A market study on the performance of hero cigarettes and consumer perceptions about cigarettes, beedies and micros in Azamgarh, U P

Abstract

The Excise slash on the micro category of cigarettes (non-filter cigarettes less than 60mm in length) in the Union Budget ‘94 has brought’ the category to nearly the same price structure as beedies. Since the beedi market is more than 12 times the size of the cigarette market, there is a tremendous potential for gains to the cigarette industry through beedi and dual (beedit+tcigarette) smokers. This project was undertaken to study the performance of Hero, an ITC brand in the micro category, in Azamgarh, U.P., the market where it had been initially launched. The reaction of the market to Hero, especially the advertising and communication package, would have immense significance in designing marketing strategies for other brands in the same category, such as VST’s Vijay. The study also sought to arrive at an understanding of the dynamics of beedi and ‘dual’ smoking, and also to identify future sources of gain for the micro category.