which pricing strategy does cello pen uses in ball point pen products which still makes it a market leader in this product category.

which pricing strategy does cello pens uses

The proposed project as discussed above tends to put light on the current situation in the pen industry with the help of the case study of Cello Pens and Stationery Pvt Ltd. The chosen company is commonly called by their brand name "Cello". Mr G. D. Rathod the founder and present chairman of the company were in the business of manufacturing plastic bangles and plastic PVC slippers. He got inspired with the celluloid film used in making bangles and incorporated the brand name Cello. Now the company is headed by his sons Mr Pradeep Rathod (Managing Director) and Mr Pankaj Rathod (Deputy Managing Director).

According to Sayanti Banerjee (2008), Mr G D Rathod started with a small factory in 1986 with seven machines and a workforce of sixty people. He started with the manufacturing of casseroles, which was a very new concept at that time for the Indian consumers.

Later this product was named as hotpot in the market. As the time passed, they learned the art of manufacturing hotpots very efficiently and achieved market leadership. In the initial period, to educate consumers about the product, aggressive marketing strategy was adopted. Different forms of media were used for the purpose of communicating the benefits, uses and uniqueness of the product. Their ad campaign "Say Hello to Cello" is still very famous amongst consumers. The strategy used by Mr G D Rathod, helped him gain focus from consumers in a huge proportion which gave a head start to his new concept and business. The proverb "Well started is half done" suits this situation very well, but after all its business which is bundled with variability's which has changed the destiny of many businesses. A very good example would be the case of Gerald Ratner, whose famous media gaffe forced him to resign from the chairmanship of the company (Ratner Group) founded by him. Then after several attempts he came with the idea of online jewellery selling which helped him gain success again (geraldonline.com). So in this case we can see that his one mistake made him loose his own business.

Cello Writing Instruments.The makers of India's favourite Cello pens, are a part of Rs.1000 crore (US$ 250mn.) Cello Group. Lauded as one of the world's best and India's largest pen manufacturer's and well known for its dynamism and spirit of innovation. Cello ceaselessly endeavours to bring in the newest and the best of technology to set new benchmarks in quality and innovates constantly to blaze new trails in the market place. At Cello, innovation is not just a guiding philosophy, it is a key business process, dynamism and a defining attitude. Today Cello offers one of the largest range of pens offered by any manufacturer in the world, all conforming to the highest global standards. The result of a well-equipped assembly line with over 180ultra-sophisticated injection moulding machines and a highly trained and dedicated work force of 10000. Cello's extensive global R & D, cutting-edge manufacturing technology, production, processes, globally sourced material and exhaustive quality standards are among the best in the world. It's what makes Cello Group strong business conglomerate. It's what make a Cello a Cello
002.jpgIndia is an extremely competitive Rs 1500 crore (US$350mn) market for plastic moulded writing instruments and Cello is the undisputed leader, presently manufacturing 6 million pens per day, with an installed capacity of 6.2 million pens per day. A colossus towering over the rest, Cello has well over 33% share in the domestic market and Rs600 Crore (US$1200mn) turnover. Cello has been achieving unrivalled growth rates of 12% p.a. in the domestic market and exports growing at 60% contribute 14% of the domestic turnover. Thanks to the cutting edge technology,vast range of innovative pen across every price point, unparalleled consumer reach and strong brand equity, its really no wonder Cello today sells nearly 6 million pens a day, every day.

003.jpgCello has India's largest range of smart looking, high-performance gel ink and ballpoint pens in different ink colours and at a variety of price points. Be it a school kid , a college student , a young professional or a senior executive, there is a Cello for every one. Starting from Cello Alpha Gel ,Maxriter and Gripper pens for pressure-free writing that are a hit with school kid to the cool looking Cello Finegrip, Pinpoint and Technotip XS that the college going crowd vouches for. From the ever-dependable Cello Finer, Pointec and the stylish Cello Powermaxx that has become the working professionals' most preferred to the Cello Sapphire, Papersoft and Executive pens with a certain understand luxury that have become a common sight on the desks of senior executives. There's also Cello's new range of Highlighters and markers that have carved out an enviable name for themselves in a very short time.

004.jpgCello is now poised on the verge of an exciting new leap forward, with an ambitious diversification plan that will propel Cello well beyond the realm of pens and writing instruments. Cello's foray into notebooks, office files (stationery products) pencils, desktop accessories, OHP & CD markers and mechanical pencils will lead to enormous growth in the coming years.
Cello Pens are backed by well-thought out marketing and advertising campaigns based on strategically sound positioning that have driven the name Cello to the tip of every tongue. Today, Cello enjoys very high top-of-mind consumer recall and a prime spot of consumer mindspace. This, coupled with Cello's aggressive below-the-line promotional initiatives, makes sure Cello stays the most asked for pen in India.