Packaged snacks are getting a lot of attention from big, branded players. So Frito-Lay, with its Lays, Cheetos, Kurkure, Lehar, Uncle Chipps and Quaker Oats snack brands is seeing some pretty concentrated competition from ITC’s Bingo! with its 16 flavours, Britannia’s 50-50 Chutkule, and Amul’s Munch Time.
ITC spotted the opportunity six months ago and launched Bingo!. Britannia, which test marketed both the new 50-50 snacks eight-nine months ago in Hyderabad, is rolling them out nationally. Amul is taking its time with Munch Time. R.S. Sodhi, general manager, marketing, GCMMF, states, “As of now, there are no intentions to go for a national rollout.”
The decision of big players such as Britannia and ITC to get into branded snacks makes sense, considering the market size. Ravi Naware divisional chief executive, ITC Foods, says, “The branded snacks segment is worth Rs 2,000 crore and growing at a healthy 25-to-30 per cent.” Branded snacks is a part of the larger category of the ready-to-eat market, which Neeraj Chandra, VP, marketing, sales &innovation, Britannia, pegs at Rs 7,000 crore. “This large category has shown double digit growth, amongst the highest for any large FMCG sector.”
Another reason why more big players may want to enter the segment is the predominance of unorganised players. Nikhil Vora, an FMCG analyst with SSKI Securities, says, “The share of the unorganised players is over 50 per cent.” So there is enough opportunity in the market for more branded players.
