RSH Global to focus at balanced summer portfolio

Kolkata-based FMCG company, RSH Global (owners of Joy brand of skin-care products), is looking to de-risk its portfolio with offerings that have a “round-the-year pull”.

For instance, it is ramping up the facewash portfolio as it eyes greater presence in the mass market segment.

According to Sunil Agarwal, Chairman, RSH Global, primary offerings like moisturisers (under Joy brand) – where it has a 40 per cent market share – have a higher demand in the winter periods, which cover approximately four months of the year. The remaining eight months – during which summer and similar high temperatures persist – is time the company would look to tap into more prominently.

Currently, the company has a market share of just about two per cent in facewash, and would look to capture a market share of nearly 5 per cent in the next few years.

The segment in India is currently pegged at ₹2,500 crore, with men’s facewash accounting for nearly ₹400 crore. The remaining ₹2,100 crore caters to the women segment with Himalaya, HUL and Johnson & Johnson being major players.

“We will go the whole hog in facewashes; apart from focus on the moisturisation category where we are a major player. In a two year period, if we manage a 5 per cent market share in the facewash segment, the positive impact on our topline will be ₹150 core (presuming the facewash market grows to ₹3000 crore),” he told BusinessLine .

“The company will look at more offerings to have a more balanced summer portfolio; so that there is demand for offerings round-the-year,” Agarwal added.

Improving E-commerce

RSH Global is working on its e-commerce strategy including its consumer offers and price points. Offerings were repackaged into combo offerings, thereby increasing the ticket sizes and making courier and logistics costs viable.

Specific “launches” like body oil, facial toner, body gels, aroma therapy, shampoos and hair treatment serums were introduced online apart from facewash. Nearly, 30-odd such launches took place.

The strategy seems to have clicked , he says, as the company’s monthly ecommerce sales seems to have improved from ₹15,00,000 per month to ₹1.5 crore a month. The target is to increase it to ₹4 crore by December 2021.

RSH Global is also revisiting capex plans, as economy improves, and demand is “almost back to last year figures”. Nearly, ₹100 crore will be invested – internal accruals and bank financing –towards a new facility, at Baddi. Construction will begin December onwards and the facility is expected to be operational in phases.

“There is huge pent-up demand we are witnessing and we could end the year with a turnover of around ₹300 crore. By April – June, we are hopeful of demand being 25-30 per cent higher than pre-Covid numbers. Despite the second wave, we are hopeful of vaccination picking up and consumer confidence being high,” he said.

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