," said Parle Products' Deputy Marketing Manager Shalin Desai.Of late, the premium biscuits category witnessed a lot of competitive action, with companies such as Britannia and ITC launching new and innovative products. "There is a lot of action happening in the premium biscuits segment. We have corrected our portfolio and introduced new brands. There is focus on premium products," noted Mr. Desai.Parle accounts for 35 percent of the total Rs 25,000-crore biscuit market in India. Its premium product brands include Milano, Simply Good, Happy Happy and Hide and Seek while the mass brands are Parle G, Parle Marie, KrackJack and Monaco, among others.Mr. Desai said the company will leverage on modern retail trade channels to increase distribution reach of its premium products."We are trying to lay more emphasis on modern trade for our premium products. It's a more relevant channel," he said.The biscuits major will focus on its existing range of products to consolidate its market position over the next 1-2 years rather than launching new items.