Introduction The case analyzes the response of the non-users of shampoo in an emerging environment, India.

The non-users belong to the lower end of the socio-economic spectrum and they respond with their perceptions about the category of shampoo and well-known brands. The entrepreneur's challenge is to obtain the insights, analyze the attitude of the non-users towards the category and brands, and prepare a strategy to position a new brand of shampoo (Super brand) in the Indian mass market. Customer Segmentation & Market Selection Affluent consumers demonstrate that they have 'arrived' by buying bigger houses or cars. People at lower income levels do so by buying premium brands. This means brand loyalty is very high among less affluent consumers. That is why the rural market is critical for companies. The first-mover advantage is significant. Facts: Bottom of Pyramid in India There are two classes of BoP in India Annual income of less than Rs. 75000 Annual income of Rs. 75000 to Rs.150000 There are around 150 million household (BoP) out of which 25 % from urban and 75 % from Rural population. The urban BoP constitutes 40% of the urban population which contributes only 15 % of the urban income which is expected to move upwards very fast. Rural BoP that is 82 % of rural household contributes about half of the total income of rural India. Executives have long recognized that to build real sales volumes they will have to reach outside the big cities. According to the National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER), an independent, nonprofit research institution, rural households form 71.7% of the total households in the country. Spending in this segment... Global QUESTION 1 Read the article on the US Trade Deficit (Week 13 Assignment 2). It was written before the economic crisis (2005). Summarise the arguments presented in the article to suggest that the Current Account Deficit was not a serious issue for the US. However, less than three years later the recession hit to what extent do you think the recession was related to the US Trade Deficit? QUESTION 2 Research and explain the consequences of the recession on the US Trade Deficit. As the US recovers from recession, what are the chances that the US Trade Deficit will start to increase again? What would be the likely consequences of this? What can be done, if anything, to prevent this situation from recurring?