Zed Black Agarbatti rides the IPL bandwagon

The brand’s director Anshul Agrawal speaks to afaqs! about the tie-up with Delhi Capitals, the state of incense sticks industry, and more. 

Zed Black, the flagship incense sticks brand of FMCG company Mysore Deep Perfumery House (MDPH), has tied up with Delhi Capitals as the team’s official ‘prayer’ partner for the current Indian Premier League (IPL) season.

Incense sticks have been a symbolic element of India’s cultural heritage. They’re a common sight in places of worship, and are also used during religious and spiritual ceremonies. Given that India is a cricket-crazy nation, Zed Black’s sponsorship of Delhi Capitals, ticks all the marketing boxes.

Anshul Agrawal, director, MDPH & Zed Black, believes that cricket, in many ways, is like a religion in India. “People in India are so deeply attached to cricket that the whole emotion of making your team win, can push a fan into a religious frenzy.” 

The ‘Official Prayer Partner’ tagline adds a dimension of spirituality to an otherwise high-octane sporting event. The insight behind the tagline, Agrawal suggests, is to be considerate towards the devotion exhibited by cricket fans towards IPL.

“It’s all about praying for your team, with the right intentions, of course. Our slogan for the past 15 years has been ‘Prarthna hogi sweekaar’ (your prayers will be answered). So, with the Delhi Capitals, we want to be the catalysts of victory with prayers.”

Zed Black’s latest cricket association, isn’t new. Few years ago, it had onboarded veteran cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni as its brand ambassador. Agrawal reveals that the brand has often delved into the space of cricket for its marketing endeavours. 

“Cricket has always been a part of our marketing efforts. Dhoni has represented us for the last six years, and the association is long-term.” 

Dhoni has been the face of Zed Black’s packaging for its 3 in 1 agarbatti products. 

Talking about the media mix, Agrawal points out that the brand is aiming to amplify its advertising through TVCs and print ads, with a lot of emphasis on digital. 

“If you look at our packaging, it isn’t restricted to worship or any temple or deities. The name itself is very ‘alpha’ in the category. Going forward, you can expect a lot of emphasis on digital, because we’re aiming to attract a lot of youngsters with these campaigns.”

The growing popularity of incense sticks, especially during the COVID pandemic, has upped the industry’ market cap. According to some industry estimates, India’s agarbatti market is pegged at Rs 7,000 crore. It registered a growth of around 7-8% in 2022. 

Zed Black, according to Agrawal, racks up a share of around 10% in the Indian incense sticks market. According to the brand’s website, the company sells more than 1.5 million retail packs daily, through a network of over seven lakh retail outlets. Zed Black’s products are shipped to more than 41 countries. 

“Agarbatti has multiple uses. In western countries, many consumers use it as a room freshener. There are other uses of incense sticks abroad, that are different from India, such as creating an ambience in offices, or to just generate soothing aroma,” shares Agrawal. 

Last year, Zed Black forayed into the ‘puja’ essentials market. Under ‘Samarpan’, the brand launched products such as camphor, chandan tika, diya batti, dhoop cups, puja oil, and more. The aim was to disrupt the unorganised Rs 2,000 crore market. 

“Post-COVID, the usage of camphor and puja oil in households, has been on the rise. So, we developed a series of products to meet this demand, under the brand name Samarpan. The endeavour is to create a brand in this space.”

Zed Black, for its separate product lineup of manthan dhoop (bamboo-less incense sticks), has onboarded actor Hrithik Roshan as its brand ambassador. 

“Again, dhoop is an unorgansied sector. So, the insight was to onboard a celebrity to create a brand in the space,” mentions Agrawal.

“We didn’t want to go for a cricketer this time, because we already have Dhoni, so we looked at Bollywood. We wanted to create a jingle to improve the retention among audiences. A jingle plus a Bollywood celebrity instantly sparks a dance sequence for the campaign. And, who’s better than Roshan for that.”