09/01/2008 15h20
Pão de Açúcar takes Extras dotcom to supermarkets
Valor Econômico - 09/01/2008
For the first time in its history, the Pão de Açúcar Group dared to put all its brands in only one basket, going against common sense. The Pão de Açúcar, Compre Bem, Sendas and Extra flags have always had different market positioning and are not used to coming together in public. This month, in order to celebrate its 60th year, the retailer decided to aim the focus of a millionaire campaign for its corporate signature, which since 2007 no longer is Companhia Brasileira de Distribuição (CBD) but rather Pão de Açúcar Group (GPA). R$ 12 million (US$ 7.4 million) will be spent in ten days, which is almost three times more than the amount the company is used to investing in its campaigns. The fusion among the brands will be made not only in the media, but also in the store floor itself, which took the company to set a complex logistic plan, never tested before. One basket of products - which will have the most varied items, such as LCD television sets, rice and chicken - will be sold in all 600 units of the company, at the same time, at promotional prices. The products in offer will be changed everyday and will be exposed both in a large Extra hypermarket and in a small neighborhood Compre Bem supermarket. In the supermarkets, there will have employees to hold the sale of electronic devices and the invoicing of the orders will be made by Extra's dotcom. The objective is to make consumers start identifying that the same surname is behind all flags. This month, the flags of Pão de Açúcar Group will appear together under the umbrella of the mother-brand in TV commercials and newspaper ads, in the whole national territory, with the same offers. To mix the brands was something unthinkable in the company. The company foresees that it can still extract much more value of the Pão de Açúcar Group brand by showing its real size, either to consumers that go to the stores or to investors that buy its shares. Besides the institutional character, the retailer worried about making a campaign with a strong promotional appeal to reinforce the image of low prices and drive away the stigma that it sells expensive products, especially under the Pão de Açúcar flag.
