Mondelez India unleashes Cadbury Dairy Milk Marvellous Creations

Mondelez India has launched the new limited edition Cadbury Dairy Milk Vintage Tin Pack. This edition includes Cadbury Dairy Milk chocolates packaged with covers from four distinct eras such as 1907, 1923, 1961 and 1999.

Anil Viswanathan, Director, Marketing (chocolates), Mondelez India, said, "We are thrilled to launch this beautiful Cadbury Dairy Milk Vintage Box. Consumers can take a trip down the memory lane with these retro pack designs and relive their favourite Cadbury Dairy Milk memories."

Abhishek Ahluwalia, Head, E-commerce, Mondelez India, stated, "These days, consumers are not just looking at products and services, but at experiences that can create long-lasting memories. We are excited to launch yet another exclusive e-commerce proposition."

"The vintage pack is a symbol of its seven decades of consumer love and adulation and the positive leaps it has taken to become India's favourite chocolate brand. We are committed to building on the legacy we've created in the last 70 years with the promise of bringing more moments of joy in the times to come," Ahluwalia added. 

The Cadbury Dairy Milk Limited Edition Vintage Tin Pack is priced at Rs 544. It contains four Cadbury Dairy Milk Chocolate bars and will be available on Cadburygifting.in, and exclusively on e-tailers such as Amazon, Flipkart and Paytm.

भारत के प्रतिस्पर्धा आयोग (सीसीआई) ने कैडबरी चॉकलेट निर्माता मोंडेलेज़ इंडिया के खिलाफ दायर शिकायत को खारिज कर दिया है। एक समझौते को समाप्त करने के संबंध में शिकायतकर्ता ने कन्फेक्शनरी विशाल मोंडेलेज़ इंडिया फूड्स द्वारा अनुचित व्यावसायिक प्रथाओं का आरोप लगाया।

निष्पक्ष व्यापार नियामक ने यह देखते हुए मामले को खारिज कर दिया है कि मोंडेलेज़ के खिलाफ (प्रतियोगिता) अधिनियम की धारा 3 या धारा 4 का कोई उल्लंघन नहीं किया गया है। धारा 3 विरोधी प्रतिस्पर्धी समझौतों से संबंधित है और धारा 4 प्रमुख बाजार स्थिति के दुरुपयोग के साथ सौदा करता है।

शिकायत महाराष्ट्र के पूर्ववर्ती स्टॉकिस्ट  और मोंडेज़ के उत्पादों के वितरक द्वारा दायर की गई थी। शिकायतकर्ता ने दलील दी कि कन्फेक्शनरी विशालकाय द्वारा प्रभुत्व और विरोधी प्रतिस्पर्धी प्रथाओं के दुरुपयोग के मुद्दों को उठाए जाने के बाद, मोंडेलेज़ ने दो इकाइयों के बीच निर्विवाद और झूठे आधार पर वितरण समझौते को समाप्त कर दिया।

नियामक ने कहा, "अन्य आरोपों के बारे में मोंडेलेज़ (विपरीत पार्टी) द्वारा पुनर्विक्रय मूल्य रखरखाव और वितरकों पर अपनी छूट योजनाओं के साथ आने के लिए प्रतिबंध, शिकायतकर्ता द्वारा उन्हें प्रमाणित करने के लिए कोई सहायक सबूत या संचार नहीं रहा है।"

"सीसीआई ने आगे कहा कि इसके अलावा, पुनर्विक्रय मूल्य रखरखाव अधिनियम के प्रावधानों का प्रति उल्लंघन नहीं है और सुझाव देने के लिए कुछ भी नहीं है कि आरोपी (विपरीत पार्टी) के आचरण के बाजार में प्रतिस्पर्धा पर एक  प्रतिकूल प्रभाव पड़ता है। इसलिए, कोई पहला पक्ष नहीं है अधिनियम की धारा 3 के प्रावधानों का उल्लंघन करने का मामला इस गिनती पर भी किया गया है ।"

Competition Commission of India (CCI) has rejected a complained filed against Cadbury Chocolates Maker Mondelez India. The complainant alleged unfair business practices by confectionery giant Mondelez India Foods with regard to termination of a distribution agreement.

The fair trade regulator has dismissed the case after observing that no contravention of either Section 3 or Section 4 of the (Competition) Act is made out against Mondelez. Section 3 pertains to anti-competitive agreements and Section 4 deals with abuse of dominant market position. 

The complaint was filed by a Maharashtra-based erstwhile stockist and distributor of products of Mondelez. The complainant contended that after it had raised the issues of abuse of dominance and anti-competitive practices by the confectionery giant, Mondelez terminated the distribution agreement between the two entities on frivolous and false grounds.

