MUMBAI: Incorporated for the first time ever, 1 March saw the kick off of the FMCG Consumer Reaction Awards 2005. Concieved and executed by Fun & Joy At Work, the aim was essentially to recognise 'Master Brands' via market research.

 
 
The awards were based on the the voice of the consumer and in turn sharing the consumer's feeling and acceptance of a product, amidst the several competitive products that exist across categories. Hence, the award to a product was based on the most popular product in a particular category and its popularity according to research conducted on the mass size of population. The FMCG Consumer Reaction Awards was a tribute to the brand by the consumer himself.
With 28 categories, the glittering ceremony at the Taj Lands End saw the who's who from the FMCG sector. Hindustan Lever Ltd and the Tata's emerged as the popular winners as they bagged a lot of awards across categories for their products.

 
 
Getting feedback on the awards at the ceremony, Indiantelevision.com spoke to a slice of the industry on their perspective. While some lauded the effort and the thought that went into the institution of these awards, other thought that the categories were not well represented.

For instance, in the soft drinks category only Pepsi and Coke were judged leaving behind all the other soft drink products. Similarly, in the adhesive category, Mseal and Fevicol were judged. This came across as funny to many a people due to the fact that Mseal is not an adhesive and does not fall in the same category as Fevicol. Also a lot of other products in the adhesive category were not included.

In the Paints segment, only Asian Paints and Nerolac were shortlisted , all the others ignored.

 
 
The 'Master Brands' chosen by the consumers were as follows:

Consumer non durables -

OTC - Vicks
Soaps - Lux
Detergents - Surf
Shaving Cream - Gillette India
Tooth Paste - Close Up
Paints - Asian paints
Adhesive - Fevicol
Shampoo - Pantene

Foods -

Biscuits - Parle G
Chocolate - Cadbury's Dairy Milk
Tea - Tata Tea
Edible Oil - Saffola
Ice Creams - Kwality Walls
Soft Drinks - Pepsi
Drinking Water - Bisleri
Health Drink - Bournvita
Atta - Kissan Annapurna
Masala - Everest masala
Ketchup - Kissan
Salt - Tata Salt

Fashions & Specialties -

Mens

Formals - Reid & Taylor
Casuals - Provogue
Women

Formal - Allen Solly
Casuals - Wills Lifestyle
Cosmetics - Lakme
Accessories

Watches - Titan
Shoes- Liberty
Jewellery - Nakshatra Diamonds
Admired Luxury Wear - DAKS