Post-purchase audit report of Wills Navy Cut cigarette brand

Post Purchase Audit Relationship Report for Wills Navy Cut- ITC
Group 6, Section S3
A POST PURCHASE AUDIT RELATIONSHIP RESEARCH PROJECT ON WILSS NAVY CUT A PRODUCT OF ITC LIMITED
Group - 6 Team Members: Avnish Kaushik Bhavana Bhandari Maunil Shah Shivendu Shekhar Mishra Saurabh Srivastava
Great Lakes Institute of Management
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Contents
INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................................. 5 INCEPTION AND EVOLUTION .................................................................................................................... 5 ITC A BRIEF PROFILE ........................................................................................................................... 5 CIGARETTES HISTORY ............................................................................................................................ 7 CIGARETTES & TOBACCO INDUSTRY ..................................................................................................... 7 ITC TIMELINE ......................................................................................................................................... 9 COMPANY BUSINESS PROFILE..................................................................................................................... 10 INDUSTRY & SECTOR PROFILE................................................................................................................. 10 TOBACCO INDUSTRY PROMOTION AND SPONSORSHIP ......................................................................... 11 LEADING CIGARETTE BRANDS PROMOTED IN INDIA .......................................................................... 12 MARKETING TACTICS .............................................................................................................................. 12 SLIM CIGARETTES TARGETING WOMEN ............................................................................................. 12 TARGETING HEALTH CONSCIOUS CONSUMERS.................................................................................. 13 SURROGATE ADVERTISING METHODS-POST BAN ADVERTISING TOBACCO PRODUCTS IN INDIA ..... 14 ITC SWOT ANALYSIS ................................................................................................................................ 15 STRENGTHS ......................................................................................................................................... 15 WEAKNESS .......................................................................................................................................... 15 OPPORTUNITY ..................................................................................................................................... 15 THREATS .............................................................................................................................................. 16 COMPETITIVE MARKET OF WILLS NAVY CUT (WNC) .......................................................................... 17 PRODUCT PORTFOLIO ............................................................................................................................. 18 CIGARETTES PORTFOLIO: ........................................................................................................................ 21 GROWTH: .................................................................................................................................................... 22 KEY FINANCIALS .......................................................................................................................................... 25 NET PROFIT MARGIN (NPM) ................................................................................................................... 25 CURRENT RATIO ...................................................................................................................................... 26 MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS .................................................................................................................... 27 AUDIT RELATIONSHIP SUMMARY ............................................................................................................... 29 SURVEY QUESTIONS ................................................................................................................................ 29 OVERVIEW OF SURVEY DATA .................................................................................................................. 29 Great Lakes Institute of Management Page 2
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CONSUMER DETAILS AND ANALYSIS................................................................................................... 29 CONSUMPTION FREQUENCY AND SATISFACTION .............................................................................. 31 CONSUMER PREFERENCE FOR LOOSE CIGARETTES ............................................................................ 32 CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP ................................................................................................................. 33 CUSTOMER SATISFACTION.................................................................................................................. 34 NAVY CUT FOR ITS USERS ................................................................................................................... 37 IMPACT OF BRAND WILLS ON NAVY CUT ........................................................................................... 37 STATISTICAL ANALYSIS ................................................................................................................................ 39 REFERENCES ................................................................................................................................................ 41 ANNEXURES ................................................................................................................................................ 41
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Table of Figures
Figure 1: Indian Tobacco Industry- Major Players ........................................................................................ 7 Figure 2: Indian Cigarette Market- Major Players & Market share .............................................................. 8 Figure 3: ITC Diversification Profile ............................................................................................................. 10 Figure 4: Slim Cigarettes for Women .......................................................................................................... 12 Figure 5: Cigarettes for health conscious consumers ................................................................................. 13 Figure 6: ITC Product Collage ...................................................................................................................... 20 Figure 7: ITC Cigarette Portfolio.................................................................................................................. 21 Figure 8: ITC Sales Distribution (Rs. Crores) ................................................................................................ 22 Figure 9: ITC Cigarette Sales Growth (Million Nos.).................................................................................... 23 Figure 10: Indicative Sales of individual product categories (Mar 2010) ................................................... 24 Figure 11: ITC Net Profit Margin for last 5 years ........................................................................................ 25 Figure 12: ITC Current Ratio for last 5 years ............................................................................................... 26 Figure 13: Age of Users ............................................................................................................................... 30 Figure 14: Occupation of users ................................................................................................................... 30 Figure 15: Income range of users ............................................................................................................... 30 Figure 16: Income Class Division ................................................................................................................. 31 Figure 17: Cigarette consumption of users ................................................................................................. 31 Figure 18: Consumption Patterns ............................................................................................................... 32 Figure 19: Impulse Behaviour Analysis ....................................................................................................... 32 Figure 20: Users smoking time period ........................................................................................................ 33 Figure 21: Factors for Purchase .................................................................................................................. 33 Figure 22: Choice of Navy Cut Vs Other brands .......................................................................................... 34 Figure 23: Customer Satisfaction ................................................................................................................ 35 Figure 24: Product Availability .................................................................................................................... 35 Figure 25: WNC Vs Other Brands ................................................................................................................ 36 Figure 26: Product Recommendation ......................................................................................................... 36 Figure 27: Navy Cut to its users.. ................................................................................................................ 37 Figure 28: Brand Impact.............................................................................................................................. 38 Figure 29: Brand Ranking ............................................................................................................................ 38
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INTRODUCTION
INCEPTION AND EVOLUTION
ITC A BRIEF PROFILE
ITC a century old company initially named as Imperial Tobacco Company of India Ltd and later India Tobacco Company Ltd in 1970, I.T.C Limited in 1974 and finally in 2001 rechristened to ITC Limited ITC has a multiple portfolio ranging from of business Cigarettes & tobacco, Hotels, Information Technology, Packaging, Food & Agri-business, Retail, Education & Stationary and Personal health care products. For the initial six years, ITC targeted Cigarettes and leaf tobacco business slowly the company started moving into different sectors as a result of this packaging& printing business was set up in 1952 as a strategically backward integration towards its tobacco unit. ITC always had the nations interest on its agenda and acquisition of a hotel in Chennai was done for the same, so as to create tourism infrastructure, create employment and earn foreign exchange thus ITC Welcomgroup Hotel Chola came into being. Today the company is a strong hold in the hospitality industry with over 100 hotels across the country. ITC under the name of ITC Bhadrachalam Paperboards Ltd. ventured in paperboards market which later in the year 2002 became a division of the company retaining its name. In November, this division merged with companys Tribeni Tissues Division and Paperboard & Specialty Papers Division was formed. In 2004, company acquired a paperboard manufacturing facility BIPCO which improved customer service and a wide array of products. Surya Tobacco Co was set up in 1985 in Nepal, in August 2002 it became a subsidiary of the company and renamed as Surya Nepal Pvt. Ltd. In 1990, Agri-business division was set up to export commodities. Choupal initiative was started in 2000 in MP with soya farmers. Indias first rural mall Choupal sagar was started in August 2004 at Sehore. At present 24 such choupal sagar are operating in 3 states.
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In 2000, Expressions range of greeting cards was launched. Paperkraft, notebooks was started in 2002 classmate notebooks were launched in 2003 to cater to a wide range of students. Other stationary items were launched under the same brand name.
ITC ventured in lifestyle retailing segment with the same Wills for men and women in the year 2000. A mans clothing brand, John Players was initiated in 2002. In 2006, Wills Lifestyle became the title partner for India Fashion Week this helped gain recognition from buyers and retailers as a single largest B2B platform for fashion industry. In 2000, ITC ventured into another flourishing sector information technology and started its own subsidiary ITC Infotech India Ltd. ITCs entry into food business started in 2001 with the launch of Kitchens of India ready to eat dishes. In the forthcoming years ITC launched various brands like mint-o, candyman, ashirvaad atta, sunfeast and bingo. Totally comprising of 200 products under six brand names.
Safety matches initiatives was started in 2002 and brands like iKno, Mangaldeep (incense stick), Aim, Aim Mega and Aim Metro were launched. In 2005 ITC introduced a range of bath & body care products with Essenza Di Wills brand name.
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CIGARETTES HISTORY
ITC is a market leader in cigarettes in India. 1300 crores were invested to have state of art technology to deliver a product of finest quality to its consumers. ITC has four production units; the Kolkata production factory is the worlds first cigarette company to earn ISO140001 certification making itself a benchmark for companies around the world.
CIGARETTES & TOBACCO INDUSTRY