The regulator said, "Regarding the other allegations such as resale price maintenance by Mondelez (Opposite Party) and restriction on distributors to come up with their own discount schemes, there has been no supporting evidence or communication by the complainant to substantiate them."

"Further, resale price maintenance is not a per se violation of the provisions of the Act and there is nothing to suggest that the conduct of the OP (Opposite Party) has an appreciable adverse effect on competition in the market. Therefore, no prima facie case of violation of the provisions of Section 3 of the Act is made out on this count also," CCI further added.

The Cadbury distributors in Gujarat have gone on a boycott against the Cadbury-maker Mondelez International. The Gujarat Mondelez-Cadbury Distributors Forum has not engaged in any business with Mondelez India Foods Private Limited since six days now over issues ranging from its opposition to expanding distribution network through alleged phantom outlets to GST evasion through these outlets.

As per the estimates, there are 52 distributors of Mondelez in the state doing business worth Rs 400 cr per annum. Trouble has been brewing up between the two since February when the distributors formed a group to begin what they call a non-cooperation movement against the company.

“To show its retail penetration, the company forced each one of us to open multiple outlets periodically and linked incentives to the same. Since beyond a point that was not possible, we were forced to open dummy outlets through a company helpline number. Currently, there are about 10,000 bogus or non-existing outlets in Gujarat alone and we want the company to close them,” a representative from the forum said.

Mondelez India spokesperson said, “These allegations are false and baseless. As an ethical company, we never conduct business in a non-compliant manner. Our relationship – like many in the FMCG industry – is with our distributor partners to whom we sell stock. We work on an auto replenishment mode and our revenue is based on what we sell to these distributors – who in turn sell stock to retailers. No GST benefit can accrue to the company from fake outlets as alleged, since our systems are only enabled to sell to our distributor partners who are GST registered. Any inflation of retail outlets has no positive benefit, directly or indirectly, for our business.”

With GST now in place, distributors concerned feel this vicious cycle will collapse and they may come under tax scrutiny. “Mondelez has been showing expansion at our cost – these are bogus outlets – and are evading GST. We have become risk-managers for the brand and it is time we put an end to the malpractices.”

Mondelez said Indian business will be crucial to building its global ecommerce sales as the maker of Cadbury and Oreo strives for $1 billion in online sales by 2020.

Ganesh Kashyap, head e-comm, AMEA at Mondelez International said “As a company, we have taken a big bet to build a billion dollar business online in snacking by 2020. A third of that would come from Asian, the Middle Eastern and African regions and India will really be a key market for us. By 2020, online business will get to about 5% of our overall sales in India from less than 1% now. But the company also expects additional revenues to come from newer platforms it launched its own portal in India, marking its entry into the ecommerce business, especially to cash in on the premium gifting market. “We don't expect to be a retailer, but in gifting, there’s a real opportunity for personalisation of gifts. We as a company want to push the frontier in the space”.

Until now, the country’s largest confectioner has been selling its products online through marketplaces such as Big Basket and Amazon. Since last year, it has been deepening its relationship with them by having product customisation and promotions, exclusive to online. For instance, it set up a virtual chocolate store on Amazon India, launched Bournvita biscuits, Cadbury Fuse, Marvellous Creations and Silk Oreo first on various online portals before rolling them out at traditional retail stores.

The digital push comes at a time when health-conscious consumers are cutting back on discretionary spend, forcing chocolate and confectionery makers in India to post near-decade-low growth in sales last fiscal. Mondelez saw sales rise by about 6% in the year to March 2017, better than a year ago but far from the double-digit growth it had posted in most of the past decade.

Mondelez said e-commerce is showing signs of leapfrogging modern trade. In 2016, the company’s e-commerce net revenue grew more than 35% globally. China remains one of its biggest growth drivers with online sales already accounting for 10% of the country’s overall revenue.

It has been a long-running battle for snack maker Mondelez International, Inc. The company, maker of button-shaped Gems candy-chocolate and Dairy Milk chocolate bars, has been trying to convince the US and Indian regulators for seven years that allegations of it having set up a phantom factory in Himachal Pradesh and paid bribes to regularise it were just that — mere allegations.

According to a source at the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), a team from the US Department of Justice (DOJ) is likely to visit India in the next few days to interview former and current employees of Mondelez India, formerly Cadbury India.

Apart from an anti-corruption unit of the CBI assisting DOJ, the Indian agency’s local unit in Himachal Pradesh and India’s Central Vigilance Commission are also conducting separate investigations under the Indian Prevention of Corruption Act of 1988.

