CCI’s Deepak Agarwal on licensing agreement with Chef Sanjeev Kapoor

Clay Craft India – one of the largest fine bone china tableware manufacturers of India has joined hands with Celebrity Chef Sanjeev Kapoor to develop and launch a premium range of Tableware products under the Brand Sanjeev Kapoor. Deepak Agarwal, Director of Clay Craft India Pvt. Ltd. Elaborates on what makes them an ideal licensee for Brand Sanjeev Kapoor.

Why do you think of licensing as an effective retail strategy?

We are always looking for opportunities to grow. Licensing is a great way to explore new horizons and learn from the associated brands and partners. Sanjeev Kapoor – name is a pioneer in household category and Clay Craft is a popular brand in it’s segment. We could clearly visualise that this association can prove to be a great move by providing quality products the customers.

According to you, what are the factors that make your brand an ideal licensee for BSK?

Clay Craft is a design-driven company and is a market leader in fine bone china tableware segment in India. We also have the largest distribution network of over 110 distributors spread across the country. We also have alliances with major retail chains like Walmart, METRO, Reliance Retail, Future Group and e-Retail chains like Snapdeal, Amazon, Flipkart, Pepperfry etc. Brand Sanjeev Kapoor has a great fan-base and we have all the resources to cater to that amount of population.

How has been the response from this licensed range?

This licensing agreement is something new for us. We have launched our range at time of Diwali in 2015 and have been able to record the feedback from our retailers. We honestly have to admit that our projected demand of SK range of fine bone china crockery has fallen short of the actual demand experienced from the market. The brand has been welcomed in a very enthusiastic manner by retailers and as well as the consumers around the country. Currently, we have launched ‘Pastel’ range under brand Sanjeev Kapoor – which is a mass consumer range and are price at very affordable prices. We have tried to create value in terms of attractive gift-ready packaging.

How different is the range from other products by Clay Crafts India??

You have to see the range to believe it. The SK range of crockery is inspired from the pastel colours – which are a delight to the eyes and adds happiness to the kitchen or table environment. The range is previously not undertaken by any of the manufacturer in India. In future, we will be integrating the tableware designs with other product categories like cutlery, table linen etc in brand SK.

How did you decided upon the range and colour theme?

Brand Sanjeev Kapoor’s DNA is Chef Sanjeev Kapoor himself. After understanding Chef’s desire of the kind of quality products, our team started working on product development. The ‘Pastel’ range is just a kick-start to our offerings, we will soon launch a complete range of fine dinnerware which will represent the attention to detail in each hand-crafted piece of crockery. ?

What other brands would you want to eye at for licensing?

We would want to associate with brands such as ‘Happiness Is..’ and Disney.

What are your expansion plans with Clay Craft India?

After acquiring the very popular brand JCPL last year, we aim to re-strategise and re-launch JCPL brand in the trade & retail market. There is additional investment in new plant and machinery also under planning for the same. This will maintain our position as number one in the industry and help multifold our growth story.