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With the ICC T20 Men’s World Cup scheduled to kickstart from 16 October, brands are in overdrive promoting the event. 

Thums Up, Coca-Cola India’s homegrown brand, has unveiled a new ‘StumpCam’ campaign to provide fan with exclusive access to match footage and content. Thums Up says that it will be adopting a digital-first, multi-tech marketing approach to drive consumer engagement for the content-led campaign.

The campaign, which features cricketers and superstar bowlers Jasprit Bumrah, Umran Malik, and Brett Lee, is promoting how fans get access to match moments, straight from the pitch.

After each World Cup match, the Stump Cam video of cricketing moments will be accessible to viewers by scanning a QR code on the Thums Up bottle. 
 
Arnab Roy, vice president & head-marketing, Coca-Cola India & Southwest Asia, says, “Thums Up’s “Stump Cam” will offer audiences the most ‘Toofani’ view of key moments of the tournament - leveraging the Stump Cam footage was a disruptive opportunity that would bring to fans a complete new way of experiencing the game. This is the first time we are doing a content-led campaign, voiced by cricketing stalwarts like Harsha Bhogle."

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The campaign film has been conceptualized by Ogilvy. 

Ritu Sharda, chief creative officer, Ogilvy India- North, says, “From sitting on tree-tops, to gathering around paan shops, India has watched cricket in every possible way. But we wanted to give Thums Up fans an opportunity to get the most toofani ‘view’ in the house and frankly that's where Thums Up Stump Cam found its genesis. We wanted people to really feel the rush of a ball coming right at them at 95 mph. We wanted them to experience cricket, like a cricketer does, right from the middle of the pitch. We are partnering with ICC and Oaktree Sports, for a 24-hour match to pack to screen marathon."
 
Thums Up has been a long standing partner of the ICC (International Cricket Council). The Coca-Cola Company has a long history of partnering with major sporting events around the world, including an eight-decade long association with the Olympics, four decades with the FIFA, and nearly 25 years with World Cup Rugby. 



Thums Up unveils new ad campaign ahead of ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2022

Homegrown brand Thums Up was launched in 1977. Nearly five decades after its launch, an acquisition by Coca-Cola Company in 1993 and many ‘Toofans’ later, it became the first home-grown billion dollar beverage brand. Storyboard18 spoke with Arnab Roy, vice president, marketing Coca-Cola India and South West Asia, about the next milestone for the brand. Roy says, "It will be an incremental billion dollars in the next three years."

Homegrown brand Thums Up is close to Indians' hearts in many ways. From a go-to drink with or after a heavy meal to the classic pairing of Old Monk and Thums Up on a rainy day, the brand has found a place in everyday occasions over the past 45 years.

Its strong fizz makes it a leading brand in the Coca-Cola Company’s portfolio, globally, and also one of the leading players in the aerated beverage market in the country.

Just a few months ago Thums Up became the first home-grown billion-dollar Indian beverage brand. James Quincey, CEO of Coca-Cola Company attributed this growth to focused marketing and execution plans for the brand in India.

But there is more opportunity for the brand to grow, feels Roy. He tells Storyboard18, “The overall penetration of the brand is still very small, if you look at India’s opportunity and size. We will have another incremental billion dollars in the next three years. If we have the right strategy then it is absolutely possible.”

Roy shares three things that are important to make it happen. “We need to continue to make it relevant with everyday culture. This is our largest brand. It needs to be an iconic brand with every generation. So obliviously how well we are able to keep it relevant with the culture is critical." 

Second, he adds, is "how we are able to ensure that we build occasions around the brand. Which honestly we haven’t done a very good job of. I think it is seen as a powerful brand but how well do you make it relevant with everyday occasions? That is a big vertical we are working on." 

Third, how can this brand innovate? "We recently launched our first super soda-Charge by Thums up. And we are excited by its potential. It is not a cola. As we start thinking how big Thums Up can become with the power of what the brand stands for, I think the opportunity is endless.”

As a part of keeping itself relevant to everyday culture, the brand recently unveiled the #HarHaathToofan campaign around the 75 years of India’s Independence. 

