History & Marketing Strategies of Maggi Brand

Company Name – Maggi
Founder – Julias Michael Johannes Maggi 

Crowned as India’s most favorite noodles that take only two minutes to cook, in peak hours when time is scarce for making a wholesome meal or just as a quick snack to curb the cravings, the Maggi noodles are undoubtedly one of the most popular products created by the company with the same name.

Maggi is surveyed as being the most trusted brand in the country of India not only because it is easy to prepare and very healthy, but also it has a number of different food products like instant soups, seasonings, sauce etc. 

 

How It All Started 

It was during 1860’s when Julius Maggi, the youngest among the five children of his Italian immigrant family in Frauenfeld decided to take charge of the hammer mill run by his father. The dream he nurtured was to launch wholesome food products which would not only satiate the cravings of people in Switzerland but across the world.

He wanted to make tasty, nutritious, affordable and easy to cook food for the working people, especially the women workers in the factories who didn’t have time to cook full course meal. 

What started with the powdered ready-to-make pea and bean soup in 1869, resulted in Maggi soups and liquid seasonings with the help and guidance of Fridolin Schuler, a physician friend of Maggi who was aware of concept of improving nutritional value of any meal.

In 1884, they finally introduced the packaged leguminous flour and it failed to rule the market as anticipated, they started from scratch again and came up with ready-to-make soups on legume meals and food flavorings by 1886 and more products followed in 1887 and 1889. The introduction of bouillon concentrates in capsules and then in cubes were also milestones in Maggi’s business. Subsidiaries were opened in London, Paris, Berlin, Vienna, Singen and Bregenz.  

Launching

 It was not until 1947 after India became an independent country, that the food manufacturing giant company Nestlé decided to acquire Maggi and since then has been a proud custodian of Maggi, which was a dream of Julius Maggi and made it a trusted brand for people of all socio-economic background.

Not only in India but also in other countries like Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, Brazil, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Brunei, Fiji, Philippines and Bangladesh, Maggi noodles along with stocks, and instant soups became popular. 

 Maggi arrived in India when India had lifted the first World Cup in cricket in 1983 and it created quite a stir among the citizens due to its two-minute preparation status. With its foreign origin but Indian management under Nestlé, its appeal to Indian audience was quite doubtful but its promotional campaign during launch attracted the Middle-class people especially.

As the government’s emphasis was on having local production facilities, in 1961, Nestlé had its Indian subsidiary and the first Maggi factory was opened in Moga, Punjab. 

Maggi’s marketing strategy and interesting reasons behind its success

-Right from beginning, under the guidance of Dr. Fridolin Schuler, the flour used in bouillon and noodles were made from pulses and legumes like peas and beans so that the product was nutritionally rich and easily digestible. After producing instant powdered soups in 1885, in the following year, liquid bouillon was produced as basis of soups, sauces and consommés. 

-Innovation was the key to success of Maggi in the Victorian Age as the instant soups had flavors of mock-turtle and curry while Maggi seasoning had the flavor of truffle. Besides, the classic Bouillon Kub in perfect cubical shape and packed in the signature pack too earned rave popularity. 

-In order to capture the loyalty of consumers and ward of any duplicacy, Julius Maggi had his signature registered and created the brand logo with the red and yellow color, something which is still considered as a legacy. He also created around eighteen variants of his name like Magi, Magique etc. 

-Enamel placards outside shops selling Maggi products were the initial marketing strategy and gradually with Leonetto Cappiello, its advertising strategy was successful through printed posters on public vehicles and free samples sold on street-side.

-In various countries, Maggi’s online recipes by using Maggi products, kitchen journeys shared by women, cooking courses are being launched to engage the consumers. Besides, the behind-the-scenes tour showing how Maggi noodles are made, how they are tasted, what ingredients go in the process an how safe it is to consume it, is a significant reason why people have a transparency with Maggi. 

-Apart from Noodles, Maggi has Cuppa Noodle variants of Chicken, Masala, Chilly Chow and Barbeque Pepper. Cheesy Tomato, Mushroom Penne, Masala Penne and Cheese Macaroni from Pazzta were able to satiate Pasta lovers. Hot & Sweet Tomato, Rich Tomato, Imli etc flavored sauces and Cheese Garlic and Jalapeno Salsa Dip & Spread have been perfect condiments to food. 

 

Maggi Campaigns 

The foremost and undoubtedly the most appealing campaign by Maggi was its advertising of “Two minute noodles” that attracted “entrepreneurs” to invest on 12 rupees a pack Maggi noodles for students and workers as well as for women who could satisfy the family by preparing nutrition-rich food in no time. 

Next, was the “Maggi Mom” campaign, something that was sure to intrigue people from all levels to recognize their loving and sacrificing moms who juggled between domestic responsibilities and work and still made time to cook Maggi with new ingredients as it took less time to prepare. 

Within 25 years of being launched in India, Maggi had an autonomous 90% market share of noodles manufacturing. In 2008, it completed Silver Jubilee and the most engaging campaign till date – “Me And Meri Maggi” was launched where in each pack, the consumers were invited to send their personal stories regarding Maggi noodles. As a matter of fact, socialites like Vir Das and Chetan Bhagat, as well as students, workers, homemakers and people from various walks of life, shared their experiences. Publicis Capital, Maggi’s advertising agency was overwhelmed to find over thirty thousand entries for this campaign. 

Under the initiative of “Simply Good”, Maggi has decided to enhance the nutritional value of the 2-minute noodles with Iron, which will supposedly meet 15% of iron requirement daily. In spicy variants, Maggi has launched the Special Masala Noodles along with the 2-Minute Noodles. The “Nutri-licious” variants of Atta Masala Noodles, Baked Sweetcorn Noodles, Oats Masala Noodles and Oats Herbs & Spices Noodles are fitness-centric. 

The new launches of HotHeads variants like Peri Peri Noodles, Barbeque Pepper Noodles, Chilli Chicken Noodles and Green Chilli Noodles have also earned great response from audience. The Masala-ae-Magic cooking aids like chicken masala, south chicken and veg masala have paid a tribute to Indian culinary art.

 

Conclusion

Although controversies regarding the ingredients, especially regarding the presence of Lead, were there, it only helped Maggi to emerge with a new and consumer-friendly product range. From noodles to dips and sauces, soups to pazzta, spices to cuppa noodles –the variants offered by Maggi have appealed to everyone. 

Calcium, Iron and Sodium mixed in perfect balance in the carbohydrate rich Maggi products will ensure that no matter it takes little time to prepare but the product is wholesome and available at low cost.  

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