LUXOR WRITING INSTRUMENTS PRIVATE LIMITED - MARKETING PENS IN INDIA
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THE MARKETING MIX
PRODUCTS AND PRICING
LWIPL had launched its first brand in 1963 - the 'Artist'
fountain pen. However, owing to its small scale of operations during that time,
the pens were made available only in Delhi and surrounding areas. During the
late 1960's, the Artist brand was renamed as 'Luxor.' In 1982, LWIPL launched
Pilot 05 microtip pens with needle point[1]technology.
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Priced at Rs.10, this was the
first model of Pilot pens to be officially launched in India.The pens were manufactured at
the Delhi plant of LWIPL. Though Pilot pens were available in
India prior to the launch, they were available only in the grey market. LWIPL invested heavily to upgrade its technology to
manufacture microtip pens. These pens were launched with the intention of
bridging the gap between ball point and fountain pens. Microtip pen was
similar to a ball point pen, with the ink filled within.
This turned out
to be a unique selling proposition for Pilot pens and they were quite
successful as they were considered to be an ideal substitute for fountain
pens. LWIPL was able to sell 1,00,000 Pilot pens in the very first year of
their launch. However, the Pilot pens launched initially were not
refillable.
Due to the price conscious nature of middle class people in
India, the concept of disposable pens was not cherished for long. This
prompted the company to launch a new, refillable variant of these pens. LWIPL's
pricing strategy was determined by factors such as the demand for
products, their brand image and the nature of the target audience. When
Pilot 05 was launched in 1982, it was priced at Rs.10, and it was
considered to be expensive at that time. |
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However, in 1990, eight years after its launch, when
the demand for these pens reached its peak, Luxor sold them at Rs. 25 each. The
price continued to remain the same till early 2003, indicating the stagnant
nature of its demand. On the other hand, Pilot V5 was priced at Rs.45 at the
time of its launch. These pens were priced high due to its superior technology
and the brand image that Pilot pens enjoyed. However, after 12 years of launch,
the price of these pens had to be reduced by Rs.5.
In 1996, LWIPL launched Parker pens in India. Though Parker pens were popular
in India, they were available only in the grey market. Parker pens were
primarily targeted at the upper middle class consumers, senior level executives
and bureaucrats. The initial range of Parker pens launched included Sonnet,
Rialto, Frontier, Vector and Parker Classic. The most crucial decision for
LWIPL was pricing. At the time of the launch, the prices ranged between Rs.90
to Rs.10,000. Priced at Rs.90, the "Vector" brand of pens was the cheapest in
the range. Within four years, "Vector" became the largest selling Parker brand
in India. During the corresponding period, the price was increased to Rs. 140.
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THE FUTURE
ADDITIONAL READINGS AND REFERENCES
© IUP. Global CEO •
December 2003, All Rights
Reserved.
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