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After the acquisition of Ozone Ayurvedics’ Nomarks brand, Bajaj Corp plans to rationalise its portfolio in the skincare category. “There were almost 10 different products under Nomarks and we will bring it down to certain categories such as cream, face wash, soap and face pack and at the same broaden its positioning from an anti-blemish to a regular use brand which prevents blemishes,” said Sumit Malhotra, Managing Director, Bajaj Corp.
Nomarks would exit from categories such as fairness creams, scrubs and sunscreen which had existed under its franchise.
The Rs 340-crore anti-blemish category is fairly uncluttered with handful of brands such as Eraser, Himalaya and HUL’s Fair & Lovely. “There is competition in the anti-blemish segment but it is still not as cluttered as the other segments in skincare. However, we want to broad base Nomarks so that consumers do not resort to it only when there is skin problem but use it more for prevention than cure,” he adds.
Himalaya is the market leader in the anti-blemish category, followed by Nomarks which has a 12 per cent share.
A new communication strategy is already being worked upon by the company’s advertising agency Saints&Warriors, and the company’s skincare portfolio will now get co-branded as Bajaj Nomarks.
Nomarks would retain itself as a soap brand despite soaps being a Rs 8,000-crore cluttered category. “Even if we get a 2 per cent share in soaps, it would result in sales turnover going up by Rs 160 crore,” said Malhotra.
Hoping to turnaround the Nomarks brand in the next two years, the entry into skincare is also expected to help the hair oil major grow faster in the FMCG category. The anti-blemish category is growing at 27 per cent while value added hair oils (in which Bajaj Corp operates currently) is growing at 11 per cent.
Nomarks would also be riding on Bajaj’s hair oil network which comprises 6,700 distributors reaching out to 27 lakh outlets. “There are synergies between skincare and hair oil and Nomarks will end up saving on distribution costs once it comes into our portfolio. These costs are almost 18 per cent of its sales turnover which can be ploughed back into advertising and promotion to help in the growth of the brand,” added Malhotra.
However, the acquisition of Nomarks is a precursor to bigger plans of growing inorganically in the FMCG business. “Nomarks was just a small acquisition before we go for a huge one. It is all a part of getting growth for the company,” he said.
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