Parvatha Kiran on Bottom of the Pyramid | Corporate Interviews

Executive Interviews

on Leadership

on Change Management

on Global Strategy

on Corporate Entrepreneurship

on Multicultural Teams

on Family Business

on Strategy Execution

on Collaboration

Executive Interviews: Interview with Parvatha Kiran on Bottom of the Pyramid
November 2008 - By Dr. Nagendra V Chowdary

Parvatha Kiran
General Manager - Sales, Taj Group of Hotels.

Do you also foresee 'the budget' hotel segment getting heated up with new players entering the market?
The budget hotel segment will never get heated up in countries like India and China as long as the value proposition is well-defined and pricing is not dictated by demand/ supply imbalances. We will now see this segment redefining the value proposition and becoming more structured in its approach. There is enough scope for all the players in multiple locations. The biggest challenge is the price of land in prime areas which will define the product offering. There is a huge opportunity for this segment in the evolving rural leisure travelers who are now venturing out.

Can you give us a few successful examples of various companies from different industries tapping this BOP markets and customers?
There are numerous examples like Tata Motors with Nano; the neverdying Maruti 800 from Maruti Udyog Limited in the passenger car segment; and Ginger, Homtel and Fortune in the domestic hotel market.
What do you think would be the risks and challenges of catering to BOP markets and customers?
I do not foresee any risks as long as the business model is well-defined because there is already a very welldefined market that needs to be tapped.
What do you think would be the critical success factors in reaching out to these BOP markets and customers?
Mass customization.
Which companies according to you Indian companies or Multinational companies are better equipped to serve the Indian BOP consumers?
Definetely Indian companies. As we understand the needs of the domestic consumer better than anybody else and we can relate to the end user. The needs and the value proposition of the BOP markets need to be understood and well-defined both in terms of the product offering and customer expectations. The rural markets are just waiting to be tapped and the success of the companies would depend more on reaching out to these ruralmarkets for any product category. The urban markets are welldefined for any product offering and most companies are only concentrating on the evolved urban markets. The large FMCG companies have come out with different product offerings in the ruralmarkets and they have been very successful in wooing these markets and setting a trend of changed consumerism. Managing the current slowdown in the financial markets also will play a critical role as more and more companies tend to look at new ways and means of costeffectiveness which would be an opportunity for hotel companies operating in this bandwidth.

1. Bottom of the Pyramid Consumers Case Study
2. ICMR Case Collection
3. Case Study Volumes

The Interview was conducted by Dr. Nagendra V Chowdary, Consulting Editor, Effective Executive and Dean, IBSCDC, Hyderabad.

This Interview was originally published in Effective Executive, IUP, November 2008.

Copyright © November 2008, IBSCDC No part of this publication may be copied, reproduced or distributed, stored in a retrieval system, used in a spreadsheet, or transmitted in any form or medium electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the permission of IBSCDC.

Previous 1 2 3

Business Case Studies, Executive Interviews, Parvatha Kiran on Bottom of the Pyramid

IBS Case Development Centre

Asia-Pacific's Largest Repository of Management Case Studies

Interview with Parvatha Kiran on Bottom of the Pyramid