Stove Promotion in Sri Lanka Takes Off

By Kathryn H. Clarke, ITDG

"Add beauty to your kitchen - buy an Anagi stove" - that's the slogan which is creating a demand for fuel efficient stoves in Colombo. Banners, leaflets, demonstrations and television information slots are promoting the two ceramic portable wood-burning stoves being produced, distributed and sold on a commercial basis as part of the Urban Bilateral Stoves Programme.

Concentration is on establishing high quality stove production through training and on creating a market for the stoves.

The first step was to give the stove a brand name to project the image that it is modern and convenient - "Anagi" is Sinhala for 'excellence' and I and II denote the number of pot holes.

The leaflets are distributed to retailers and the availability of the stoves is advertised first by banners and then by more durable sign boards.

The Anagi I and II stoves were launched in May 1987 with TV coverage of the first stoves being handed over to local wholesalers by Miss Petra

Byrde from the British High Commission. This high profile has been maintained by a continuing public relations campaign of newspaper articles and TV information slots.

This promotional programme is part of the Bilateral Urban Stoves Programme being implemented by the Ceylon Electricity Board on behalf of the Sri Lanka Government. ITDG is providing technical marketing and management assistance financed by the Overseas

Development Administration.

As production builds up during the two year programme, so will the promotional support. The warranty scheme (stoves which crack within three months of purchase are replaced free of charge) plays an important part in establishing the quality and value of the Anagi stoves.

The Anagi I retails at 40 Rs (US$ 1.38) and the Anagi II 45 Rs (US$ 1.56) with a claimed pay back period of two months and annual saving of 210 Rs on the basis of 30% fuel efficiency compared to a traditional stove.

The promotional activities are being monitored and a sample of stove users is being followed up to find out their reasons for purchasing and the stove's acceptability. The aim is to identify the most effective selling messages and means of putting these across to induce the purchase of a stove.