Tobacco chewing is a tradition in India. India is second largest producer of tobacco following China holding a total global market share of 0.7 percent of a $30 billion global market. The chart below shows the total tobacco production.
Tobacco Industry
ITC Godfrey Phillips VST
13%
9%
78%
Figure 1: Indian Tobacco Industry- Major Players
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India, inspite of being the second largest producer of tobacco is the ninth largest exporter of tobacco and related products. In the domestic market there are four major players, ITC is the market leader, and the market share is shown below.
Indian Cigarette Market

ITC Godfrey Phillips VST Others
8% 12%
8%
72%
Figure 2: Indian Cigarette Market- Major Players & Market share
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ITC TIMELINE
1920
Imperial Tobacco Co. of India was incorporated. Company manufactured and distributed cigarettes. Sole manufacturer of specialty papers like cigarettes tissue paper.
Company got manufacturing business of Tobacco Manufacturing India Ltd.

1953
Government approval for setting three new processing factories.

1973
1986
ITC Filtrona Ltd, a joint venture between ITC and Filtrona was started to manufacture high technology filters.
Wills Flake Premium Filter and Scissors Filter were introduced

1987
Hero and Classic mild cigarettes launched at small lengths and premium ends respectively
1993
Scissors Standard introduced.

1994
1996
Classic Ultra Milds and Wills Natural Lights brands were launched Flat 10 packs were launched.
10s hinged lid packs were introduced for regular size filters
1997
Factory in Bengaluru began its operations.

1999
2003
India kings marketed in contour packs and insignia was launched in shoulder box.
Navy cut launched at Rs 24 for a pack of 10 sticks.