The case may also pit two of the most celebrated FCPA personalities against each other — Daniel Kahn who joined the DOJ in 2010 and Mark Mendelsohn who left the department in the same year for private practice.

Peter Carr in the office of public affairs, DOJ, said, "As a matter of policy, the department generally neither confirms nor denies whether a matter is under investigation."

The spokesperson of the company said, "We continue to cooperate with all authorities to address this matter, which relates back to 2010-11, through the administrative and judicial process. This includes providing our executives with appropriate legal support during the process. We firmly believe that the decision to claim excise tax benefit is valid and that our executives acted in good faith and within the law in the decision to claim excise benefit in respect of our plant in Baddi. We are not aware of any criminal proceedings having been initiated by any authority against our company or ex-employees."

The CBI source said DOJ officials may visit India soon and the employees would be called then for interviews.

Maker of Cadbury chocolates and Oreo biscuits, India business of Mondelez, has witnessed the slowest growth in more than a decade last fiscal when demand for most discretionary products took a hit due to sluggishness in the economy.

According to its filling with the registrar of companies (RoC) , Mondelez India Foods posted a 4 percent growth in net sales for the year ended March at Rs 5,411 crore. Net profit dropped significantly to Rs 35 crore against Rs 98 crore in the previous year. The company had changed its financial cycle from December to March in the previous year.

For 15 months ended in March 2015, it had reported sales of Rs 6,507 crore. Mondelez maintained that India remains a high priority market for the firm.

A Mondelez India spokesperson, said, "We recognise that in the short term, the overall business environment has remained slack as demand was tepid in the domestic market. But as we invest into selling, marketing and people, we continue to protect our leading share positions in the near term."

The company spokesperson said, "Given our pace of growth we also need to attract the best talent from the market. So, when our former MD expressed a desire to move on, we decided an experienced leader from outside the business with extensive knowledge of the market was important for us to make the most of the significant opportunities for growth we see in India."

Mondelez International is gearing up to take on its counterparts Nestle and Mars in India’s chocolate-coated peanut segment. The makers of Cadbury, Mondelez soon will be releasing its new product called ‘Fuse’ which is expected to take its competitors for a ride.

Mondelez International, styled Mondelez, is an American multinational confectionery, food and beverage company based in Illinois which employs about 107,000 people around the world. The company is having high hopes with Fuse, since it is about to hit the Indian market. Currently, chocolate-coated peanut segment is dominated by Mars and Nestle and with Cadbury’s Fuse inclusion, the market is all set to get heated up.

Speaking about the new product, Manu Anand, President, Chocolate-Asia Pacific, Mondelez International said, “I think now, we have an opportunity here to create a premium product to what we had in 5 Star. I think Cadbury Fuse will do that for us and create a whole new segment.”

As per the company’s plan, its latest product Fuse will be up for sale first on Snapdeal and after two weeks, it will be hitting the shelves of the store. The chocolate bar was first launched in 1996 in the UK and 40 million bars were sold in the first week of release. However, it was discontinued a decade ago.

Mondelez India Foods, former Cadbury India has chalked out a plan to expand its rural operations as chocolate penetration in the country doubles with rising consumption.

The maker of Cadbury Dairy Milk chocolate, Bournvita milk food drink, Tang powdered drink mix and Oreo biscuits has identified 20,000 high potential villages in nine states where it will deploy its distribution machinery to market its products.

Afterwards, the firm will continue to expand in about 5,000 odd villages every year, Chandramouli Venkatesan, MD, Mondelez India Foods said.

"Rural is increasingly integrating with the mainstream and that is one of the key drivers to growth. Earlier, rural was defined by not only a place where people lived but also the mindset. Today, it's only a place where you stay and the mindset has become mainstream. Better connectivity to technology has enabled this shift," said Venkatesan, who took over at the helm of the firm in January this year. Reaching 7,80,000 villages in India can be a challenging task for a marketer.

When Mondelez, three years back began evaluating the potential of the rural market, it had experimented with placing dispensers at select stores in three villages in Maharashtra where none of its products were available.

"We watched for a month and were surprised that the throughput at these stores was Rs 1,000 in one month. This is comparable to what one would get in a lower end store in urban India," said Venkatesan. Mondelez realised that the rural consumer was willing to purchase its products much like its urban counterpart. Over the last decade, the per capita consumption of chocolate in India has trebled from 30 gm per annum to over 100 gm.

The rising per capita consumption of chocolate in the country and the potential growth in rural India, has led Mondelez to invest close to $200 million in capacity expansion and visi-coolers.  According to a Nielsen report, Mondelez draws 12 percent of it’s roughly Rs 7,000 crore turnover from rural markets.