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New Delhi Feb. 7 GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare Ltd (GSKCH) said that it plans to acquire nutritional and over-the-counter (OTC) medicinal brands, businesses and technologies, which fit into the company's scheme of things in India, as a primary method of expansion in the country.

"As we look at consolidating our position in India, we are actively pursuing both organic and inorganic strategies, particularly the latter. By inorganic, we mean through acquisitions of brands or entire businesses mainly in the OTC medicine and nutritional health food categories," said Ms Catherine Angell Sohn, Senior Vice-President, Worldwide Business Development and Strategic Alliances, GSKCH.

"Though we are in a very nascent stage of exploring serious business opportunities in the country, we should be able to identify the targets in the next 12 to 18 months. GSKCH's global business development management is providing full support to all acquisition initiatives in India," she said.

`No cap on investments'

On the possible limits of investment for the takeovers, Ms Sohn said, "We do not have a cap on investments. What we need are brands or businesses that are a strategic fit to GSKCH's portfolio globally and in India."

She also declined to comment on the number of brands the company planned to take over.

From Global portfolio

The company is also looking at introducing in the domestic market certain brands present in its global portfolio. "Introducing brands from our current global portfolio is another initiative, besides adding variations to our current Indian portfolio, that we plan to undertake to expand our presence in the country.

"Though we have not decided on the exact brands, they could be ones like Lucozade, a health drink sold in the European market and Sensodyne, a toothpaste for sensitive teeth," said Mr Zubair Ahmed, Managing Director, GSKCH India.

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