In their bid to expand market share, brands from all fields seem to be taking a cue from telecom firms. The latest to get aggressive on the brand-building front is the Chennai-headquartered Naturals Salon and Spa has, which has come out with a unique promotional offer: a one rupee hair cut targeted at men.
On Wednesday, C.K.Kumaravel, CEO and co-founder of Naturals Salon and Spa, posted a tweet, which said, “When the going gets tough, the tough get going. Disruption is a way of life @ naturals. Hey Competition, here is one more idea for you to copy.” The image below the tweet said, “Rs. 1 is all that you need to get gorgeous.”
“We have been doing this for the last few days at all our salons in Tamil Nadu. It’s disruptive marketing,” said Mr. Kumaravel. Till Wednesday, over 50,000 men got their haircut done through the 256 Naturals salons across Tamil Nadu. “We are doing this from Monday to Friday and each salon has 8 hair stylists who will be deployed for this. We will run this trial only for one month and see how it works,” Mr. Kumaravel added.
According to an analyst who tracks the beauty and wellness industry for South India, too many brands have mushroomed in a short span in the salon market. “Like the airline and hospitality industry, occupancy levels are coming down. In Chennai, it had dwindled by 20-25%. So firms have to come up with such innovative ideas,” he added. In India, there are over 2 lakh salons and each of them, on an average, earns revenues of ₹3 lakh per month.
Mr. Kumaravel said:“When you say ₹1 there is excitement and curiosity.” He thinks this offer will push the brand firmer into the consumers’ consciousness. The flip side, however, is to sustain footfalls after the special offer winds up.
