Being highly populated countries there are still products which do not depend upon mass marketing just communities for eg. Lijjat as quoted above is truly a remarkable aspect of branding and marketing.

@Bhavana thanks for mentioning about Sevacafe, would be delighted to go there when I visit Ahmadabad next time.

I come from Gujarat – the birthplace of Mahatma Gandhi. There’s a restaurant in Ahmedabad which has truly captured the spirit of the Mahatma. This place, the Seva Cafe (http://sevacafe.org), works through volunteers. People volunteer to come and cook there, and there are no fixed charges for the food! The diner is encouraged to pay whatever he wishes to, from his heart. Any profits they make are used for social welfare.

A visit to the place is very heart-warming and leaves you feeling purer and very satisfied in life.

As an Asian who has travelled to many parts of the subcontinent, I have to agree that there are good examples of how brand differentiation is done in some countries with a painstaking amount of effort. It’s usually the smaller shops which render a high degree of personalised service which you can’t find in large corporate outfits. However, I find that service experiences in Asia are increasingly being “Starbucked” or “McDonalised” as global franchises spread their influences in our countries. Some of it is good (like having a shorter waiting time, assured quality and standard, and no surprises), but you do lose some of the essence of brand authenticity.

Incidentally, i just finished reading Brand Sense and loved it to bits. Have also blogged about it!

There is much to learn from the overflowing sake and the passion of the knife-crafters.

Besides the obvious cues I think the other element that is missing is the art of bespoke. Genuine ‘tailor made’ seems to be on a decline in this space as well.

You agree?

PS: the brand you mentioned should be spelt Lijjat instead of Liijat 😉 http://www.lijjat.com/

Do drop a line when you are here next, would be great to catch up.