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The campaign features inspirational stories of athletes like former Indian national cricket team captain and current President – BCCI, Sourav Ganguly, who instilled self-belief and fearlessness in the Indian cricket team. It also has Avani Lekhara, first Indian woman to win a gold medal at the Paralympics, firing her way to the top, despite losing her legs in an accident when she was 11 years old. And Nikhat Zareen, Indian Boxer and IBA Women’s World Boxing 2022 gold medalist, who became a world champion by showcasing great endurance and fortitude in a sport, which was traditionally considered masculine. 

The new campaign is an extension of #PalatDe, which was initially unveiled last year during Thums Up’s worldwide partnership with the Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2020. “This is part two of what we started off last year. We started with the Olympics and the idea of ‘Palat De’ started there. The response was outstanding both from brand equity and the impact on the business. So it was clear that we had to go back and activate this once again. We don’t think there was a better opportunity than the 75th year of India’s independence." 

Besides a TV campaign, there is going to be a lot of activation, content development with people who are making an actual impact in India’s progress so far. "We are working with Sudarshan Patnaik, the famous sand sculptor in Orissa, and other amazing artists. We're also working with chess prodigy Praggnanandhaa. That is the power of the campaign. We have so many people around us who are making an impact and that is what is going to make the difference. It's an infinite number of stories,” says Roy.

But is the challenging economic environment impacting their plans?

“So far we have had a fantastic year,” says Roy. “One of our best Q2 ever. India is the fastest growing operating unit worldwide for the Coca Cola Company and Thums Up has played a big role in it. Are there challenges? Absolutely. After everything that has happened, Covid, what’s happened in Ukraine, the supply chain issues are not small. We were lucky that there was enough demand but on the flip side it was the highest out of stock percentage that we saw across all our brands. We have never seen such high out of stock numbers.”

Roy says that they will continue to be bullish on the India economic opportunity. The company believes that India will be one of the few markets that can ride through any possible recession that may happen in the West.

He does acknowledge that inflation is a challenge. “It is hitting us. But we will have to have a smart plan on the commercial side, working on revenue growth management on how we can still manage to overcome the challenges that inflation poses.”

<blockquote>
"Thums Up is seen as a powerful brand but how well do you make it relevant with everyday occasions? That is a big vertical we are working on." </blockquote>

But, at the same time he is very clear that they have no plans to cut their marketing budget. “We will play with our pack mix instead,” says Roy. “When I say pack mix, it is very critical for us to ensure that we are able to offer affordable price points for our consumers. For Indian consumers, affordability is still critical. As we have a long way to go to recruit more consumers, I think this is going to be critical. We are trying to ensure that on the affordable packs, we are not making big price increases." 

However, he adds that there could be opportunity to increase prices on certain packs and certain channels. "Therefore, how your pack mix allows you to overcome those inflation challenges is what all of us are working on everyday right now.”


Thums Up needs to be an iconic brand with every generation

“We will have another incremental billion dollars in the next three years for the home-grown billion dollar brand Thums Ups,” says Arnab Roy, vice president and head of marketing, Coca-Cola India and Southwest Asia to Storyboard18’s Shibani Gharat. He also talks about the brand’s new advertising campaign #HarHaathToofan.

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Coca-Cola's Arnab Roy on Thums Up’s new ad campaign #HarHaathToofan

In February 2022, Thums Up entered the billion-dollar club, a goal The Coca-Cola Company has been aggressively working towards since 2019. Thums Up has remained one of the strongest products in Coca-Cola's portfolio in India and globally.

Over the years, the beverage brand has been creating an all-macho thunderous personality for itself through its advertising. Last year, for the first time in its brand history, Thums Up decided to change its narrative. This happened after it became the worldwide partner of the Tokyo Olympics. The brand also partnered with athletes who represented India at the Games. After the Tokyo Olympics, Thums Up became the first FMCG brand to partner with the Paralympic Games.

During the Tokyo Olympics, the brand spotlighted stories of leading sportspersons for its ad campaign #PalatDe.  Thums Up also inked strategic sponsorship deals with wrestler Bajrang Punia, boxer Vikas Yadav and ace archers Deepika Kumari and Atanu Das. It collaborated with the National Rifle Association of India and sponsored the shooting contingent including Manu Bhaker. Thums Up has also collaborated with cricketing events.

