Amusing name boards on Lankan streets
View(s):By Sachin Parathalingam
In recent times Colombo has experienced an increase in the use of unusual and sometimes bizarre name boards in its retail and restaurant outlets, as a marketing tool to enhance customer attention.
Food and Al-Jazeera
A striking example is the ‘Al-Jazeera Arabic Restaurant’, a tiny food outlet in the corner of Deen’s Road, Maradana taken from the name of the Qatari media giant Al Jazeera broadcasting.
‘Al Jazeera’s’ Maradana branch does indeed house a small television and one could assume that ravenous passers- by are munching into its signature chicken burgers and catching up on its ‘parent company’s’ latest news coverage.
Yet despite the hilarity of such names, from a marketing paradigm there is a rationale behind the adoption of brand names that hold significant high-end brand recognition.
Up-market names such as ‘Al Jazeera’ have amassed substantial brand awareness and consequently the use of such labels tends to arouse curiosity and thus interest in potential customers. The psychological amusement generated through such peculiar names can help attract an array of customers especially the upper-income earners of Colombo that are well oriented with such international brands.
Other such eccentric boards include ‘Fancy Point’, an accessories store, and ‘Gucci electronics’ in Maradana. Luckily for customers watch prices at ‘Gucci electronics’ are far more modest than that of its Italian counterpart, the billion-dollar fashion house, Gucci from which it is likely to have
Prepare for a chilli-hot meal
acquired its name.
Moreover in the hope of exploiting the surging tourist numbers post-war there is a growing trend amongst restaurant owners to market exotic names that reflect Sri Lankan culture and cuisine. Restaurants named ‘Rasa’ (Tasty) , ‘Lunu Miris’ and ‘Machang Nawala’ have cropped up around Colombo serving a mixture of traditional ethnic dishes laced with Sri Lankan herbs and spices. Speaking to a Business Times reporter a manager at the popular eating joint ‘Machang Nawala’ said, “The first question from our foreign customers is the meaning of the name Machang. They are very interested to
Tasty food
learn our Sri Lankan dialect and are more interested in the names of our various dishes than the dishes themselves.”
Regardless of the motives behind such names it is clear that city food outlets are experiencing a gradual shift in their marketing perspectives.
Rest assured amidst the heat and noise of Colombo’s streets these name boards keep passers-by continuously entertained.
In Slave Island, a jewellery shop calls itself the ‘Ta – Ta’ Jewellers. For every piece of item purchased, the shop owner would bid you goodbye with a ‘ta -ta’!
Kohomada Machang ?
But the board that beats them all is the ‘Tit-for-Tat” restaurant just outside Kurunegala on the Dambulla road.
Beware if you complain of service or bad food. You may find it thrown in your face!
PIX BY NILAN MALIGASPE
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