From catering to 40-plus cohort to short shelf-life products—ITC’s strategy of micro-segmenting consumers

Hemant Malik, divisional chief executive (foods), at ITC, has an interesting array of desserts at his office in Bengaluru. Made out of dry fruits and dates, these desserts are undoubtedly less sinful than the traditional mithai and chocolates. They are indulging too. Unlike most healthy food products, they don’t compromise on taste. They are yet to be launched, but Malik can’t hide his excitement. “My colleagues refuse to give me these, as I tend to finish them,” he laughs.

So, what’s special about these desserts? They would be launched on ITC’s 18-month-old Right Shift platform, targeted at consumers above the age of 40. Around 30-35% of the population is above the age of 40, yet these set of consumers are ignored by most brands, claims Malik. “As you grow older, your body changes and your energy levels, muscle mass and digestion get impacted. It isn't only about consuming more protein or fibre, it's also about being mindful of things like added sugar, excessive sodium, refined carbohydrates, high saturated fats and empty calories. Which is why we have carefully crafted every single product under Right Shift to make it nutrition dense for people who are 40-Plus,” Malik explains.

The idea is not to offer consumers health supplements but healthier alternatives to popular food. “I don't want to be medicinal. But I want you to be healthy and still eat the things you love to eat,” says Malik. The brand has around eight SKUs (which include biscuits, atta, namkeens), the most popular being atta biscuit, which uses jaggery as a sweetener and contain rice bran oil instead of palm oil. There are also oats and ragi variants of biscuits. “Compared to other health cookies, these are packed with 3x whole grains, nuts and seeds, and are priced at ₹800 per kg. In a short span of time, we have captured over 12% of market share in premium health biscuits on quick commerce platforms,” he claims. The coming months are going to see launch of more snacks and even products such as protein shakes.

Right Shift is part of ITC’s over-arching strategy of micro-segmenting consumers and building specialised cohorts. While Right Shift targets the 40-plus cohort, Yoga Bar targets the younger generation and is about protein. “It has a tasty health kind of a positioning therefore, they have a range and they keep on adding to it,” Malik explains.

Most of these micro-segments are premium and the brands are priced 10-15% higher than the company’s regular food brands. They are niche and only available on quick commerce platforms. The company’s newest cohort is short-shelf like products under the brand, Baked Creations. It offers freshly baked cookies and a host of other snacks which have a 40-50-day shelf life. Malik’s favourite Baked Creations product is coconut cookies. It has also launched in Bengaluru a range of fresh chutneys which have a 15-day shelf life.

The shorter shelf-life products need to be manufactured closer to the consumer. Malik says the company plans to use its cloud kitchen infrastructure (ITC Aashirvaad Soul Creations) in the major cities to manufacture the shorter shelf-life products.