In a conversation with Storyboard18, Arnab Roy, vice president and head-marketing, Coca-Cola India and Southwest Asia, shares why Thums Up is committed to promoting and supporting sports and sports personalities, why some sporting bodies need to look beyond tactical brand partnerships and more. Read on:

<strong>How has the association with the Olympics and Paralympics enhanced the brand Thums Up? </strong>

Last year, the brand set out to make an evolution with its association with the Olympic and Paralympic Games. With these campaigns, we aimed to celebrate Indian athletes across both the Olympic and the Paralympic games - to showcase the core values of brand Thums Up, for what it has truly stood for since inception – strength, perseverance, and resilience.

As an ode to the athletes and their arduous journey towards this pinnacle of sporting excellence, Thums Up’s creative and innovative campaign resonated beautifully with the audience and it contributed greatly to the brand’s growth in the year 2021. In fact, it played a critical role in Thums Up becoming the first homegrown – billion-dollar brand in Coca-Cola India’s portfolio. Additionally, in a research done by the IOC, Thums Up was the second most recalled brand associated with the Olympic Games across countries and across companies.

<strong>What are the benefits of associating with non-cricket events and personalities?</strong>

While cricket continues to be one of the most loved sports in India, The Coca-Cola Company globally has a longstanding history of supporting major sporting events, organizations, and projects around the world. Sports partnerships are a part of the DNA of The Coca-Cola Company.

Globally, we have worked closely with FIFA for the past four decades, and with World Cup Rugby for over 25 years. We have also been associated with UEFA in the past.

In India, while mainstream sports such as cricket garner interest from brands and consumers alike, and rightly so, we believe that it is just as important to support inclusive sporting tournaments and platforms. Our close association with Olympic and Paralympic Games’ and athletes such as Dr Deepa Malik, Bajrang Punia, Mariyappan Thangavelu, Avani Lekhara, Deepika Kumari, Manu Bhaker and many more from diverse backgrounds is something we are extremely proud of and resonates well with the company’s philosophy of diversity inclusion and equality.

<strong>Also, what does cricket bring to the table that other games don't?</strong>

Cricket in India is not just a mere sport. It is a religion. Fans across cultures and generations come together to celebrate the thrilling spectacle that is cricket. Cricket enables brands to reach out to consumers across demographics, and promises love, engagement, as well as prominence, unparalleled to any other sporting event.

<strong>What do brands need to do more to promote a greater sports culture in India?</strong>

We believe brands can do a lot to promote the sporting culture in India. A few top-line approaches could range from inspiring the next generation of athletes with powerful stories around sport/ sporting events; helping build sustainable grassroot programs across sports; driving inclusivity in sport – actively promoting the paralympic movement, actively promoting women sport and women athletes to be at par with men’s sport; and driving the popularity of the sport in rural and small-town India.

<strong>What are the current challenges of sports marketing? </strong>

Many sporting bodies (not all) still see brands and companies as cash sources and thus most of the partnerships are short-term tactical ones. There 
is an opportunity to build a true partnership and play the long-term game with brands. The Coca-Cola Company for example only believes in long-term partnerships and nurtures the relationship over a period of time. We have been the longest-standing partner of both the FIFA WC and the IOC.

<strong>Which emerging sports and leagues do you see the big opportunities in?</strong>

We continue to believe there is a massive opportunity across all non-cricket sports – India is destined to become a massive market across many sports and not just cricket.

<strong>What's the next big thing on Thums Up's plan of action for sports marketing?</strong>

We shall continue to activate both cricket and non-cricket sports across urban and rural areas over the next 12-15 months.

Coca-Cola’s vision is to craft the brands and choice of drinks that people love, to refresh them in body and spirit. India is a key market for The Coca-Cola Company, and we will continue to prioritize innovation as a part of our progressive marketing strategy, along with our associations with various sporting tournaments, to help strengthen our relationship with our audiences and consumers across the country.





Why some sporting bodies need to look beyond tactical brand partnerships

Storyboard18 caught up with Arnab Roy, VP and head, marketing, Coca Cola INSWA; Piyush Pandey, chief creative officer worldwide and executive chairman India of Ogilvy; and Sukesh Nayak, chief creative officer of Ogilvy India for an exclusive conversation about the making of the new Thums Up ad campaign.
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ARNAB ROY