CNBC AWAAZ Consumer Awards 2009 felicitated India's most consumer centric  brands sponsored by OSS Retails and ICICI Bank

Mumbai : CNBC AWAAZ Consumer Awards 2009 felicitated India's most consumer centric  brands which was held last week. Some of the dignitaries who made this event special were honorable politician Digvijay Singh - General Secretary, All India Congress Committee, Chanda Kochhar - MD & CEO, ICICI Bank, Nitin Paranjpee - MD & CEO, Hindustan Unilever and O P Bhat - Chairman, State Bank of India.

A panel discussion was lead by Mr. Sanjay Pugalia to understand today's consumer needs. Mr. Digvijay Singh, General Secretary, All India Congress Committee highlighted on the significance of rural India in the consumer market. To explain the consumer scenario, Mr. Singh quoted, 'Don't give them fish but give them the skill to fish', which implies to educate consumers rather than inducing them to buy the products. He recalled how the Congress, since the Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru era, has always worked for the welfare of agricultural community which, even though, has been perceived as weak, has proved to be India's economic growth driver in today's scenario.

The per capita annual income in rural India is growing very rapidly nobody in rural India pays the kind of rents or education costs that urban Indians do, making rural disposable incomes almost as high as urban ones.

There is also the phenomenon of rural youth increasingly bringing brand knowledge to rural households. "They go for employment to nearby towns, where they experience brands, and then become very strong influencers back home," says OSS Retails Ceo Subhash Jewria

All this explains why even consumer centric brands do well in rural markets. But an essential element is ensuring wide distribution. In fact, the successes of brand, show that distribution, more than advertising, is the key for building consumer trust

Ms. Chanda Kochhar, MD and CEO, ICICI Bank highlighted  pragmatic approach of the Indian regulatory environment that has contributed in maintaining debt at a manageable level. Mr. Nitin Paranjape, MD & CEO, HUL mentioned that the FMCG sector has not been hit despite the global meltdown. He also advised that the companies should not cut down operational expenses at the cost of quality . Ad Supremo Piyush Pandey stressed to know the pulse of consumers to understand the exact needs of the consumers.

As per the research conducted for the awards, the consumer continues to be the 'king' despite the economic slowdown. He is empowered not only with money power but also with wide variety of choices at his kitty that keeps him demanding year on year. In order to smoother the decision process for prospective consumers and honour the achievement of brands that have made it big, OSS Retails recognized and awarded most preferred brands at CNBC AWAAZ Consumer Awards 2009.

The awards were presented across categories such as financial services, FMCG, consumer durables, telecom, automobiles and retail. Sony and Philips bagged the most preferred consumer electronics companies

In the telecom category, Airtel, Nokia. BSNL won the awards for their respective services. In the FMCG category, HUL is the most preferred personal care and home care company. The most preferred food and beverage company is PepsiCo. Big Bazaar grabbed two awards as the most preferred multi brand food and beverage chain and the most preferred product chain. McDonald's was awarded as the most preferred multi-brand fast food outlet.

In the financial services category, SBI rewarded as the most preferred bank, while LIC is the most preferred life insurance company. SBI and ICICI Bank were the most preferred credit card brands.

Among other awards, there were two special awards given – one to HUL as the 'Value for Money Brand of the Year', while Vodafone and Ogilvy were given the Storyboard Campaign of the Year award for the Zoo Zoo campaign.