Reality Checks

Most of the times while reading any marketing subject or listening to the Corporate Biz-wizs we hear the concept called Branding and its power to trap our target customer. I just witnessed something like this (may not be the way they expect me to) recently in a show room. I was doing some window-shopping when I land up in a branded apparel showroom. I was casually talking to the store manager about the types of branding and other promotional activities they do. I asked him as to why your brand does not have any brand ambassador. He explained me that since this brand is of such a premium class clothing that we can’t associate any local/Indian brand ambassador to it. Only Hollywood actors can fit in which is a very costly exercise. Hmm... quite a big thought. Anyways one day there was a sale going on there. I happened to witness a “Bada Sahab” visiting the showroom with his driver. The Sahab was very busy is surfing the “premium class clothing”. Since there was a lot of discounts offered in the off-season sale so the driver happened to witness some discounted stuff with much of awe. The aspirations of the driver to look like his Sahab grew such immensely that he couldn’t wait for the try room to get emptied and change there but removed his shirt then and there only to try out this new affordable stuff and feel like a king. Now at that moment looking at that "Top Less Salman Khan" I asked that Store Manager about the target segment for his “Premium Class Clothing” and he was just speechless. After getting the purchase done, the driver rushed outside, put that stuff in the car and came back again standing at the same position where his Sahab left him to be.