Product Overview

In 2015, NESTLE India underwent a major crisis as the product which contributed to nearly 30% of its sales had to be taken off the shelves. Maggi-the go-to convenience food for all generations (especially kids and young adults)-which had entered the market in 1983, was banned. With a market share of 70-80% before the ban, NESTLE, which got the ban lifted in November 2015, had to undergo the task of winning back the lost market. Over a period of 8 months after its relaunch, the brand regained about 60% of its market back, but the question is how could such brand disaster be avoided in future? The case revolves around a major brand recovering from a brand disaster, and whether they did it well enough or could the situation have been managed better. It also enquires as to what road should be taken forward from here. It notes the action taken by the government against the brand and leaves it to the judgment of the readers if the actions taken against the brand were a little too harsh, solely because MNCs are usually considered a soft target in India. The readers must also understand and analyse the different brand relaunch strategies that were adopted by NESTLE and the next steps that should be taken by it.

Learning Objectives

1. To understand the evolution of the brand position of Maggi in India. a. How did it become a strong brand in India (an emerging market)? 2. To explore the regulatory aspects and management decisions that lead to a brand disaster. 3. To evaluate the implementation of the brand disaster recovery plan executed by Maggi. a. What was not a good move by the company? b. What could have Maggie done better? What should Maggi do next?