Highlights
- India's iconic biscuit Parle-G clocks record sales amid coronavirus lockdown
- The company logged its best-ever sale growth ever since its existence in over 8 decades
- #Parle-G sends Twitter into nostalgia with many sharing their childhood emotions
In India, a pack of Parle-G biscuits is not just a snack, it’s an emotion that erupts with the nostalgia of the 1990s when western cookies had not invaded the kitchens of middle-class households.
At that time, the humble crumble dunked in a steaming cup of tea was a satiating snack for those who could not afford bread or the decadent versions of cookies laden with chocolate chips, almonds or raisins.
And in times of coronavirus, when the country went into a complete lockdown and people were forced to make do with bare minimum essentials, many Indians comforted themselves with the quintessential biscotti, triggering an “unprecedented” growth for the local brand in the months of March, April and May.
“We’ve grown our overall market share by nearly 5%. And 80– 90% of this growth has come from Parle-G sales. This is unprecedented,” said Mayank Shah, category head at Parle Products, the makers of the Parle-G brand.
Known as the ‘common man’s biscuit,’ the spurt in sales has come as a new lease of life for the country’s largest biscuit maker, which had last year warned of reduced production and workforce owing to a slump in demand.
But Parle claims that the product regained traction over the past three months after state governments and not-for-profit groups requisitioned them for bulk production to distribute packets as part of relief packages to the needy during the ongoing health crisis.
“We had several state governments requisitioning us for biscuits. They were in constant touch with us, asking about our stock positions. Several NGOs bought humongous quantities from us. We were lucky to have restarted production from March 25 onwards,” added Mr Shah.
The biscuits, which are sold in over 100 countries including Australia, also emerged as the go-to food for millions of migrant workers as they started their long treacherous journeys of more than 1,000 km on foot, from cities back to their villages after they were forced out of work due to the nationwide shutdown.
Parle-G biscuits Source: Twitter
The massive spike in sales fuelled nostalgia on Twitter and it was only a matter of time before hashtag Parle-G started trending on the microblogging site.
Bollywood actor Randeep Hooda who lived in Australia for six years, also joined the cohort of fans who were sharing their 'Parle-G memories.' He wrote, “My whole career is fueled by chai and Parle-G since theatre days.”
While others defined it as an “emotion,” and shared their childhood anecdotes.
Parle thanked its fans for acknowledging the company's journey out of the woods, calling it 'Bharat ka apna biscuit' (India's own biscuit).
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