ITC Classmate uses QR-led learning and omnichannel reach to defend relevance beyond notebooks

Classmate is broadening its stationery proposition with QR-enabled interactive challenges and wider omnichannel distribution, targeting growth in India’s Rs 16,500 crore paper-based stationery market amid price-sensitive regional competition.

— FiledFri, 24 Jul, 2026, 13:04 IST·First seen Fri, 24 Jul, 2026, 13:03 IST·Source Financial Express · BrandWagon

What happened

ITC’s Classmate is expanding beyond notebooks into stationery and digital learning engagement, using QR-based games and omnichannel distribution. The brand

Key facts

  • Launched in 2003
  • Indian paper-based stationery market valued at Rs 16,500 crore
  • ITC FMCG FY25 revenue: Rs 219,81 crore (as reported)
  • Classmate consumer spends exceeded Rs 1,000 crore
  • QR codes provide access to 11 interactive challenges

Why this matters

Potential partners include edtech, kid-focused content and retail-distribution platforms that can extend Classmate’s QR ecosystem beyond notebooks.

What to watch

  • Repeat-scan rates after the first purchase and active engagement beyond the initial challenge.
  • Growth in Classmate's share of non-notebook stationery categories.
  • Evidence of QR-linked loyalty, coupon redemption or identifiable uplift in repeat purchases.
  • Quick-commerce and marketplace assortment expansion, delivery coverage and discount intensity.
  • Regional competitors launching comparable QR, learning-content or local-language propositions.
  • Changes in retailer margins, shelf allocation and distributor pushback caused by direct-to-consumer or marketplace sales.
  • Back-to-school and exam-season pricing gaps between Classmate and regional value brands.
  • Build QR experiences around exam preparation, handwriting improvement, creativity and parent-approved learning outcomes rather than generic gamification.
  • Use QR registrations and repeat scans to create consented student-parent cohorts for back-to-school and exam-season cross-selling.
  • Bundle notebooks with pens, geometry boxes, art materials and digital learning rewards to increase basket size and defend shelf space.
  • Create retailer-specific omnichannel programs, including QR-assisted replenishment, store pickup and localized assortment data.
  • Segment product architecture: premium interactive ranges for urban consumers and value-led formats for price-sensitive regional markets.
  • Secure curriculum, edtech or youth-content partnerships that give the QR layer proprietary utility competitors cannot copy quickly.