2008
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COMPANY BUSINESS PROFILE

INDUSTRY & SECTOR PROFILE
As a part of its diversification strategy, ITC has evolved from a major Tobacco producing company to a dominant FMCG business. ITC also has significant presence in Hospitality, Paperboards and Packaging, Agri-business and Information technology sector.
FMCG Hotels Paperboards and Packaging
Paperboards & Specialty Papers
Agri-Business
Agri Commodities & Rural Services
Information Technology
Cigarettes & Cigars
Hotels
ITC Infotech
Food
Restaurants
Packaging
e-Choupal
Lifestyle Retailing
Leaf Tobacco & Spices Inputs
Personal Care
Education & Stationery
Safety Matches
Agarbattis
Figure 3: ITC Diversification Profile
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TOBACCO INDUSTRY PROMOTION AND SPONSORSHIP

The tobacco industry engages in a comprehensive marketing through direct advertising (ads on
TV or in magazines and at point of sale) and indirect advertising such as sponsorship of sports and concerts, product placement, and brand stretching. In India, despite an advertising ban having passed in 2003, cigarette companies in particular consistently exploited loopholes in the law and relaxed enforcement to market their products and attract new users. Examples include: In 2010, Godfrey Phillips India broke into the Indian chewing industry with the launch of Pan Vilas, a premium pan masala brand, and planned to invest Rs 1 billion ($US 22 million) over three years on marketing the product. Therefore parallel branding exercise is done for Pan masala which in turn adds to brand value of cigerret The ITC group uses two of its popular cigarette brands, Wills and John Player, as the brand name of lifestyle retailing stores that sell clothing. The Wills Lifestyle brand is a well-established brand and also sponsors Indias annual Fashion Week, stretching the cigarette brand name so that it is associated with the glamour of fashion and not just the deadly tobacco product. Surrogate advertising techniques are used by the companies for advertising, for example in an auto-rickshaw or a local bus the adds of tobacco-free pan masala( whose advertising is not banned in INDIA) are used and in turn they promote the tobacco products. The advertising ban in India is not strictly enforced and tobacco companies take advantage by promoting their products in ways that are illegal. In 2009, Four Square, a popular Godfrey Phillips India brand, sponsored a concert series and talent contest in the city of Chennai. The event titled Four Square- GET FAMOUS- be Tamil Nadus Next Singing Sensation was heavily promoted through limited edition cigarette packs, large billboards, point of sales displays and contest entry locations across the city.
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LEADING CIGARETTE BRANDS PROMOTED IN INDIA

Cigarette companies aggressively advertise their brands in order to attract new smokers and to encourage current smokers to switch brands. International, cigarette companies are focusing on targeting young urban consumers and middle-upper income consumers. Companies are also shifting brands away from unfiltered variants to filtered variants. Local brand Gold Flake had the largest cigarette market share in India (31%), followed by Wills (18%) and Scissors (8%) - all of which are owned by ITC Group.
MARKETING TACTICS
SLIM CIGARETTES TARGETING WOMEN
Although the female smoking population is currently very small (about 3%), cigarette companies in India see the potential for growth by attracting women. Slim cigarette brands have been launched to appeal to women smokers. The first slim cigarette to hit the Indian market was the Stellar Slims brand by Godfrey Phillips in 2007.
Figure 4: Slim Cigarettes for Women
The brand is marketed as having lower levels of nicotine with the satisfaction of a regular cigarette. In 2008, ITC Group launched Wills Classic Verve slim cigarettes targeted at women and first time smokers. ITC describes the brand packaged in a shiny red as Indias trend setting cigarettedefines ubercool urban style. Golden Tobacco also has a slim cigarette called June.
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TARGETING HEALTH CONSCIOUS CONSUMERS

As Indian customers become more aware of the health risks associated with tobacco use, cigarette companies have created new products and tactics to counteract consumer knowledge. One such tactic is to use misleading terms (ex low-tar) on cigarette packaging or in advertisements that encourage health concerned smokers to switch to cigarettes brands that they perceive as safer.
Figure 5: Cigarettes for health conscious consumers
This also offers consumers that are concerned about health risks from tobacco an alternative to quiting. As of 2006, India prohibits tobacco product packaging and labeling from containing information that is false, misleading or deceptive, or that is likely to create misperceptions about the characteristics or heath effects of tobacco products. This includes prohibiting the use of terms such as light, mild and low-tar. Despite these restrictions, cigarette brands are still misleadingly marketed as being healthier. Low Tobaco cigarettes launched by Golden Tobacco in 2006 claim to contain 50% less tobacco than regular cigarettes. Golden Tobacco also claimed that LoeTobac has been found to have safer delivery levels of tar, carbon monoxide and tobacco-specific nitrosamines than other brands. Stellar Slims Cigarette ad Low nicotine, King sized satisfaction . December 2010 Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids Golden Tobacco markets Diet Blue cigarettes which use ECOTINE technology and is low in TSNA does less damage to smokers. On the company website, Diet Blues are also described as having almost zero carcinogens making them the safer option for existing habitual smokers.
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ITC plans to peruse creating less harmful cigarettes and is expected to promote mid and low tar cigarettes towards consumers in the future.
SURROGATE ADVERTISING METHODS-POST BAN ADVERTISING TOBACCO PRODUCTS IN INDIA

Direct advertising of display-boards at point-of-sale advertising. Launching Mobile Smoking Lounge(MSL)- the introduction of this air-conditioned smoking lounge which has a long queue of young smokers waiting to get inside to smoke Innovative Collaboration- ITC and Vyakti vikas Kendra, a NPO by Shri Ravishankar of Art of Living Releasing mis-leading new letters Introduction to Hooka-Caf Collaboration with hotels by using- Courtsey of Choice- where smoking is allowed Influencing public opinion through print media
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ITC SWOT ANALYSIS

