Kraft Brand Hits Billion-Dollar Status

Tamarind. Lemon pepper. Soursop. These are just a few exotic flavors that helped rocket Tang to its new billion-dollar status. The powdered beverage brings Kraft Foods' menu of "billion dollar" brands to an even dozen and joins the ranks of Oreo cookies, Milka and Cadbury chocolates and Trident gum. Tang attributes its entry into this elite pack to its growth in the company's Developing Markets of about 20 percent in each of the last two years.

 

"In 2006, Tang was just over a $500 million brand. And over the past four years alone, we've nearly doubled that, making Tang Kraft Foods 12th billion-dollar icon," says Sanjay Khosla, president, Kraft Foods Developing Markets.

 

Khosla's Winning through Focus strategy and emphasis on five categories, 10 power brands and 10 markets has helped boost revenues in Kraft Foods Developing Markets from $6.0 billion in 2007 to $13.6 billion in 2010. Tang, one of the 10 power brands, has been an important part of this profitable growth. Markets like Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, the Philippines and the GCC countries were the rocket fuel behind the brand.

 

"Our business model in Developing Markets of giving local leaders freedom within a framework to act like entrepreneurs has been tremendously successful -- Tang is no exception," says Khosla. "With an entrepreneurial spirit, our Tang teams across the world connected virtually to harness our global powdered beverage technology and expertise. They used a glocal approach, combining the best of global and local to transform Tang."

 

A key to unlocking growth was the introduction of local fruit flavors. Orange flavor tops the sales charts worldwide, but local flavors like mango in the Philippines, soursop in Brazil, horchata in Mexico and pineapple in the Middle East now make up about 25 percent of Tang sales in developing markets.