ITC’s current personal-care portfolio
includes Fiama Di Wills, Superia and Vivel
brands
ITC
Ltd, which made a big-splash entry in 2007 into
the highly competitive market for consumer
products such as soaps and shampoos, plans to
expand its range of personal care brands as it
strives for a bigger market share.
“We are working on three new categories. These
are in advanced stages of development,” said
Sandeep Kaul, chief operating officer for ITC’s
personal care business.
ITC’s current personal-care portfolio includes
soaps, shampoos and fragrances. These products
are marketed under the Fiama Di Wills, Superia
and Vivel brands. Superia caters to the mass
consumer segment, Vivel targets the premium and
Fiama the so-called super-premium market.
Products are priced at between a low of Rs 5 for
a mass-market soap to Rs2,100 for a high-end
perfume.
Kaul refused to disclose details on the new
product categories the company plans to
introduce. Anand Shah, a Mumbai-based analyst at
Angle Broking Ltd, said the segments could
include skin care (moisturisers and face and
body creams), handwash lotions and deodorants.
The consumer and personal care products market
is highly competitive, dominated by
well-entrenched brands from companies such as
Hindustan Unilever Ltd (HUL), Procter and Gamble
Ltd, L’Oreal India Pvt. Ltd, Dabur India Ltd and
Cavinkare Pvt. Ltd. The personal care segment is
dominated by HUL, whose brands, including Lux,
Dove, Sunsilk and Clinic Plus, have 52.7% market
share in soaps and 46.5% in shampoos, according
to HUL. While ITC refused to reveal numbers
related to its market share, two analysts based
in Mumbai who didn’t want to be named said the
company had around a 2% share of the total
personal-care products market.
“Our existing portfolio has received good
response and as we move forward, the company
will launch more and more new products in line
with the growth strategy,” Kaul said.
The
Kolkata-based company recently launched a new
anti-dandruff shampoo called Ultrapro in
Hyderabad. The anti-dandruff shampoo market is
led by brands such as Clinic All Clear and Head
and Shoulders, from HUL and Procter and Gamble,
respectively. ITC will use actor Hrithik Roshan
to endorse the shampoo and plans to take the
product national. “Usually, a national roll-out
takes around five-six months,” Kaul said.
The total shampoo market, according to Kaul, is
estimated at around Rs2,200 crore. Anti-dandruff
brands make up Rs600 crore of this.
ITC has made sizeable investments in launching
personal care products, spending heavily on
advertising and promotions and distribution. The
company’s sales grew 16% to Rs7,662.99 crore and
net profit declined by 0.15% to Rs1,551 crore in
the first six months of 2008-09. “We have very
clear internal targets and milestones for our
progress and we are meeting those milestones,”
Kaul said about the profitability of the
personal care products category.
