Baskin Robbins, Seven Bungalows
KGN Enterprise, A3, Pink Apts, J P Road, Seven Bungalows, Andheri West, Mumbai Phone No : 022 2632 5715, 098207 14786
2306 hours, 25th July 2014, Friday:
Baskin-Robbins has nearly 7,000 store locations in over 50 countries outside the US. They claim to be one of the world's most recognizable brands of ice cream treats and the world’s largest ice cream specialty chain. Baskin Robbins entered India in 1993 through a joint venture with the Ghai Group. Its first manufacturing plant outside North America opened in Pune. Present in 150 cities/ towns with 500+ stores, Baskin Robbins is one of the largest retail chains in India.
In Bombay they have seventy outlets.
A small investigation led to a very surprising observation.
Consider this: Zomato.com is unarguably the numero uno food review portal in India. By virtue of this it can definitely be considered as a rational yardstick. Baskin Robbins with seventy outlets have a combined review strength of only 79 as of date in the city. There are not more than six reviews for any single outlet, and these outlets are only three. Most other outlets have only one review associated with it. There's definitely something wrong here.
Feeble argument? Nopes.
The logic is strengthened by a like to like comparison of all the ice cream brands in the city.
Naturals Ice cream : 58 outlets - 286 reviews.
Haagen Dazs : 3 outlets - 154 reviews
K Rustom Ice Cream : 1 outlet - 120 reviews
Hokey Pokey Ice Cream : 12 outlets - 71 reviews
Ice CreamWorks : 8 outlets - 71 reviews
Gelato Italiano : 28 outlets - 74 reviews
Dairy Don : 20 outlets - 71 reviews
Havmor Ice Creams : 23 outlets - 45 reviews
Another parameter? Sure. Lets consider the cost factor. Here is the listing of Average Cost for two people:
Baskin Robbins : INR 250.
Naturals Ice Cream : INR 150
Haagen Dazs : INR 300
K Rustom Ice Cream : INR 100
Hokey Pokey : INR 300
Ice Cream Works : INR 300
Gelato Italiano : INR 200
Dairy Don : INR 100
Havmor Ice Cream : INR 150
The BR principals need to do some serious math and some intensive brainstorming for this state of affairs.
We visited this outlet as a sojourn late in the evening. A small dainty outlet located in the corner of a narrow lane in a low socio economic area. Jazzy lighting, glass facade, attractive decor and ivory white furniture beckoned us inside.
Baskin-Robbins has nearly 7,000 store locations in over 50 countries outside the US. They claim to be one of the world's most recognizable brands of ice cream treats and the world’s largest ice cream specialty chain. Baskin Robbins entered India in 1993 through a joint venture with the Ghai Group. Its first manufacturing plant outside North America opened in Pune. Present in 150 cities/ towns with 500+ stores, Baskin Robbins is one of the largest retail chains in India.
In Bombay they have seventy outlets.
A small investigation led to a very surprising observation.
Consider this: Zomato.com is unarguably the numero uno food review portal in India. By virtue of this it can definitely be considered as a rational yardstick. Baskin Robbins with seventy outlets have a combined review strength of only 79 as of date in the city. There are not more than six reviews for any single outlet, and these outlets are only three. Most other outlets have only one review associated with it. There's definitely something wrong here.
Feeble argument? Nopes.
The logic is strengthened by a like to like comparison of all the ice cream brands in the city.
Naturals Ice cream : 58 outlets - 286 reviews.
Haagen Dazs : 3 outlets - 154 reviews
K Rustom Ice Cream : 1 outlet - 120 reviews
Hokey Pokey Ice Cream : 12 outlets - 71 reviews
Ice CreamWorks : 8 outlets - 71 reviews
Gelato Italiano : 28 outlets - 74 reviews
Dairy Don : 20 outlets - 71 reviews
Havmor Ice Creams : 23 outlets - 45 reviews
Another parameter? Sure. Lets consider the cost factor. Here is the listing of Average Cost for two people:
Baskin Robbins : INR 250.
Naturals Ice Cream : INR 150
Haagen Dazs : INR 300
K Rustom Ice Cream : INR 100
Hokey Pokey : INR 300
Ice Cream Works : INR 300
Gelato Italiano : INR 200
Dairy Don : INR 100
Havmor Ice Cream : INR 150
The BR principals need to do some serious math and some intensive brainstorming for this state of affairs.
We visited this outlet as a sojourn late in the evening. A small dainty outlet located in the corner of a narrow lane in a low socio economic area. Jazzy lighting, glass facade, attractive decor and ivory white furniture beckoned us inside.
