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Britannia Good Day : Zindagi Mein Life
During World War II, a company received orders from the British Indian Government to make biscuits for soldiers. There was a time when more than 95% of the company's biscuits were reaching the Armed Forces. This company is The Britannia Biscuit Company.
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Do you know what the company's investment was at that time? Only 295 rupees. The company started in Calcutta in 1822. Five years later, the company was bought by two brothers. The only information available about them is their surname. Both of these 'Gupta' brothers shifted their work in Dum Dum, Kolkata, and continued the work under the name of V.S. Brothers. An English businessman named C.H. Holmes teamed up with Gupta Brothers, and in 1918, the company was incorporated as a Britannia Biscuit Company. This company became the first Indian company to operate in a mechanized system. In 1921, it became the first company to use a gas oven.
In 1924, the company became a subsidiary of Peek, Frean & Co. The company operated for years without any problems. In 1974 it declared public issues. Indian shareholding increased by more than 60%. And, with that, the company became an Indian company.
But in 1990, it was going through a bad phase, and that's when the company received support from Nusli Wadia. Nusli Wadia is the grandson of Mohammad Ali Jinnah and the surveyors of Bombay Dyeing. It was decided to take Britannia further together with French food giant Danone, and Rajan Pillai was appointed as the chairman of Britannia. At the same time, the Wadia Group claimed that the Danone company had launched the Tiger brand in foreign countries without its permission. Wadia Group also raided Danone's business in India.
Well, the company survived very well. Our favorite 'Good Day' biscuit launched in 1986. The market for Good Day Biscuits is much higher than other Britannia products. Today, Good Day is the second most popular biscuit after Parle G. They also launched a successful campaign, 'Eat Healthy, Think Better' in 1997.
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The story about how 'Good Day' got its name is interesting.
Regarding the name of the company, Sunil Alagh, who was then the managing director of the company, says, 'There was no research on the name. But his team was having a gut feeling. That's when he started the 'Have a Good Day' campaign. Afterward, the biscuit got its name 'Good Day.' This campaign was the most successful one and was used for 50-50, Tiger, and Maska-Chaska too. Even today, each of these brands is one of Britannia's most robust portfolios.
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