In an era where brands are chasing the latest platforms, creator collaborations and viral moments, confectionery giant Perfetti Van Melle (India) continues to anchor itself in a simple truth: understanding the consumer. While digital media has transformed the communications landscape, the company behind household names such as Center Fresh, Center Fruit, Alpenliebe, Mentos and Chupa Chups remains deeply rooted in India’s vast offline retail network.
Nikhil Sharma, Managing Director, Perfetti Van Melle (India), shares his perspective on marketing to younger audiences, the evolving role of digital, the realities of health-conscious consumption, and why creativity thrives when brands resist imposing too many rules.
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Q] Confectionery remains a largely impulse-driven category. As audiences become increasingly mobile-first, how are you rethinking storytelling for Gen Z and Gen Alpha beyond traditional television commercials?
Confectionery is not really a mobile-first category. We still sell through nearly six million retail outlets, so the business remains very much brick-and-mortar. Certainly, a portion of consumption has moved to quick commerce, and for those channels, we customise packs and offerings. However, we continue to be a mass-market business.
What has changed significantly is communication. Marketing today needs to move with the times. Digital naturally plays a much larger role than it did before. Whenever we think of a television campaign today, we simultaneously think about how that campaign will live across digital platforms and formats.
Q] Younger consumers are often seen as more health-conscious and increasingly concerned about sugar intake. How are you responding to that shift?
It depends on which young consumers we’re talking about. The conversation around sugar is often amplified in metro cities such as Delhi and Mumbai, but India is bigger than its metros. If you travel across the country, you’ll find that consumers have many concerns, and sugar is not necessarily at the top of the list.
That said, we have always had options for consumers who are looking for sugar-free or reduced-sugar products. The discerning consumer has the ability to make that conscious choice. At the same time, brands such as Center Fresh, Center Fruit, and Alpenliebe continue to enjoy strong demand across the country. Our portfolio reflects a range of consumer preferences, and we continue to serve them accordingly.
Q] Brands today are experimenting with everything from long-form films to creator-led content. How do you decide which format is right for a campaign?
The choice depends on the audience you’re trying to reach. If a brand is niche, serving a smaller catchment area or a very specific consumer segment, then digital campaigns often become more relevant than broad-based mass-media campaigns.
Take vitamin gummy bears, for example. It’s a niche category with a very targeted audience. In such cases, digital campaigns are extremely effective because they allow you to reach the right consumer without spreading your resources too thinly. The format should always follow the objective and the audience.
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Q] IPL continues to attract significant advertising investment. What advice would you give brands that are not participating in the tournament or are looking for alternatives?
For every brand advertising during the IPL, there are many more that are not. It is an expensive proposition and makes sense for brands that are either scaling rapidly or looking to build reach very quickly.
For established brands, however, the money may be better spent maintaining a consistent presence throughout the year. Being visible across more weeks often does more for long-term salience than concentrating spend into a single two-month period.
My advice would be simple: stay committed to your broader media strategy. The IPL is a tentpole event, but once it ends, consumers return to their normal media habits. Brands should focus on the channels and touchpoints that remain relevant to their target audience throughout the year.
Q] Chupa Chups is now expanding into lifestyle licensing in India. How important is brand world-building and merchandise culture becoming for legacy confectionery brands today?
We’re talking about licensing and merchandising. Often, these opportunities come to us rather than the other way around. We evaluate whether the association aligns with the values and personality of the brand. If we believe our brand can add value to the collaboration and remain relevant in popular culture, then we consider it.
However, we choose carefully. Whenever you associate your brand with another category or product, it’s important that the collaboration reflects and strengthens the values that consumers already associate with the brand.
Q] Perfetti Van Melle has created some of India’s most memorable advertising campaigns. How do you balance creative ambition with performance and ROI?
That’s precisely what marketers are paid to do. Where’s the joy in launching a creative if it doesn’t bear results?!
The agency-client relationship works because both sides bring different strengths. Agencies bring a stronger creative perspective, while we provide a balanced view of how the idea will play out in the market, how consumers might interpret it, and whether it will drive the intended outcome.
Ultimately, we evaluate advertising by looking at what happens to sales. It’s not an exact science. There is always an element of judgement and instinct involved. Over time, experience helps you refine that balance and improve your ability to predict what will work.
Q] Do you have a fixed framework or set of rules that guide what you’re looking for in a campaign?
We do have brand guardrails. Every brand has a distinct identity and certain non-negotiable elements. If it’s a Mentos campaign, for example, it needs to remain true to the essence of Mentos. The same applies to Chupa Chups or any of our other brands.
Beyond that, however, we don’t like to constrain creativity too much. Creative teams need room to explore ideas. Once a strong idea emerges, we work together to fine-tune it and make it even stronger. But that initial freedom is important.
Q] Looking back, what is the one marketing philosophy that has consistently worked for Perfetti Van Melle over the years?
The most enduring principle for us has been not creating rigid beliefs when it comes to creative thinking.
You have to allow freedom first and experiment continuously. Marketing and consumer behaviour are constantly evolving. If you operate within overly strict frameworks and assumptions, you risk stifling the very creativity that drives growth. That’s something we have always believed in, and it continues to serve us well until today.