The location was manned by three lads in their early twenties. They were doing a good job of handling customers and offering appropriate fares.
The parlour offers three class of ice creams Regular, Favorites, Divine -classified in ascending order of their prices. They offer 31 flavors of ice cream, true to their brand identity which incorporates the figure 31within their logo. We were taking our sweet time deciding about the choice of ice creams, and they suggested trying out different flavors before shortlisting them.
The parlour offers three class of ice creams Regular, Favorites, Divine -classified in ascending order of their prices. They offer 31 flavors of ice cream, true to their brand identity which incorporates the figure 31within their logo. We were taking our sweet time deciding about the choice of ice creams, and they suggested trying out different flavors before shortlisting them.
We were attracted by the item "Make your own sundae. Three scoops of choiciest ice creams. We liked the idea. We selected two chocolate varieties and one of mango, and watched delightfully as they extracted one scoopful of each in an attractive bowl, then poured appropriate sauces on top of each, then white cream on them. This was sprinkled with crushed nuts and then finally topped with a cherry. When the order arrived, we were delighted. We rued upon our choice of two chocolate flavors, but were impressed with the presentation.
But to a discerning soul, some points came out as glaring:
1) Too harsh coloring agents used in the ice cream. And some of them absolutely unappealing. I would love to know how does the dark blue colored variety fares as compared to others. The dark blues and the dark oranges and the dark browns were eyesores.
2) The ice cream scoops were loaded with ice crystals.
3) This brand of ice cream is presumably churned very fast and hard, thereby resulting in increased volume and less satiety per bite.
The other complaints:
1) Hygiene was a big downer here.
2) They adopt the practice of not displaying the composite prices on their menu card and add taxes extra.
1) Too harsh coloring agents used in the ice cream. And some of them absolutely unappealing. I would love to know how does the dark blue colored variety fares as compared to others. The dark blues and the dark oranges and the dark browns were eyesores.
2) The ice cream scoops were loaded with ice crystals.
3) This brand of ice cream is presumably churned very fast and hard, thereby resulting in increased volume and less satiety per bite.
The other complaints:
1) Hygiene was a big downer here.
2) They adopt the practice of not displaying the composite prices on their menu card and add taxes extra.
The verdict:
It comes as a huge surprise that a brand as gigantic as this is left uncontrolled with the franchisees with no supervision on compliance to brand values. Plus, the brand itself needs to evolve, and cannot afford to remain cocooned in the imagery of its definition or the "31 flavors" concept. India is an extremely dynamic and value-for-money oriented market, and hungry brands are out there for a kill. Even a couple of percentage points dip can corrode the goodwill to a great extent. The flavor-of-the-month concept is too little an effort in a jungle like this.
Where's the inclination for innovation???
The ratings, they go like this.:
The Food Quotient : Food Quality 2.5 / 5, Food Choices 2.5 / 5, Food Portion 3.5 / 5 Food Presentation : 4 / 5
The Other Determinants : Location 3.5 / 5, Cleanliness 1.5 / 5, Service 4 / 5
The Hygiene Factors : Ambiance 3.5 / 5, Space quotient 2.5 / 5, Delivery time 4 / 5
The Conclusives : Food Price 3 / 5, Honesty 2 / 5, Overall Experience 3 / 5, Will I Visit again 2.5 / 5
PS: Bouquets / brickbats on the review can be addressed to [email protected] or submitted below.
It comes as a huge surprise that a brand as gigantic as this is left uncontrolled with the franchisees with no supervision on compliance to brand values. Plus, the brand itself needs to evolve, and cannot afford to remain cocooned in the imagery of its definition or the "31 flavors" concept. India is an extremely dynamic and value-for-money oriented market, and hungry brands are out there for a kill. Even a couple of percentage points dip can corrode the goodwill to a great extent. The flavor-of-the-month concept is too little an effort in a jungle like this.
Where's the inclination for innovation???
The ratings, they go like this.:
The Food Quotient : Food Quality 2.5 / 5, Food Choices 2.5 / 5, Food Portion 3.5 / 5 Food Presentation : 4 / 5
The Other Determinants : Location 3.5 / 5, Cleanliness 1.5 / 5, Service 4 / 5
The Hygiene Factors : Ambiance 3.5 / 5, Space quotient 2.5 / 5, Delivery time 4 / 5
The Conclusives : Food Price 3 / 5, Honesty 2 / 5, Overall Experience 3 / 5, Will I Visit again 2.5 / 5
PS: Bouquets / brickbats on the review can be addressed to [email protected] or submitted below.
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