STRENGTHS
Smoking is addictive The main strength of the company is the brand Image of Wills Navy cut. In spite of ban on the advertisement the product was at No.2 position within the cigarette portfolio The ability to provide a product range of exceptional originality and quality The steady margins and sales value of the product are due to its high perceived quality and less price The company can easily take care of demand and supply of the product with its excellent distribution network Will navy cut has excellent brand image and is promoted by various indirect advertisement like ITS having Wills lifestyle showrooms or sponsoring sports tournaments
WEAKNESS
In ability of the company to hold large advertisement campaign after Ban on cigarette advertisement in INDIA. It is because of this reason that company is not able create further brand Image of the product There are many products in the same market produced by ITC, for example Gold flake etc, which are of same price segment. So it is difficult for ITC to maintain its focus on promotion and distribution on one brand.
OPPORTUNITY
If the smokers who currently smoke bidi is switched to factory made cigarettes, then Indias cigarette consumption would increase to around 640 billion sticks. This increase would make India the second largest volume cigarette consumer in the world behind China. Because of its addictive nature the demand elasticity of tobacco products, especially cigarettes, is relatively low at about 0.4 to 0.6.
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In India the current population 713998 (in thousands) people out of 1334914 are expected to be in the range of 15 to 49 years by 2020 which will be a huge representation of potential target consumer Due to diversity in the range of products, it will eventually be possible to explore new outlets not previously seen as preferred target market. India is a potential target of tobacco giants due to its billion strong populations and many non-smokers. The tobacco industry has tried to introduce smoking among Indian women by several innovative methods such as showing smoking scenes in films by famous personalities who are considered role models for Indian women; they successfully associated smoking behaviour with increasing social liberation and emancipation of women. Introduction of mobile smoking lounges and the Hookah Caf/Shisha Bar culture in India, publishing Tobacco newsletters, can be used by companies to promote their project. Indirect advertising campaign for example by ITS's E-chaupals and awards are used to promote the brand and the product. Out of almost 950 million population of INDIA, only 120 million are smokers which give a lot of scope to expand.
THREATS
Uncertainty of government regulation, for example recently the 'Logo' that 'smoking kills' was required to cover almost 80% of the pack area, because of which major players like ITC and Godfrey Philips had to stop production of cigarettes Increasing taxation on tobacco products cause the prices of cigarettes to go up and due to this the retail consumption of a particular brand gets adversely effected The next threat may also be the changing habits of the consumer; they may quit smoking due to its ill effects and hazards. This may affect the sales as well as the brand image of the product The launch of anti-smoking campaign by Govt. and NGO's causes adverse effect on the sales Wills navy cut is perceived to be a brand that causes most number of incurable cancer disease, this causes the migration of regular smokers to a less perceived mild brands.
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COMPETITIVE MARKET OF WILLS NAVY CUT (WNC)
WNC faces a competition from sources in India and outside India. The companies outside of India are called Transnational Tobacco Companies (TTC). Companies within India include Godfrey Phillips India Ltd., which is the second largest cigarette company in India. It owns some of the popular cigarette brands in the country like Four Square (Four Square Kings, Four Square Special, Four Square Premier and Four Square Super), Red and White, Jaisalmer, Cavanders and Tipper. The other competitor of WNC is VST Industries, which is the third largest cigarette manufacturer in India. VST owns brands like Charms, Charminar and Gold. The other major company in India which produces cigarettes is Golden Tobacco Limited. It holds a market share of 1% in Indian cigarette industry. The major brands of cigarette it produces include Panama, Chancellor and Flair. Additional to the competition from other companies, WNC faces tremendous competition from other cigarette products of its own manufacturer, ITC Company. Competition is with brands like Gold Flake and Scissors, among which Gold Flake is the market leader in India in terms of retail volume with more than 30% of market share in 2009. Apart from Indian companies, the competition with Transnational Tobacco Companies is not that fierce. The reason for this is attributed to the restriction laid on foreign direct investment in cigarette manufacturing. The major players among TTC are British American Tobacco (BAT), which is a British company and ranked third in global tobacco market. BAT attempted to raise its stake in ITC but was restricted by the Indian government because of the FDI restriction. The other TTC Company is Philip Morris International, which is ranked second in the global tobacco market behind China National Tobacco Company. They have stake in Godfrey Phillip India Ltd. and manufacture one of the brands like Marlboro, which is sold in India. Japan Tobacco International is the other TTC Company which has their product in India. It is affiliated with ITC Company and manufactures the brand called Berkley, which makes up 1.3% of Indian Cigarette Market.
