GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare has become the latest to foray into the whitening toothpaste segment with the launch of Sensodyne Whitening. The company has decided to first tap into the e-commerce platform for the launch with an exclusive tie-up with Snapdeal, before taking the new variant to retail stores.

One-stop solution The whitening toothpaste segment has seen action in the past three years with launches from players such as Colgate and HUL, who focused on premium variants. But, GSK claims that Sensodyne Whitening, its largest selling variant globally, is positioned as a one-stop solution for relieving tooth sensitivity along with restoring whiteness.

Charubala Seshadri, Area Marketing Director, ISC Oral Health, GSK Consumer Healthcare, told BusinessLine : “Research has shown that sensitivity sufferers look out for more benefits in their toothpaste, such as whitening. Our product offers a balance between personal well-being through sensitivity relief and social projection through restoration of natural whiteness by removing surface stains.”

The toothpaste has been priced at ₹120 for a 70-gm tube and will be exclusively available on Snapdeal this month. Seshadri said, the product will be taken to retail stores, from June.

“Consumers tend to explore products online. By sharply targeting the right set of people, a lot of awareness and trials can be generated for a category such as toothpaste.”

The company is hoping to replicate the success of its toothbrush (Sensodyne Expert) on the e-commerce platform; nearly 50,000 pieces were sold in the launch phase.

Rural market Asked about rural growth, Seshadri said: “For us, rural areas are growing at three times the rate of urban markets, with over 10 per cent of business coming from these markets. The rural consumer recognises the sensitivity condition and is looking for effective solutions.”

GSK Consumer Healthcare entered the toothpaste segment with Sensodyne in 2011, which currently has a market share of 3.2 per cent, and has been growing at 30 per cent.

According to a Euromonitor International report on oral care in India released last July, the toothpaste segment in terms of retail value sales stood at ₹83,795.6 million in 2015 and the whitening segment contributed about 10 per cent in terms of retail value sales.

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