A century-old brand's recipe for success: MTR's CMO on innovation and staying true to roots

Prerna Tiku, the Chief Marketing Officer at MTR Foods, an Indian food brand that completed 100 years in the market earlier this year, has seen the company navigate the evolving consumer landscape with a delicate balance of tradition and modernity. 

MTR's origins date back to 1924, when Yagnanarayana Maiya established the Mavalli Tiffin Room (commonly known as MTR) restaurant in Bangalore. Over the decades, the brand has expanded beyond its Karnataka roots, with MTR opening stores in the southern states of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh in 1984.

Tiku's journey with MTR began in 2014 after a stint at Pizza Hut, and she has witnessed the brand usher into a modern, digital world, firsthand. In this exclusive interview with afaqs!, Tiku shares the secrets behind MTR's enduring success, highlighting the importance of embracing technology while staying true to the brand's authentic roots.

"We call ourselves '100 years young' and not '100 years old'," Tiku explains, drawing an analogy to a growing tree. "We have stayed rooted, and we have strengthened our roots even further through authenticity, while staying contemporary and relevant to the consumer."

This philosophy has led to some of MTR's most memorable campaigns, such as the launch of the "three-minute breakfast" range, which addressed the needs of the young, time-pressed consumer. "We created a sub-brand, the MTR Minute range, which allowed us to become a little more connected to this segment of consumers while staying true to our core," Tiku says.

The campaign was a transformative one for MTR, as it required a complete rethink of the brand's approach. "This meant that the entire marketing mix had to be imagined differently, starting with the product, moving from typically being a brand that focuses around families to now focusing on individual needs," Tiku explains.

The shift also necessitated a change in the brand's communication strategy. "We were, for the first time, focused around the young millennial and Gen Z consumer segment.”

Another standout campaign was the introduction of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana-style Podis, a type of lentil-based powder used as a meal accompaniment. "Our challenge was to convert consumers from homemade to packaged," Tiku recalls. "We co-created the products with the consumer, not just for the consumer."

This collaborative approach was crucial in ensuring the success of the campaign. "It was not about MTR giving you a range of Podis, but the consumer herself building these them with the brand. And that was a very special campaign for me," Tiku says.

While innovation has been a top priority for MTR's marketing strategy, Tiku acknowledges the lessons learned from past missteps, such as the launch of vegetable-infused Idlis, which was "a little ahead of its time."

"Sometimes the concepts are great, but if the consumer is not ready for it, and the market's not ready for it, you have to pause, wait and watch," she says.

As the marketing landscape evolves, Tiku has embraced the transformative power of technology, including the implementation of AI across various business functions. "In every form of business, we have basically embraced this technology," she affirms.

However, Tiku is mindful of maintaining the brand's unique voice, ensuring that "the voice of the brand is heard and uniquely connects with the consumer." This balance between technology and human touch is crucial in a world where automation is increasingly pervasive.

Looking ahead, Tiku shares the company's exciting plans, which include expanding its portfolio of ready-to-eat sweets and chilled, fresh products, such as signature batters and breads. MTR is also leveraging technology to personalise campaigns and reach consumers at a micro-level.

As MTR celebrates its centenary, Tiku's vision for the brand's future is clear: to remain true to its heritage while continuously evolving to meet the changing needs of the modern consumer. "We look forward to a great century ahead," Tiku concludes, echoing the company's optimistic stance. "Since we've just completed 100 years, we recently concluded a very large-scale Food Festival to showcase over 100 dishes from across different regions of Karnataka."

The Food Festival is just one example of MTR's efforts to connect with its consumers on a deeper level, bridging the gap between tradition and modernity. "We have invested behind a Cuisine Centre of Excellence, which is a team of chefs that works very, very closely with the home cooks from across our core geographies," Tiku explains. "We've already collected a repository of over 3,000 recipes. These are recipes that are actually passed on through generations, that are embedded into the culture of the different places that we come from."

While the brand is “proudly local”, it also recognises the importance of convenience in the modern consumer's life. "Convenience is a very key need today, but it can not come at the cost of taste," Tiku says. "That's where a brand like us, MTR, comes in. We pride ourselves in understanding local food very well."