Travel is back. How much growth in overall sales are you witnessing compared to the last two years?
We had two lockdowns that were bad for the luggage industry and for us as a brand. Things started getting better post the pandemic. As an American company, our financials are from January to December. I would talk about growth over 2019 (the pre-pandemic period). In 2022, as a company we grew 48 pc over 2019.
Tell us about the brand’s portfolio in India.
We are a 113-year-old multi-brand company. We have been the world leaders in the luggage industry for all these years. Samsonite is the world’s number one and American Tourister is the world’s number two luggage brand. World’s number three is also owned by our parent company – Tumi. Samsonite has been in India for the last 25-plus years. In the mid-2000s American Tourister was launched and it has been an excellent journey for both brands. American Tourister is India’s biggest brand and every year, the lead compared to the other brands keeps increasing.
Samsonite is the premium luxury brand and American Tourister is below Samsonite in terms of pricing. Kamiliant is a lower end brand. It is the brand that fights the local competition from other stronger Indian brands. It has been the fastest growing brand in India. The company’s growth is propelled by all brands. The consumers of our brands have realised that when you buy Samsonite products and if you have to travel abroad, the products can get serviced anywhere in the world. This is a claim which can be made by few brands in any industry. We offer advantages of this kind to our consumers.
What are some of the travel trends that you see and implications in your industry?
Travel is booming. More and more people are going for more trips. The growth in the numbers post pandemic is the highest I have ever seen. The habits have changed. The good thing for the luggage industry is the number of holidays has doubled. If an individual was taking one holiday pre-pandemic, it has gone up to two to three trips a year. There is a term called ‘Workcation’ that has evolved where individuals combine work and leisure while on vacation. All these changes are hugely helping the luggage industry as a whole.
Within the industry, Samsonite made the right move. We read the trends fastest. We kept investing through the pandemic in terms of the construction of our warehouse where we doubled the production capacity. During the pre-pandemic period, we used to make 2 to 2.1 lakh hard luggage products per month which moved to 5 lakh a month during the pandemic. We put up a new warehouse of 5 lakh sq. ft. which we opened in late 2021.
As mentioned earlier, Samsonite is a premium luxury brand. On the brand building front, we appointed brand consultants and spoke to those consumers who could afford the products, but were not buying it. I have spoken to over 30 consumers who are thought leaders in their respective fields. One major learning from the conversations was that while we are a great brand, we need to continue speaking with consumers – which we promised we will. Hence, we decided to call for a pitch and then we chose Lowe Lintas as our agency. We launched the ‘Tested like Samsonite’ campaign.
Tested Like Samsonite seems to have struck a chord…
The ‘Tested Like Samsonite’ campaign has helped Samsonite as a brand grow even faster than our own company. Our company is fastest growing in the luggage industry and within the company Samsonite is growing much faster. In the January quarter the brand Samsonite doubled the business compared to 2022. This is our first quarter post the campaign launch.
When we spoke to consumers, we also tried to find out what makes them buy Samsonite. We realised that the consumer understands and is aware of elements like our brand legacy and innovation – things like we were the first brand to introduce vertical bags, wheels on bags etc. The innovation the younger generation takes for granted was done by Samsonite. The consumers also buy the products as they believe in the finest of engineering, they love the way our products look. Craftmanship that goes in is also appreciated.
We looked at some personalities whose life stories are well-known for strength and perseverance. Amitabh Bachchan, Yuvraj Singh, Mithali Raj, all of them have an inspiring story with an element of strength. Lowe Lintas did a great job in executing the campaign in the way we envisioned. We have made great media choices also for the campaign.
What has the measured response to the campaign been?
Research post the campaign to evaluate it from a numbers perspective was positive. We have also received feedback from thought leaders across the industry. Then of course, the numbers speak. The business has been good post the campaign release.
What is the share of each brand to sales in India?
In India American Tourister takes the biggest chunk of 50 pc in sales followed by Samsonite at 25 pc. Kamiliant would be 25 pc.
#CrossBoundaries – American Tourister’s 2023 campaign featuring Virat Kohli
Samsonite has launched Magnum Eco – made of recycled material. Can you tell me about the reception of the product?
It sold out much quicker than we thought. We didn’t expect that kind of response. The love for the planet is always there among consumers. I am proud of the fact that we didn’t start talking about sustainability now. We have been doing the same for many years. We have said that the products should be made durable, so that there will be fewer bags on the planet. We spoke about repairability and putting service centres around the globe, decades ago. The logic was that if the consumers want to get the bags repaired and not replaced, s/he should be able to do that.
The reason why Magnum Eco is doing so well is that while my generation of consumers are aware about the planet and conserving it, we may not have been as passionate as the current generation. Their purchasing behaviours are inclined towards these factors. They look at brands who do the right things in terms of planet conservation initiatives. Now, it is not just about doing the best for the planet, it is also about doing best for business. The consumers of today reward you for such initiatives.
The profile of buyers would be those who are conscious about the environment and the planet.
Samsonite had to shut down around 20 pc of stores during the pandemic. What are the current number of stores – brand owned and franchise operated? What are the expansion plans?
We have reopened stores, not necessarily in the same locations we have shut down, but somewhere near the old stores.
The number is much higher than in 2019. Totally, we have 480 stores. Among that 400 are American Tourister exclusive stores and 80 are Samsonite stores. We open 10 to 12 stores per month. Our plan for 2023 is to touch 500 American Tourister and cross 100 stores for Samsonite. Six hundred stores in total by the end of 2023.
Reportedly, e-commerce contributes to 18 pc of the brand’s overall sales in 2022. What is the current split and what should it be by, say, 2024? Has it grown over a year? What is the split between the marketplaces and Samsonite website?
As of now e-commerce channels contribute to 16 to 17 pc and rest is from retail. Samsonite website contribution is very negligible compared to marketplaces.
E-commerce will cross 20 pc by 2024.
What is the split between digital and television in the ad spends?
We will continue to speak to the consumers through all mediums. The spend on digital increases with every campaign. But that doesn’t mean that we don’t ignore other mediums. For Samsonite, we are very big on airports – at 25 to 28 pc. Digital garners 20 pc and the rest is for TV and print.
For American Tourister, TV takes the major share followed by digital, print and OOH.
There are several new age brands in the luggage industry like Mokobara, Acefour, which are said to disrupt the industry. Will the emergence and growth of D2C brands affect major players like Samsonite in the long run?
I don’t think so. While it’s always good to have new companies coming into business, luggage is something which consumers want to purchase from a brand which is backed by a strong company which can offer after sales service not just in India, but abroad as well. Samsonite can claim that. So, when we come with these key strengths, honestly competition doesn’t worry us.
(First published by The Free Press Journal BrandSutra under exclusive syndication arrangement from MediaNews4u.com. Feedback: [email protected].)
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