Kyamovie, Kyamatch, Kyazoonga

Neetu Bhatia, Co-founder, Kyazoonga.com talks about her vision to make Kyazoonga.com a one-stop shop for ticketing solutions...

4Ps B&M: Online ticketing for sporting events is a novel concept in India. How did the idea click for you?
NB: It all began in the summer of 2006. When my brother and I wanted to go for a movie, we realised that there was not a single place where we could check out show timings and whether tickets were available or sold out. We checked with movie theaters to find out if their technical systems could be integrated with a single platform, and before we knew it, we were tying up with all cinema theater chains in the country. We began ticketing cricket once we received the first round of funding. We started with movies first as it is a year round phenomena whereas cricket is seasonal and it is only when team India is playing at home ground that one can see some frenzy. November 2007 was when we first sold online tickets for the India-Pakistan finals in Jaipur.

4Ps B&M: So do movie tickets net in more moolah or are cricketing events more lucrative?
NB: It depends on what we are selling – whether it is sports ticket that we are selling, is it cricket or some other sport. It depends upon the marketability and selling ability of a particular event. Our business model depends a lot upon the demographics and the city where the event is taking place. For instance, Mumbai has a very different buying culture than Delhi. While a customer pays because of the convenience he’s getting; the client pays because of the platform that we provide to sell his offering. So the business model varies for clients, events and situations.

4Ps B&M: What about competition from other ticketing portals like Bookmyshow.com? How do you convince customers to book with you instead?
NB: We’ve seen many competitors come and go in this market. There are very few companies around the world that are able to offer good centralised ticketing platform and can simplify complex problems. We’re not just selling tickets through our online channel, but also through retail stores where people can pay cash and buy tickets. And this is where we’ve differentiated ourselves from our competitors as in retail outlets, the customer does not has to worry about not having a debit or credit card like in the case of online transactions. Currently, we’ve 250 retail outlets and with the kind of strategic partnerships we are looking, we should be over 1,000 by the end of this year.

4Ps B&M: How has been the ticketing response to the recently concluded Hero Honda Cup?
NB: The response has been nothing less than phenomenal. We witnessed one of the largest stadiums in the country, in Mumbai, completely sold out, though it’s unfortunate that the rain wiped out the match. For the Mohali match, we were only selling high value tickets and we’ve seen encouraging response there too.

4Ps B&M: You had the online ticketing rights for IPL 2. Are you bidding for the 2010 Common Wealth Games?
NB: We’re the only sports ticketing company in the country. Everything and anything related to sports is always on our radar and Common Wealth Games are no exception. Our objective is to satisfy all needs of the Indian customer pertaining to sports and entertainment. We’ve recently tied up with a leading amusement park of the country and are also adding adventure sports like sailing in our portfolio. The idea is not just to provide convenient tickets but also to offer value added content to the customer so that we become a one-stop shop for them.

Surbhi Chawla

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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Back to the Future

“We had a very poor market share of just 4%, so brand building, finding out new target was required and for that we needed new promotion campaigns,” Rajeev Surana, CEO of OCM India Ltd. told 4Ps B&M.

A change in ownership, the subsequent image change and an additional infusion of Rs.120 million for buying new machines combined resulted in a 9% jump in OCM’s market-share during FY08. Not satisfied, the management is now concentrating on further reinforcing the brand’s salience among consumers, both in India and abroad (particularly the European, US and Middle Eastern markets) with a further planned investment of Rs.200 million only for brand building. And a strong employee base of over 1,000 (thankfully with no ‘labour unions’ among them) is relentlessly at work these days to revive the brand.

So is the dawn finally on hand for OCM? The answer to that question would perhaps be yes, as after six consecutive deplorable loss-making years, OCM made a net profit of Rs.3 million last fiscal and is targeting a higher profit forecast of Rs.9 million at the end of this fiscal. And for that they are enhancing their product portfolio with fabrics, shawls, jackets, et al, and have even brought on board the spunky Saif Ali Khan as brand ambassador. In fact, this year, OCM had a pan-India launch of its Winter Collection for the first time announcing its serious intent to the world of becoming more than just a seasonal player. “For that we needed to upgrade our manufacturing plant and now have products for the entire year,” explains Surana. To promote the same intent, OCM’s new marketing communication initiative (with Saif at its helm) hopes to beckon the consumer with the brand’s heritage, nostalgically bringing back their old jingle ‘Oh… see him’. This is in sharp contrast to many yesteryear brands, which, when they make a come back, usually change the entire promotional campaign. Onida, for example, when it made a comeback recently, it changed its age-old but hugely popular tag line ‘Neighbour’s envy, owner’s pride.’ Within the textile industry itself, when Digjam made its come back, the brand changed its entire positioning- starting from the jingle to the creative communication. However, OCM did not try this route at all and stuck to its old jingle. Brand analysts claim that the reason OCM disappeared from the market was not because of any lack of brand salience but because of financial disturbances so “it’s natural in such cases for brands to stick to their old and popular jingles. It helps consumers make a quick association. Perhaps, six months later OCM will go for a new jingle,” says brand specialist, Harish Bijoor. Other brand analysts however feel that perhaps the choice of Saif as ambassador was not a perfect choice, since the actor has recently stopped endorsing another readymade apparel brand Provogue. But marketing honchos differ. They claim that changing brand ambassadors is on an upswing these days and Saif’s previous engagement with Provogue does not disturb OCM’s brand image as the two do not address the same market.

Moreover, the company is now also paying heed to its retail presence and has further expanded its domestic retail network with 75 new direct and about 750 indirect dealers to expand its presence to 1,300 multi-brand outlets and 16 exclusive stores. Surana says that the next step now is to conquer lands beyond India, for which OCM is focusing on US, Europe and Middle Eastern markets.

But all is not hunky dory. At a time when the formal dressing market is dominated by the readymade apparel category, the challenges in front of OCM seem to loom larger. When asked about OCM’s potential foray into the readymade segment, Surana was non-committal at first, citing OCM’s strong co-relation with other apparel retail players in terms of institutional sales alignments (Pantaloon, ITC, Westside) who are into the readymade formal wear business. “Besides, we are also supplying material to government organisations like military and several other institutions,” he says.

But dig a little beneath the surface and you realise that the new management at OCM’s help is perhaps just a little jittery about status quo. Concedes Surana, “We are quietly testing waters for readymade apparels too, but only in the very premium segment.” Clearly, the bid is to transfer the premium positioning for its worsted suitings onto their readymade venture. With the Indian apparel market growing at 11% annually, for now OCM has put all its cards on the table. Whether or not WL Ross, Surana and his core team are able to make the initial efforts pay off, will depend on the market’s future fabric!

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here

Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com

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Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎
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