The MT group was like an old willow tree. It had been around for what seemed like centuries, had its branches comfortably placed in assorted industries, and was known to all. MT, in fact, was something of a reliable old business name in the country.

But the time had come, MT Group Chairman Kishore Rajavat realised, for him to shake things up a little bit. Times had changed, and one of the group's businesses-of paper-was stuck in a commodity rut, with little to sell on other than price. This was fine in the old days, when competition was low and bulk manufacture of paper fetched decent margins. Those were the days of stability. The business went on, year after year in much the same fashion. Printers, publishers and other bulk buyers knew MT Paper for its consistent quality, and that's all that mattered.

Not any more.

"The most important CEOs in the country use our paper, and don't even know it," grumbled Jai Chaudhuri, MT Paper's Marketing Director.

"They think they don't need to," said Rajavat, placing Chaudhuri's remark in perspective, "and that's what you must fix."

That, really, was the crux of the issue. The uncut paper business was doing fine, selling rolls and rolls on negotiated bulk deals. But this segment was growing at just five per cent annually, while the 110-tonne packaged paper segment was growing at thrice the rate. That's where all the action was these days.

"Ha! So much for the 'paperless office that the tech people were telling us about," said Chaudhuri, 34, "the old trend continues as before-as an economy expands, so does its per capita paper consumption. So long as e-signatures are not foolproof, hard copy documentation will always be needed. There's integrity in words committed to paper."

Chaudhuri seemed to revel in that knowledge. Having turned down a tech-sector job recently, it gave him a sense of profound relief. To Rajavat, 58, however, the relevance of paper was never in doubt even for a moment. Paper had kicked off the Modern Age, enabling the accurate dissemination of thought, and would remain part of it. As chairman, his big concern was the business' profitability. Packaged paper offered healthier margins. "Our estimates are that a strong brand, and I mean a consumer-recalled brand, can give us a price realisation of at least 10 per cent more," said the chairman, who had been studying the classic story of how Xerox had sold photocopier paper as a brand, using the 'consumable package' route created by its machines' service network.

Xerox's contention, of course, was that its own paper worked best with its copiers. But MT made no copiers, and already had a rival in Virajman Industries (vi), which was trying to do the next best thing. Like a cola player, it was busy adopting market corner copy-shops across the country, and putting up distinctive glow-signs for its brand vi Plus, above them. Signage, to it, was the game.

"That's an idea," remarked Chaudhuri, "but it's not easy getting the copier customer to ask for a particular brand of paper."

In the marketing director's view, the institutional sales route, selling packaged paper to offices for their documentation work, was the real place where the brand war would be fought and won. There would be few players. The industry had just entered a consolidation phase, and it was such a capital-intensive business-and with a fairly long gestation period-that new players were not likely to set up mills. Quality was an issue: very few Indian firms were making paper that did not yellow over time, or suffer other damage on exposure to the elements. MT's paper, however, was crafted to last over the years. Assorted torture tests had proved it. The only thing missing: the brand. The consumer 'pull'.

An earlier attempt, with MT 007 Bond, had been a disaster on account of shoddy packaging (dull brown wrapper with the name printed in red across). So MT tried again, with white packaging. This time, there was a retail effort as well, with roadshows and other promotional hoopla. But it still didn't work. The pricing wasn't a barrier, since MT had been careful not to price 007 Bond out of the market.

It hadn't been a total washout either. Marketshare had risen several points. But it was not dramatic enough to give MT much pricing power-the whole idea of creating a premium brand. For all the work, as Chaudhuri said, "It was still a labeling exercise instead of a branding one." The final test was in the consumer's head. The brand meant nothing as far as paper-usage went, and was too gimmicky to be remembered, let alone valued by the end consumer.

"So, what do you propose now?" asked Rajavat, point-blank. There was a moment's silence.

Chaudhuri shifted in his seat, hesitated slightly, and then rose to make his presentation. "I think all this James Bond kind of wit and wisdom doesn't get us very far. Paper is serious-one of the most important inventions in history. That's why I think we should launch MT Infoyug, and start portraying paper as the father of the information age instead of the computer."

"But that's a generic story," objected Rajavat, who was tiring of his Marketing Director's obsession with the paper-versus-e-document battle.

"That's why the twist," said Chaudhuri, in defence. "We have to differentiate ourselves in the consumer's head. It's all about associations, about perceptions. We have fact on our side. Our paper is non-fade, and suited to those who'd like documents to endure centuries into the future. So maybe we can run a 'Satyamev Jayate' sort of campaign-selling our paper as the brand used by those who're on the side of fact, not fudge."

Rajavat didn't stir. He sat stonefaced. And then... "There are other options, don't you think?"

The chairman, while open to ideas of varying degrees of absurdity, was always clear about staking only well-judged gambles. He had a business to run.

"Well, yes," replied Chaudhuri, "but we assume leadership this way. We stand out as a brand only when we stand for something. Using MT paper must become a sign of the courage of one's conviction."

"Wise," said Rajavat, "very wise... perhaps even dramatic, to have the brand as hero. But I'm not very sure if this is a practical idea. Our objective here is to boost profit. Get that straight."

Question: Should MT Chairman Rajavat give Chaudhuri the go-ahead?

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