The Hindu Business Line : Himalaya Drug Company expanding retail presence

The Rs 500-crore Himalaya Drug Company will expand its retail presence in the next two years and focus on launching “differentiated products that will marry science with cosmetics,” says Mr Saket Gore, Business Head, Consumer Products Division, Himalaya.

Mr Gore told Business Line that the company will increase the number of exclusive stores to 300 by end-2009. It has nearly 150 such stores now.

More shops-in-shops

The company, which has been successfully experimenting with 60-70 sq.ft. self-contained shops-in-shops in large-format departmental stores such as FoodWorld in Hyderabad, Bangalore and Mumbai, will set up more of them in the other metros. This format has worked especially well in the South, Mr Gore said. There are 30 shops of this kind now. The company has 130 products across its various divisions including pharmaceuticals and consumer products.

Himalaya’s consumer products division’s current focus is on the skin, hair and oral care segments. It has several launches lined up for the next few months and is rapidly capitalising on the ‘neem’ category, developing a complete range around it. It has face wash, face pack, a neem supplement and is launching a soap and a face wash in a different delivery format shortly. On an individual level, Himalaya’s neem face wash is the largest-selling product in its category though it’s Garnier that has the greater market share in the category (18.5 per cent) as it has more variants. Himalaya’s share here is 16 per cent, Mr Gore says.

Skincare

For Himalaya’s consumer products division, skincare, growing at 30-35 per cent every year, is the biggest contributor, contributing 50 per cent of the turnover. Haircare contributes 32 per cent. “Growth in the FMCG segment will not come from me-too products but from differentiated products, such as Himalaya’s hair conditioner which also acts a de-tangler,” says Mr Gore.

The company has also launched a new TVC, significant in that this is intended to be a sustained campaign after a gap of almost three years. Earlier advertising, a year ago, was sporadic. This advertising urges consumers to turn to Himalaya first, not as a last resort. It has also dispensed with the grandmother that the company’s advertising was famous for, as its objective now is to appeal to youth. “The older advertising established the brand, spoke of the relevance and efficacy of Ayurveda. Now, we need to speak to the youth,” says Mr Gore.

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