JSW Steel signs Indian cricketer Rishabh Pant as brand ambassador

MUMBAI, FEBRUARY 5, 2020: JSW Steel, India’s leading steel producer and the flagship company of the USD 14 billion JSW Group, has signed Indian cricketer Rishabh Pant as its brand ambassador to promote its steel products which include JSW Colouron+ color coated sheets & JSW Neosteel TMT bars, for a three year period.

India, currently the second largest steel producer in the world, has embarked on a journey to enhance its steel manufacturing capacity from 142 MTPA to 300 MTPA by 2030 through the Indian National Steel Policy. India’s per capita consumption of steel currently stands at 74 Kg and is estimated to increase exponentially to 160 Kg by 2030. Compared with the world current average of 212 kg per capita, the tremendous scope & potential for growth is evident. In the last one and a half decades, Indian steel manufacturers have invested large amounts of capital in setting up state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities to produce high-end steel products to meet the exacting demands of the end-user industry. The continued growth of the Indian economy is expected to further boost India’s core economy industries with significant growth expected across infrastructure in the construction, real estate, capital goods, automobile and energy sectors. JSW Steel aims to play a significant role in India’s growth story. In its efforts to lead the growth, JSW Steel has embarked on a series of capacity expansion projects to reach 45 MTPA by FY30.

According to Mr Parth Jindal of JSW Group, “JSW Group’s philosophy – ‘Better Everyday’ guides us to positively improve all the lives we touch. It enables us to hold a unique and differentiated place in the minds of our customers. Our continued focus on making high quality products and ensuring that they are easily accessible to consumers across India lets us to participate in building a modern India. As a brand we believe that we are young, hungry, fearless and world class, the same traits we see in Rishabh Pant. We are thrilled to have Rishabh as our brand ambassador and have no doubt that this partnership will be beneficial and increase the recall for the JSW Neosteel and JSW Coloron+ brands.”

Commenting on his association with JSW Steel, Indian cricketeer Mr Rishabh Pant said, “I am very happy to partner with JSW Steel. I sincerely believe that this is the beginning of a very long and exciting association. It makes me proud to partner with a world class company like JSW Steel whose leadership journey, innovative products and future-ready capabilities I have always admired.”

Mr Jayant Acharya, Director (Commercial, Marketing & Corporate Strategy) of JSW Steel adds, “We welcome Rishabh Pant to JSW Steel as our partner in growth. We believe that our association with Rishabh will help create greater awareness for our products as well as differentiate the high quality product portfolio of JSW Steel. Our new marketing campaign with Rishabh Pant intends to further strengthen the recall of our branded steel products among our business customers as well as end use consumers.”

Mr. Harsh Bhatt, Executive Vice President, Ogilvy said, “Unlike advertising for FMCG and Durables, advertising for a category like coloured steel roofs and TMT bars is always unique given the low consumer involvement in these categories. Our first strategic intervention was to look for a sweet-spot that impacted the consumer enough to care for these purchases and willing to pay a premium for them. JSW Colouron+ roofing sheets and JSW Neosteel TMT bars have a distinct quality advantage over other product offerings in the market. All we had to do was communicate that in an exciting way. The addition of Rishabh Pant in the mix made matters a lot easier for the creative team where facets of grip, durability and strength of the products were compared to everyday things. The quirk in the situations are intentionally exaggerated to make the right point.”

JSW Steel is planning an integrated marketing campaign for JSW Colouron+ & JSW Neosteel featuring Rishabh Pant, expected to Go-live by mid-February 2020. The marketing campaign has been conceptualized by Ogilvy & Mather and showcases product attributes whilst also featuring Rishabh Pant in an interesting & engaging way.

JSW Steel’s retail footprint spans across 12,000+ outlets in nearly 600 districts of India making it one of the largest steel retail networks in the country. The company is focussed on branded products, network expansion across urban and rural geographies as well as strengthening its feet-on-street presence. JSW Colouron+ sheets and Neosteel TMT bars continue to be leading brands in India. Existing retail operations contribute about 33% of JSW Steel’s overall volume, of which, nearly 50% falls within the branded product portfolio.