Elephant & Co., Goa
Elephant & Co. is a much-loved community bar and kitchen, acknowledged among the Top 30 Best Bars of India. With the vision of brand expansion, we worked together to launch their third outlet into a brand new neighbourhood of Goa.
Brand Positioning
Launch
IPs and Campaigns
Market Research
North Goa has a thriving nightlife that caters to both locals and tourists, who are spoilt for choice when it comes to picking their favourite drinking hole.
We conducted an extensive bar-to-bar research to understand local tastes and preferences such as types of drinks and food, frequency of visits, attention and attendance at cultural events, connected with industry experts and more.
New Neighbourhood,
New Challenge
North Goa has a thriving nightlife that caters to both locals and tourists, who are spoilt for choice when it comes to picking their favourite drinking hole.
We conducted an extensive bar-to-bar research to understand local tastes and preferences such as types of drinks and food, frequency of visits, attention and attendance at cultural events, connected with industry experts and more.
What it is:
A community bar & kitchen
What it is NOT:
A night-club
How we reinforce this:
Using through a people-first approach at every stage of the launch campaign.
The 3 Pillars of our People-First Approach to launch Elephant & Co in Goa.
Our focus was on integrating with the local community rather than imposing a brand-first presence, by deliberately taking away the corporate aspect. We did this by being intentional at three levels:
Leveraging existing stakeholder credibility
Associating with local brands & promoters
Building community empathetically
Pillar 1
Leveraging existing stakeholder credibility
The founders & brand guardians talked about the launch personally through their social media and direct engagements.
Putting a name and face to the brand created deeper credibility. Cross-posting on social media platforms between the brand and owners gathered attention from those who are part of the Eco Community outside of Goa too.
The Goan Trailer
A playfully choreographed trailer featuring the name behind Elephant & Co. Karan Khilnani garnered much of the attention alongside a cocktail named "See You In Goa.”
Elephant & Co.’s very own Karan Khilnani and Vijeta Singh also captured the essence of what a day (and night) at the new bar in Goa would look like.
Pillar 2
Associating with local brands & promoters
We collaborated with local brands, musicians, people that make the bar feel like one of their own neighbourhood bars.
This collaboration was a win-win for all, because it led to mutual growth in terms of brand visibility, sales, and for the local collaborators: exposure to a market of people that aren't from Goa.
Celebrating the local spirits
We collaborated with alco-bev brands with Goan roots, including Makazai, Pumori, Tāmras and Susegado.
Music and community
Local musicians, such as Discoman & Wumbaya, also drew in & entertained guests from the local community.
Pillar 3
Building community empathetically
Through our market research, we understood the sheer diversity within our target audience in Goa. The pre-launch & launch strategy was crafted in a way that it would appeal to different patrons on any day of the week.
To build a marketing strategy for the community and not the media, simplicity & personalisation is key.
We opted for personalisation over optimisation.
The ECO team personally reached out to people within the following demographics, and further ran targeted ads to extend reach.
Cocktail enthusiasts
Entrepreneurs
Photographers
Bloggers
Artists
Chef’s Table
Hoteliers
Media
PR
Early adopters of the brand were offered first access to the brand, creating a sense of curiosity. Further, handpicked guests were invited to different events curated specially for them.
A personalised Launch Event was hosted over three festivity-filled days, where each day was specially curated for different guests personally invited by the brand. The event was planned with precision, each evening with a different bar takeover and music.
Beyond the venue:
Taking Goa to everyone
Connecting Pune with Goa
With Pune as home base for the original Elephant & Co. outposts, it only made sense to send a wave of curiosity and awareness for our new outpost in Goa. In partnership with Pune-based Goan home kitchen Goenche Kitchen, the agency organised “Susegad Brunch’. With Goan food, drinks and a live one-man Goan band, it was a 360-degree peek into what to expect in Goa.
Buzz across India
Given the masses’ affinity for Goa across the nation, sneak peeks were rolled out over time to established audiences through ECO Hospitality’s social media, branded hashtags, email campaigns and giveaways bringing eyes to Elephant & Co.’s new outpost.
Influencer marketing (by Connekting Dots) was leveraged to maximise reach and engagement.
In the press