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PRODUCT PORTFOLIO
Category FMCG Products Cigarettes & Cigars: W. D. & H. O. Wills, Gold Flake Kings, Gold Flake Premium, Navy Cut, Insignia, India Kings, Classic (Verve, Menthol, Menthol Rush, Regular, Mild & Ultra Mild), 555, Benson & Hedges, Silk Cut, Scissors, Capstan, Berkeley, Bristol, Lucky Strike, Players and Flake. Foods: i. Kitchen of India: Ready to eat products, Conserves, Chutneys, Biryanis and Desserts. ii. Aashirvaad: Staples, Spices, Instant Mixes and Ready Meals. iii. Sunfeast: Snack food (Sunfeast Milky Magic, Sunfeast Marie Light, Sunfeast Golden Bakery, Sunfeast Dark Fantasy, Sunfeast Dark Fantasy Choco fills, Sunfeast Glucose, Sunfeast Dream Cream, Sunfeast Snacky, Sunfeast Sweet n Salt, Sunfeast Nice, Sunfeast Benne Vita Flaxseed Biscuits, Sunfeast Special, Sunfeast Pasta, Sunfeast Yippee!) iv. Mint-o (Confectionary) v. Candyman (Confectionary) vi. Bingo (Snack Food) Lifestyle Retailing: i. Willis Lifestyle (Wills Classic work wear, Wills Sport relaxed wear, Wills Clublife evening wear) ii. John Player (offers a complete fashion wardrobe) Personal Care i. Essenza Di Wills (Range of Fragrances) ii. Fiama Di Wills (a premium range of personal care products comprising shampoos, conditioner, shower gels and bathing bar) iii. Vivel Portfolio (Vivel Di Wills and Vivel are high quality ranges of soaps and shampoos for the upper-mid and mid-market consumer segments) iv. Superia (Superia range of soaps and shampoos have been launched to cater to the large popular market in the personal care category) Education and Stationary i. Colour Crew (Wax Crayons, Colour Pencils) ii. Classmate (Stationery) iii. Papercraft (Premium Executive Stationery Needs) Safety Matches (Brands: i Kno, Stylites, Aim and Aim Mega) Agarbattis(Mangaldeep) Restaurants i. Branded Cuisine ( Bukhara, Dakshin and DumPukht) ii. International Cuisine (West View and Pan Asian) Hotels (ITC Green Centre in Gurgaon is the headquarters of ITC's Hotels Business) i. WelcomHotels: WelcomHotel Rama International Aurangabad, WelcomHotel Vadodara and WelcomHotel Grand Bay Page 18
Hotels
Group 6, Section S3
Vishakhapatnam. ii. Sheraton Hotels: Sheraton Rajputana Hotel Jaipur, Sheraton Chola Hotel Chennai, Sheraton Park Hotel and Towers, Chennai and Sheraton New Delhi iii. Fortune Hotels iv. WelcomHeritage v. WelcomEnviron (ITC Hotels' vision for a green world) Paperboards and Packaging Paperboards and Specialty Papers i. Packaging (Virgin: Folding Box Boards, Solid Bleached Boards; Recycled: Coated Duplex Whiteback, Coated Duplex Greyback and White Liner) ii. Specialty (Liquid Packaging, Barrier Coated Cartonboards, Cupstock, Cast Coated Boards and Gypsum Liners) iii. Papers (Woodfree Fine Papers, MG Craft Papers, Opaque Papers, Cigarette Tissues, Electrical Insulation Papers, Niche Papers, Superfine Printing) iv. Graphics (Coated Cards, Ivory Cards, Playing Card Boards) Packaging i. Carton Board Packaging (Printed Carton and Fluted Cartons) ii. Flexible Packaging iii. Tobacco Packaging Agri Commodities and Rural Services E-Choupal Leaf Tobacco, Spices and Agri Inputs ITC Infotech: Banking Financial Services & Insurance (BFSI), Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG), Retail, Manufacturing, Engineering Services, Media & Entertainment, Travel, Hospitality, Life Sciences and Transportation & Logistics.
Agri-Business
Information Technology
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Figure 6: ITC Product Collage
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CIGARETTES PORTFOLIO:
Cigarettes & Cigars Cigarettes
W. D. & H. O. Wills
Gold Flake Kings
Cigars
Gold Flake Premium Armentros Hand Rolled Navy Cut
Insignia
India Kings
Classic (Verve, Menthol, Menthol Rush, Regular, Mild & Ultra Mild)
555
Benson & Hedges
Silk Cut
Scissors
Capstan
Berkeley
Bristol
Lucky Strike
Players
Flake
Figure 7: ITC Cigarette Portfolio
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GROWTH:
Cigarettes are a major driver of business in the ITC portfolio and can be seen from the below sales data that they contribute the maximum revenues.
20000 18000 16000 14000 12000 10000 8000 6000 4000 2000 0
2006 2007 2008 2009 2010
Figure 8: ITC Sales Distribution (Rs. Crores)
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Cigarettes also are the maximum volume drivers and have a consistent growth in the volume of cigarette sales as reflected in the chart below.
Cigarettes
86000 84000 82000 80000 78000 76000 74000 72000 70000 Mar 2006 Mar 2007 Mar 2008 Mar 2009 Mar 2010
Figure 9: ITC Cigarette Sales Growth (Million Nos.)
84040 81265 80723 78370 75894 Cigarettes
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Cigarettes pie in ITC portfolio can be seen below(as per records in 2010)
Branded Package Foods Cigarettes Coffee Fruit Pulp Hotel Sales/Services Marine Products Miscellaneous Items Branded Garments Others Paper Printing/Packaging Materials Rice Smoking Tobaccos Soya Extraction Soya Oil Soya Seeds Unmanufactured Tobacco
Figure 10: Indicative Sales of individual product categories (Mar 2010)
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KEY FINANCIALS
Financial strength of a company determines the actual performance of a company. Below are some key indicators regarding the finances of the company.
NET PROFIT MARGIN (NPM)

