AMUL- The Taste of India

Born: 1946, christened in 1955n 1955 History: Originally marketed by the Kaira District Cooperative Milk Producers Union, Anand, it was taken over by the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF) in 1973 Status: Has a 15% market share in the Rs15,000 crore milk category, and a 37% share in the Rs900 crore organized ice-cream segment.Starting with milk and milk powder, the Amul brand today covers a range of dairy products from chocolates to cheese and, of course, butter. Brand story: If a brands value is to be judged by the ease with which it can be recalled, then Amuls marketing campaign wins hands down.With its clever use of topical events, Amuls utterly butterly campaignit has the distinction of entering the Guinness World Records as the longest running campaignhas won the brand several accolades.Playing the role of a social observer, its weekly comments have tickled Indias funny bone since 1967, when Sylvester Da Cunhas irrepressible Amul girl first had her say.But whats kept the bran d going all these years? We have changed the packag ing, our technology and our approach to mar keting based on the changing taste buds of our consumers. In fact, it is not just the core values at Amul that have remained the same; the core team associated with the brand is still the same. Even the advertising agency hasnt changed, and Da Cunha and FCB Ulka, have played a pivotal role in the growth of Amul. Its Impact on Me: How many brands exist which you and I can associate fond childhood memories with still continue to delight us? Well, Amul is one such brand for me. Amul Butter was part of uncountable breakfast meals for me and continues to be. A brand that came to define the product itself similar to Xerox, Amul has in every sense come to stand unanimously for butter. The fact that the brand has been around for so long is what it makes it only special. An organization that started out as a rural development initiative is now an international brand. If that is not enough, Amul has also embarked on contributing its bit to Green Revolution as well. Amidst all the good that Amul has come to represent, I wonder how has it has survived and excelled in the markets for decades without any major question mark on its business and operating standards. Amul to me is a great example of a successful organization even as we witness large companies in India get tangled with huge scams and unethical operations. From Utterly butterly delicious Amul to The Taste of India, Amul continues to be the toast of the country.