INTHEBLACK June 2022 - Magazine - Page 33
Below: Attendees at the launch of Leggo’s
in India in 2020. Following advice from
Austrade, Leggo’s took the decision to
target India just as lockdowns in the
country encouraged households to
do more home cooking.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
AS L O C K D O W N S I N I N D I A I N S P I R E D FA M I L I E S T O D O M O R E H O M E
C O O K I N G I N 2020 , T H E T I M I N G WAS J U S T R I G H T F O R FA M O U S
A U S T R A L I A N F O O D B R A N D L E G G O ’ S T O E N T E R T H E M A R K E T.
Above: Crowds of
devotees in queues
during the festival of
Hola Mohalla at
Anandpur Sahib
Gurudwara in the
Rupnagar district
in Punjab, India.
Known for its brand of Italianthemed sauces, pestos and pastes,
Leggo’s is owned by Simplot
Australia. The company took
Austrade’s advice to target India via
e-commerce platform Amazon India
and build on its exports to other
regional strongholds such as China,
South Korea and South East Asia.
Now, sales in India are growing on
multiple platforms and in physical
stores.
“We’re really new to the market
in India, however there has been
strong acceptance from major
customers to the product range,
and early indications are the
products are selling well in stores
and online,” says David Malone,
international sales and marketing
manager at Simplot Australia.
Austrade sees Leggo’s success as
a natural result of a surge in online
retail in India, which has presented
opportunities for Australian suppliers
in areas such as premium food
through to health and beauty
products. The trade group has been
helping Australian businesses expand
into India through the Australia India
Business Exchange (AIBX) program.
One avenue is through virtual meet-abuyer sessions.
“Australian companies looking to
succeed [in India] should narrow
their attention to key regions based
on their sector focus, and recognise
the importance of working with a
qualified local partner,” says Munish
Sharma, Austrade’s trade
commissioner in Chennai.
“This could be appointing inmarket agents and distributors,
setting up liaison offices, or
entering into joint ventures with
local subsidiaries.”
In addition to Amazon India,
Leggo’s is now selling via two other
Indian e-commerce platforms, Food
Hall and Nature’s Basket.
Malone agrees that having a good
partner with a well-established
distribution network has been the
key to gaining sales momentum in
India.
It is not easy, though, with high
tariffs resulting in a premium retail
price for its sauces and other
products.
Malone hopes some relief will
come on the tariff front from a
mooted free-trade agreement
between Australia and India in
2022. “India is a long-term focus for
us,” he says. “We want to continue
to build our business there.”
intheblack.cpaaustralia.com.au June 2022 33