Mahindra Odyssea

Mahindra & Mahindra is known as an engineering brand with a deep lineage in automobiles. The group now started nursing ambitions of entering the power boat/yacht market. This category only caters to the well-heeled and hence classifies as luxury. The challenge for Mahindra was one of positioning since it had never dealt in the luxury sector. The task for Think WhyNot was to carve out a brand identity and architecture to address the above, and design a launch campaign.

The question under deliberation was whether to use the Mahindra name in the brand identity. Since they didn’t have a presence in the luxury sector, would the name be a leverage or a drag? After scanning the market we discovered that the market was full of international players with a lineage spanning across decades. We recommended that not using the Mahindra name, would leave the new brand without any backing, luxury or otherwise. Therefore, it was decided to use the Mahindra name and the boats were called Mahindra Odyssea. The logo and identity was designed after that.

After discussion with the product team, we found out that Indian waters were different from international waters. With respect to the pollution levels and choppiness, a lot of the international boats were not geared to address this. The Mahindra product design team had taken these factors into consideration. We thereby arrived at the positioning ‘Built for Indian waters’.

The next task was to find the right audience for the boats. We realized that most potential buyers would be people who believed in not just lifestyles but active lifestyles. Hence, HNI groups with a passion for outdoor hobbies like photography, birding, and water sports were targeted. These were done through alliances with wealth managers and private bankers.

Lastly, we had a grand launch at the Annual Boat Show in Mumbai. At the Boat Show it stood out as a boat that understood Indian waters.

Mahindra Odyssea had a grand opening at the Boat Show, generating over 50 enquiries in 2 days.