The NPM of 22.2% in Mar 06 declined to 21.4% in Mar 07. The NPM for Mar 10 stands at ~21.2 %. The decline in margins was explained by the experts due to the increased taxes and duties levied by the Govt. ITCs profit margin consistently lingers in early twenties.
Net Profit Margin(%)

22.4 22.2 22 21.8 21.6 21.4 21.2 21 20.8 20.6 Mar '06 Mar '07 Mar '08 Mar '09 Mar '10
Figure 11: ITC Net Profit Margin for last 5 years
Net Profit Margin(%)
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CURRENT RATIO
Current ratio for ITC was around 1.2 in March 06 which increased to 1.4 in March 09, currently it is just under 1.
Current Ratio
1.6 1.4 1.2 1 0.8 0.6 0.4 0.2 0 Mar '06 Mar '07 Mar '08 Mar '09 Mar '10
Figure 12: ITC Current Ratio for last 5 years
Current Ratio Linear (Current Ratio)
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MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS
ITC Ltd., every now and then tried to diversify its businesses. Following this strategy ITC acquired West Indian Match Company also known as WIMCO. WIMCO had a market share of 13% and was not generating profits at the time it was acquired by ITC.
ITC Ltd. acquired Bilt Industrial Packaging Company Ltd (BIPCO). ITC bought BIPCO for Rs. 233 crores. Bilt Industrial Packaging Company Ltd. was a Coimbatore based company. After the acquisition it was renamed to ITC Paperboards and Speciality Papers. This acquisition enhanced the companys capacity to generate paperboards by 65,000 tonnes. The acquisition was aimed keeping in mind increasing market demand of a range of such products.
ITC signed a contract with Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd. Growing market demand of ITCs echoupal was the driving force behind the signing of this contract. ITC aimed at expanding the project to several other than existing states of the country. As per the contract, the Israel based firm had to supply more VSAT to ITC. ITC also had plans to use its e-choupal setup and diversify services in areas such as healthcare, insurance etc.
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ITC Ltd. declared tie-up with Marubeni Corporation, Japan. ITC wanted to indulge in agriculture commodities export business supplying to Japan and few other countries in Asia. Marubeni was a Fortune 500 multinational and dealt in a number of industries other than food. Companies decided on exporting grain products, soya-bean, maize etc. Companies had plans to gradually move towards food processing and grain storage.
ITC Ltd. through its investment division Russell Credit took over Australian agriculture-biotech company Technico. With the acquisition, ITC also acquired Technicos proprietary technology used for cost beneficial and quick introduction of new varieties of potatoes. With Technicos subsidiaries ITC also reached markets of potato supplying in Canada, China, India and Middle Eastern countries. The Technituber technology developed by Technico benefited ITC in providing different varieties of potatoes. This move strengthened ITCs food business.
ITC through its subsidiary Russel Credit bought 27.1 lakh shares in Leelaventure. ITC increased its hold in EIH group to 14.98% by acquiring 93,943 shares. ITC steadily bought Leelas shares and gradually moved its stake to 3.72%. Even though ITC management declared these moves as regular business activities, companys desire to hold a strong position in the hospitality industry cannot be ignored.
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AUDIT RELATIONSHIP SUMMARY

An Audit Relationship survey is basically a post purchase exercise to measure the relationship between the consumer and the product/service.
SURVEY QUESTIONS
Annexure A: List of survey questions
OVERVIEW OF SURVEY DATA

Annexure B: Summary of survey data
CONSUMER DETAILS AND ANALYSIS

Out of the total number of respondents, 88.24% users of Wills Navy Cut are male. Age group of the consumers lies in the range 18 to 30 with 70.59% consumers in the 26-30 years age group and the remaining 29.42% in the 18-25 age group. Students constitute 23.53% of consumers and the remaining 76.43% are either salaried or self employed. Among those who are employed, 58.33% have a salary bracket of Rs. 250000-50000 and 33.33% draw a salary of more than Rs. 500000.
Gender
2, 12%
Male 15, 88% Female
Figure 11: Gender of users
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Age
0, 0% 0, 0% Below 18 5, 29% 12, 71% 18-25 26-30 31 above
Figure 13: Age of Users
Occupation
4, 23% 0, 0% 3, 18% 10, 59%
Salaried Self Employed Unemployed Student
Figure 14: Occupation of users
Income
less than 1 lack 4, 25% 4, 25% 1, 6% 7, 44% 1-2.5 lacks 2.5-5 lacks 5 Lacks above
Figure 15: Income range of users
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Wills Navy cut is more popular among males. None of the consumers are un-employed and around 25% of the respondents who use Wills Navy cut are students. Major chunk of earning consumers are working for a company. Among those who earn, most of the consumers fall in the upper-middle and high income class (Please refer ).
Income Class Middle Upper-middle High
Rs per annum 90,001-135,000 135,001-175,000 >175,000

Figure 16: Income Class Division
CONSUMPTION FREQUENCY AND SATISFACTION

Please refer Figure 17 below for consumption frequency details. On an average consumers smoke around 4 sticks per day. Range of number of sticks smoked per day is 10. Standard deviation is approximately 3.46 and Median value 3. Average number of cigarettes smoked per day by an Indian is 6.2 as per Global Adult Tobacco Survey 2009-2010 released by Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India. On an average Wills Navy cut consumers from the survey smoke less than country average. Consumption of cigarette varies from the mean at approximately 3.4 cigarettes per day.
Cigarettes Per day

