The MAGGI brand originated in Switzerland. It was founded in 1884, when Swiss entrepreneur Julius Maggi had a vision: to make good-tasting and nutritious food accessible to busy, working families. He invented a powdered pea and bean soup, to provide nutritious, easy to prepare food for busy women who worked in factories and didn’t have time to prepare healthy meals.

This first MAGGI product was followed two years later with the invention of ready-to-use soups and liquid seasoning. Nestlé acquired the MAGGI brand in 1947 and today, more than 120 years later, we strive to build on Julius Maggi’s ambition of making delicious, quality and nutritious food accessible to all.

Today the tradition continues around the world. Whether it’s MAGGI bouillons, soups, or seasonings, consumers have come to know and trust the MAGGI brand for its high quality, convenience and nutrition.

History

The company originated in Switzerland in 1884, when Julius Maggi took over his father’s mill. He quickly became a pioneer of industrial food production, aiming to improve the nutritional intake of worker families. Maggi was the first to bring protein-rich legume meals to the market, and followed up with a ready-made soup based on legume meals in 1886. After that Julius Maggi introduced bouillon concentrates, first in capsules, then in cubes. In 1897, Julius Maggi founded the company Maggi GmbH in Singen, Germany.

Maggi has become a household name and it is synonymous with noodles. However, Maggi offers other products apart from noodles, and these are soups, ketchups, sauces, and stock cubes. Maggi as a brand was established in 1863 in Switzerland, when Julius Michael Johannes Maggi developed a formula to bring greater taste to meals. In 1882, the Swiss Public Welfare Society authorised Maggi to come up with a vegetable food product that is easy and quick to prepare, to help with the problem of women having less time in the kitchen.

This led to the creation of two instant pea soups and an instant bean soup that reached the height of success. In 1947, Maggi merged with Nestle and since then it has been providing high quality and innovative products to the world.   Maggi has captured the hearts of millions around the world because it understands the needs of people and manages to meet these demands. For example, in the 1980s, when there was a huge increase in the number of women joining the workforce, Nestle India introduced Maggi 2 Minute Noodles to the Indian crowd. This is how Maggi revolutionised the instant food industry, particularly the instant noodles segment. When eating habits of people changed, Maggi tweaked its products to include low-fat bouillons.   

When Maggi was launched in India in the 1980s, there was no direct competition from instant noodle brands. However, there was competition from other snacks that Indians had been fond of for decades, and these included samosas, pakoras, and sandwiches. However, most of these snacks are purchased from roadside stalls, and are relatively unhygienic and unhealthy. So, Maggi positioned itself as the only hygienic homemade brand. It decided to target working women who did not have much time to prepare elaborate meals in the kitchen. However, Maggi realised later, through surveys, that children were the largest consumers of Maggi noodles. And then Maggi repositioned its brand towards the kids segment and included various promotional tools such as sketch pens, colour pencils, and fun books to entice children. And this worked wonders for the brand. Due to its promotional activities, Maggi’s annual growth grew by 15% during its initial years, and today, Maggi is the leading brand in the instant noodles segment in India, with a market share of 79.3%.   

Maggi is worth Rs 200 crores and contributes to approximately 10% of Nestle India’s top line. Being a pioneer in the noodles market in India has definitely given Maggi a boost and first mover’s advantage over other brands. Maggi is slowly but surely widening its market to reach out to more and more people. Today, Maggi has introduced Vegetable and Dal Atta noodles to cater to those who are health conscious. Maggi’s products come in travel packs as well as bulk packs, to cater to those who look for convenience while travelling and those who are price sensitive and prefer to purchase food in bulk. Maggi is one of the few brands to have taken the time to understand its consumers and their requirements, which is why it is one of the most successful brands, not only in India but in the world.