During COVID Times, Companies Earn and Learn Well

It was normally assumed that companies would not do well in the first quarter (April-June 2021) of the 2021-22 financial year. However, this assumption turned out to be false. What no one realised was that if companies have good marketing learning, they usually land up with good corporate earning!

Four Key Lessons from Indian Companies

In my opinion, there are four main lessons that Indian companies have been able to imbibe in their strategies, leading to strong financial performance. I recommend that other companies also use my Samsika NAIL Strategy to nail the adverse situation and win by transforming ‘learnings into earnings’.

The Samsika NAIL Strategy

  1. Never Say Die (N)
  • Companies have not accepted defeat.
  • Giving up is the worst attitude in marketing strategy.
  • Positions, once given up, cannot be retrieved easily under normal or abnormal circumstances.
  • Relentless efforts in the face of difficult conditions have demonstrated a ‘never say die’ attitude.
  1. Availability (A)
  • Companies have come up with innovative and novel practices to reach customers.
  • Ensuring brand availability has been a top priority.
  • Distribution channels have been strengthened to maintain an uninterrupted supply.
  1. Inform to Perform (I)
  • Companies have actively communicated and engaged with consumers and customers.
  • Continuous engagement has ensured that brands stay relevant in the minds of consumers.
  • The key realisation has been that to perform well, businesses must inform consistently.
  1. Lead, Don’t Follow (L)
  • Companies have ensured that there is no waiting period to follow others.
  • In marketing, those who lead the way gain a significant advantage.
  • Taking proactive steps rather than reacting has led to success amid adversity.

The Impact: Good Learnings Lead to Good Earnings

The Samsika NAIL Strategy has helped companies navigate difficulties, overcome adverse conditions, and emerge as winners, as evident from their financial results:

  • Asian Paints reported a 160% year-on-year rise in consolidated net profit to ₹568.5 crore in the quarter ended June 2021. The company’s topline soared 91% to ₹5,585.4 crore during the same period. Profit before tax also rose by 154.6% year on year to ₹778.6 crore.
  • Hindustan Unilever posted a 10% year-on-year increase in net profit to ₹2,061 crore for the quarter ended June 2021. Revenue from operations rose 13% year on year to ₹11,915 crore, while EBITDA increased by 8% to ₹2,847 crore.
  • Domino’s operator Jubilant Foodworks recorded a net profit of ₹62.6 crore for the quarter ended June 2021, recovering from a net loss of ₹72.6 crore in the year-ago quarter. Sales revenue grew by 131% to ₹879 crore.
  • Relaxo Footwears reported a 27.83% increase in net profit to ₹30.96 crore in the quarter ended June 2021, compared to ₹24.22 crore in the same quarter last year. Revenue from operations rose 36.73% to ₹497.13 crore, up from ₹363.58 crore in the previous fiscal period.
  • Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) reported that its retail division’s net profit more than doubled year on year in Q1. The company’s overall net profit for the April-June 2021 quarter stood at ₹12,273 crore.
  • Tech Mahindra recorded a 39.2% rise in consolidated net profit at ₹1,353.2 crore for the June 2021 quarter, up from ₹972.3 crore in the year-ago period.

Final Thought: Hope and Scope for Success

If companies have good learnings, good earnings will follow. Therefore, I would like to say:

If companies know how to COPE
There is HOPE, There is HOPE,
Whether it be Food, Retail, Soap,
There is HOPE, There is HOPE.
IT, footwear or paints, there is scope.
And where there is scope,
There is HOPE, There is HOPE!

Use my Samsika NAIL Strategy and get good earnings from good learnings!

This article was first published in Business India magazine in the August 9 to August 22, 2021 issue.

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About The Author

Jagdeep Kapoor

Founder, Chairman & Director of Samsika® and Samsika® Academy

Visiting Professor of Marketing Management and Brand Management at JBIMS and SP Jain School of Global Management. Author of 14 books and textbooks on the art and science of Marketing Strategy and Brand Management in the Indian context.

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