2, 12% <= 2 4, 23 % 8, 47% 3 to 5 6 to 8 9 above 3, 18%
Figure 17: Cigarette consumption of users
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Group 6, Section S3
Mean Median Standard Deviation Range
3.882352941 3 3.461978353 10
Figure 18: Consumption Patterns
CONSUMER PREFERENCE FOR LOOSE CIGARETTES

Interestingly, consumers buy loose cigarettes for varied reasons. Number one reason is that they strongly agree to buy loose cigarettes in order to limit the consumption. Next important reason is that they do not want to carry a packet back home due to family constraints. Lastly they feel that it is costly to buy a packet. Even those who smoke daily are concerned about the quantities they smoke.
Strong Agree Why do you buy loose cigarette Costly to buy a pack Don't want to carry a pack (Family issue) To limit the consumption Easy availability of loose cigarette 5 3 2 10 2
Agre e 4 1 7 3 4
Neut ral 3 5 2 3 2
Disagr ee 2 3 2 0 0
SD 1 3 1 0 3
NA 0 2 1 1 3 Total 43 49 71 35 Rank 3 2 1 4
Figure 19: Impulse Behaviour Analysis
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Group 6, Section S3
CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP
50% of the respondents have been smoking Wills Navy cut for more than 2 years. 25% started with 6 months. 12.5% have been smoking Wills Navy cut for past 6 months to 1 year and the remaining 12.5% in the bracket of 1 year to 2 years. Half of the respondents have been loyal to the brand for past 2 years. At the same time, new consumers have started smoking the brand. It is a good mix of old and new consumers indicating brand loyalty and scope to target new consumers.
Smoking Duration
4, 25% 8, 50% 2, 12% 2, 13%

Figure 20: Users smoking time period
less than 6 months 6 months to 1 year 1 - 2 year more than 2 years
Major reason why respondents prefer Wills Navy cut over other brands of cigarettes is that they feel they have become used to smoking it. Next comes the fact the Wills Navy cut is a hard cigarette and consumers like its taste in that particular order. Even though Wills Navy cut is cheap when compared to other cigarettes, price is not top criterion to buy the cigarette. The kind of relation that consumers have with the product can be termed as dependency for most of the users. Consumers also like functional properties of the cigarette such as taste and hardness. Why do you prefer WNC It is a hard cigarette I like its taste Become used to it It is relatively cheap 5 6 5 8 2 4 7 6 3 4 3 0 3 2 4 2 1 0 1 4 1 2 2 2 3 Total 62 60 62 49 Rank 2 3 1 4
Figure 21: Factors for Purchase
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Group 6, Section S3
About 65% of respondents say that they would prefer Wills Navy cut over any other brand. However, 35% think otherwise. Some other brands have higher preference for these customers at present.
Smoke Navy cut if other brands are available
6, 35% 11, 65%
yes No
Figure 22: Choice of Navy Cut Vs Other brands
CUSTOMER SATISFACTION
Customer Satisfaction is an important performance indicator. Expectations are a crucial factor, a reason for customer satisfaction. When expectations are high and the product fails to live up to the expectations, customers will be disappointed, look out for other options to satisfy their need. A satisfied customer is a loyal customer and acts like a brand ambassador for the product. As word to mouth marketing is very effective and free of cost. Over 85% of the customers have expressed their satisfaction with Wills Navy Cut cigarettes. When enquired if Navy Cut has met or exceeded expectations, 85 % customers expressed that they are extremely delighted with the product.
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Group 6, Section S3
Customer Satisfaction
No 16%
Yes 84%
Figure 23: Customer Satisfaction
The various reasons for customer satisfaction are different; the top reasons are as stated below: The nicotine level gives a much needed kick. Relaxation of mind Sensational on minimum quantity. Low cost Distastefulness, no bad smell after smoking Availability
All the customers are extremely delighted with the availability of Wills Navy Cut in the market.
Availablility
0% Yes No 100%
Figure 24: Product Availability
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Group 6, Section S3
Will Navy Cut has numerous loyalists, as most of the user show high probability to continue using Navy Cut and very few unsatisfied customers plan to switch to other brands. We found that dissatisfied customers go for India Kings, another product from ITC Limited.
Chances To Continue WNC

10 8 6 4 2 0 Excellent very good good fair Poor
Figure 25: WNC Vs Other Brands
We asked our customers if they would recommend Navy Cut to their friends, we found that maximum of out user are likely to play a role of brand ambassadors.
Recommend Navy Cut to others

10 8 6 4 2 0 Most Likely Likely Neutral Inlikely Most Unlikely
Figure 26: Product Recommendation
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Group 6, Section S3
NAVY CUT FOR ITS USERS

Navy Cut is found to be an essential product for its users. It gives psychological pleasure and a sense of satisfaction which cannot be replaced by any other product. To some it is excuse from work to grab some moments of pleasure. It acts as a stimuli to concentrate or a screen which filters out all the distractions and result in mental alertness. Our customers admit that Navy cut relaxes their mind and gives a desired kick; some call it a package of pleasure. We also came across users who feel that Navy Cut gives what any other cigarette gives. And to some it means fun and a style statement.
Wills Navy Cut gives me.
D C B A 0 10 20 30 40 50 60
A B C D
Customers interpretation of Wills Navy Cut Desired kick, a package of pleasure. Helps relax/think. Blows troubles away. Fun & Style Statement. What other cigarettes gives.
Figure 27: Navy Cut to its users..
IMPACT OF BRAND WILLS ON NAVY CUT

