"Walk. Walk. Walk. Walk with Walkaroo” is the latest campaign, with actor Varun Dhawan, by footwear brand Walkaroo (pronounced Walk Karo)
Rajesh Kurian, Marketing Director, Walkaroo International, says: “Varun Dhawan represents the Young India. We are coming out with a new category of products, especially with EVA (ethylene-vinyl acetate, a lightweight, flexible, and shock-absorbing plastic used in shoe soles and midsoles). We are looking at clogs footwear as well as sports shoes which are consumed by the youth. So, Varun Dhawan gives a push for these categories.”
Rajesh Kurian spoke to e4m for the Pitch BrandTalk series on the new campaign, the brand’s plans for the festive season and much more.
During the conversation, Kurian said the company is giving an additional push for the branding and introducing new SKUs. Walkaroo will be launching two TVC commercials with Dhawan for the festive season. One of the TVCs has already been released on the digital platform.
The campaign for the festive season will start with Onam in Kerala, followed by Durga Puja in Bengal and Diwali with the focus on the Tamil Nadu and HSM markets. While the first push will be digital and television followed by vernacular prints as well as magazines. For the festive season, Walkaroo will be launching new products with new designs and new colours.
Since the brand has its roots and base in South India, it is not a surprise that this region is Walkaroo’s strongest market. Looking at the southern states, Tamil Nadu is the biggest market for Walkaroo, followed by Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, and Kerala.
Kurian adds, “We are a late entrant in the other markets. However, as the base is smaller, we are growing faster in the North, East and West regions compared to the southern markets.” Before Varun Dhawan came on board as the brand ambassador, Walkaroo had actor Aamir Khan as their brand ambassador. The choice of having an actor from the Hindi film industry is to bolster the brand's presence and give it visibility in the North Indian market. “In the non-south markets, we need an endorsement from a celebrity as the brand familiarity may not be there in some pockets.”
Looking at distribution, Walkaroo has 750 distributors and is present in 1.5 lakh retailers nationwide to cater to the bottom-of-the-pyramid market.
Kurian says, “Since we are predominantly in the mass market category, most of our offerings are in the sub-Rs 500 range. Doing an online business for this segment is not viable. The shipping cost, and the return policy of the platforms means we break even at the price-point of Rs 350 to Rs 400.”
