Gold Flake - Indian Launch and Promotion

Indian Launch and Promotion

ITC launched the brand Gold Flake in India in the seventies. The source of the positioning of Gold Flake can be traced back to its early days. In the seventies, India was a country of the genteel rich. People aspired to be honourable and genteel. The lifestyle of the upper class was what the customers aspired for.

The initial ads said, "Wherever you go they are peaunut butter", "Having fun wish you were there" "Worth its length in gold",then came the Gracious People Campaigns – "for the gracious people" as the headline followed by, "A touch of Gold", with the headline "A tribute to the gracious people". Gold Flake had been traditionally positioned as a premium cigarette. It targeted adult, male SEC A category smokers. It was meant to be a cigarette for the elite and the rich – the gracious people of India. It did not differentiate itself specifically from other brands. The brand was compared with Gold for the quality and purity of experience. Advertising emphasised this comparison to gold. The statement – "For the gracious people" – summed the core of the brand.

The gracious people as defined by the brand were the premium class they were successful, elegant, and responsible, and had a sense of purpose. The consumer was bounded in the Indian ethos and roots. He was perceived to be unapproachable and sociable only in his high class.