Brand equity plays an important role in the sales of a product. Its effects and outcome creates a huge impact on the product. Brand popularity is related to the customers knowledge of the brand. Brand Wills acts as a financial asset to Navy Cut. There are equal chances that a
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Group 6, Section S3
Navy Cut user may or may not continue to use the product once Wills brand name is removed from it. Even though the quality of the product might remain same but the purchasing decision or deciding factor to buy a particular product is its brand. Brand Impact
7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree
Figure 28: Brand Impact
Wills brand equity also impacts its market share and mind share of the customer, when asked the customers ranks Wills as its most preferred brand of cigarettes and Benson & Hedges is the least preferred.
Most Prefered Brand
Wills
Marlboro
Benson & Hedges
Camel
Figure 29: Brand Ranking
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Group 6, Section S3
STATISTICAL ANALYSIS
CORRELATION ANALYSIS FOR PRODUCT MEETING EXPECTATIONS USING SPSS The survey was based on data collected to analyze the relationship between the consumers and the product or service they consume. We can also try to find the correlation between whether the expectations of the customer were met and the various factors contributing to the expectations of the consumer as shown in the table below. Here the dependent variable for the measurement was the Expectations met factor of a consumer and the various factors contributing to it were as follows It is a hard cigarette with relatively higher nicotine levels It has a likeable taste Loyalty to the product i.e. being used to the brand Relative cheapness to other products in the market
The sign of the Spearman correlation indicates the direction of association between X (the independent variable) and Y (the dependent variable). The Spearman correlation increases in magnitude as X and Y become closer to being perfect monotone functions of each other. When X and Y are perfectly monotonically related, the Spearman correlation coefficient becomes 1.
Spearman's rho for Expectations being met
Hard Cigarette
Likeable taste
Used to the brand
Relative cheapness
.404 Correlation Coefficient .108 Significance (2tailed)
.356
.418
.266
.160
.095
.302
17 17 N **. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). *. Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed).
17
17
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Group 6, Section S3
Based on above correlation coefficients and significance data calculated, we can say that: 1) Consumers expectation from Navy cut is dependent on the Hard taste of the cigarette and Being used to the brand as both the parameters have positive values around 0.4+. But still the factors do not have a very high correlation to the expectations being met. Also, Likeable taste and relative cheapness are having a positive correlation but not very high values. 2) Hence Expectations being met appears to be loosely correlated with the stated factors. Also, significance levels are far more than .05 indicating that there is not a statistically significant relationship between the parameters.
Also, it should be noted here that correlation cannot be used to infer a causal relationship between the variables.
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Group 6, Section S3
REFERENCES
Database: Prowess CMIE
http://www.moneycontrol.com/company-facts/itc/history/ITC http://www.itcportal.com/ http://money.rediff.com http://www.economictimes.indiatimes.com http://www.telegraphindia.com http://www.businessline.com http://investor.itc-holdings.com/annuals.cfm GATS (Global Adult Tobacco Survey) India 2009 - 2010
ANNEXURES
A: List of survey questions B: Summary of survey results
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Post-purchase audit report of Wills Navy Cut cigarette brand

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Post Purchase Audit Relationship Report for Wills Navy Cut- ITC

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CIGARETTES & TOBACCO INDUSTRY

Figure 1: Indian Tobacco Industry- Major Players

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Indian Cigarette Market

Figure 2: Indian Cigarette Market- Major Players & Market share

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Company got manufacturing business of Tobacco Manufacturing India Ltd.

Government approval for setting three new processing factories.

Wills Flake Premium Filter and Scissors Filter were introduced

Scissors Standard introduced.

Factory in Bengaluru began its operations.

Navy cut launched at Rs 24 for a pack of 10 sticks.

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COMPANY BUSINESS PROFILE

Cigarettes & Cigars

Leaf Tobacco & Spices Inputs

Education & Stationery

Figure 3: ITC Diversification Profile

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TOBACCO INDUSTRY PROMOTION AND SPONSORSHIP

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LEADING CIGARETTE BRANDS PROMOTED IN INDIA

Figure 4: Slim Cigarettes for Women

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TARGETING HEALTH CONSCIOUS CONSUMERS

Figure 5: Cigarettes for health conscious consumers

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SURROGATE ADVERTISING METHODS-POST BAN ADVERTISING TOBACCO PRODUCTS IN INDIA

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ITC SWOT ANALYSIS

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COMPETITIVE MARKET OF WILLS NAVY CUT (WNC)

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Figure 6: ITC Product Collage

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Gold Flake Kings

Benson & Hedges

Figure 7: ITC Cigarette Portfolio

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2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

Figure 8: ITC Sales Distribution (Rs. Crores)

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84040 81265 80723 78370 75894 Cigarettes

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Figure 10: Indicative Sales of individual product categories (Mar 2010)

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NET PROFIT MARGIN (NPM)

Net Profit Margin(%)

Net Profit Margin(%)

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Current Ratio Linear (Current Ratio)

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MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS

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