A dairy brand strong in its home state has entered a neighbouring one. After a year it holds 3% share against 8% projected. It sells the same SKUs at the same prices. The new state's incumbent has 61% share, a cooperative structure, and 40 years of presence. The brand's milk is priced Rs 2 a litre above the incumbent and it advertises on freshness. Distribution reaches 22% of outlets against the incumbent's 91%. Curd and paneer, which carry double the margin of milk, are 9% of its sales there against 24% at home.
Diagnose which part of the mix is failing, recommend changes that stay consistent with each other, and check them against margin.
100 points, 60% to pass.
Twenty-two per cent outlet reach against 91% is the answer to the share question on its own — at that coverage, 3% share is roughly what the distribution supports, and no amount of advertising fixes a product the shopper cannot find. The freshness message is also the incumbent's strongest ground after 40 years, so it is a positioning chosen to lose. The genuinely interesting figure is the value-added mix at 9% against 24% at home: that is where the margin is and where a new entrant can win without fighting the milk war. Strong answers fund distribution over advertising and lead with curd and paneer rather than liquid milk.