MacCoffee, leading the instant coffee market in Russia.

Strategic positioning and brand architecture for the corporate brand Food Empire, alongwith Russia’s leading 3-in-1 coffee brand MacCoffee and supporting brands of Kracks and Petrovskaya Sloboda. Markets Included Russia, Ukraine and the CIS Region.

MacCoffee is the leader in the 3-in-1 coffee segment in Russia and surrounding regions and is powered with a strong distributor thrust. The challenge was to understand the brands future intent, strength and key motivation it was rooted in and develop a compelling positioning and strategy, which the brand could further grow into.

A comprehensive diagnostic was undertaken to understand the brands core equity in its markets of Russia and Ukraine. The brand was studied from its category, market, industry, consumer, competition and communication equities.

The interrogative process included management interviews, primary and secondary research analysis, sales, trade and consumer audits. Several hypotheses were considered based on future trends, current strengths and leveraging opportunities. There was a need for strengthening the consumer-brand relationship through a deeper emotional connect. Based on the product attributes of it being a quick and convenient coffee, the brand aimed to sharpen the focus by fueling the consumer’s external needs of ambition and achievement. The insight of ‘Time is of the essence and it’s important to seize the moment’ led to the positioning of ‘Power Your Now’. The brand idea was then cascaded across all markets through a global brand conference in Singapore. The idea was further carried to other parts of the globe including Africa where it also fuelled the empowerment of Women on Women’s Day with a “Power Your Now’’ campaign.