et�s begin by stating the obvious: to establish your brand in the market, position it carefully; to grow, segment the market and come up with variants. A rule General Mills India is following to a T. Six years after launching Pillsbury Chakki Fresh Atta, General Mills repositioned the brand in July 2004 and shifted focus to the wellness platform (The Brand Reporter, 1-15, August, 2004). Now, the company has launched a new variant - Pillsbury Punjabi Atta, in select stores of Mumbai (where it is the market leader with a 32.5 per cent share, according to AC Nielsen-ORG Marg), to cater to the north Indian community there. Being a cosmopolitan market, Mumbai was chosen as the venue for launch; a national roll-out is on the anvil.


The baseline, Sadda taste, saadi roti (my taste, my roti), clearly implies that the brand is pitted against regional players such as Roshan da Atta and Shakti Bhog Atta. Gayatri Yadhav, marketing director, General Mills India, says, "Pillsbury Punjabi Atta has been launched for the north Indians living outside of north India. It has been customised the way north Indians like their atta - it is coarser than the regular atta and is made of 100 per cent whole wheat. Thus the housewife can make thicker, authentic north Indian-style rotis."

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