Mr Harish Bhat

Swetha Kannan

Bangalore, April 25 Titan is looking beyond the urban youth and targeting youth in semi-urban areas with its Sonata Yuva range of watches.

As the retail story unfolds slowly in small towns too, Titan hopes to make merry with Yuva. In these areas, a chunk of the buying population constitutes the youth, for whom the watch represents ‘aspiration’ and ‘achievement’, says Mr Harish Bhat, COO – Watches, Titan Industries.

It is the youth, in any segment of the market — urban or rural, mass or class — who drive retail growth. “Watch ownership in semi-urban India is 15-17 per cent, compared to an all-India average of 25 per cent. We hope to increase ownership in small towns in tier-II and tier-III areas through the youth, who are the key drivers of growth and watch ownership in any segment. The thrust this year will be youth – largely from semi-urban India. No mass market can afford to ignore this market. Yuva, which was launched late last year, will be the cornerstone of Sonata’s strategy,” says Mr Bhat.

(About 40 per cent of Sonata’s Rs 200-crore sales come from tier II and III towns. Fifty per cent of Sonata sales come from the youth.)

Priced in the economy bracket of Rs 700-1,100, the Yuva watches are youthful looking, colourful and vibrant, reflecting the current mood of the Indian youth — which is upbeat — even in the semi-urban areas, and the use of cricketer Dhoni as brand ambassador (for brand Sonata) will hugely appeal to this segment, says Mr Bhat. The company will come out with a communication strategy for Yuva targeted at the youth from semi-urban areas, riding on the plank of “achievement.” The youth, in semi-urban towns especially, seek gratification through education, employment and achievement and they look at the watch as a symbol of success, says Mr Bhat.

The communication includes a television commercial, which was screened briefly last year. A “slightly longer and more intense” TV burst is planned for the end of April/beginning May this year. On-ground activities and “leaf-letting” will also take place at retail points and “youth touch points” such as coaching classes, hobby centres and cyber-cafes in small towns.

This year will also see a series of new watches being released under Yuva. Titan is also looking to ramp up distribution of the Yuva range in many tier II and tier III towns such as Tirunelveli, Bareilly, Aligarh, Hubli and Thanjavur.

Sonata Yuva will be sold across all modern value retail outlets such as Reliance Retail’s lifestyle stores, Future group’s Big Bazaar and Star India Bazaar from Trent as and when these retailers expand into semi-urban areas. Yuva will also be available with small watch retailers and at all World of Titan showrooms in small towns.

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