Home appliances maker Whirlpool has said it will invest up to Rs 100 crore on advertising and marketing of its products this year as it gears up to enter the kitchen appliances segment by next month.

“Our advertising and marketing budget this year will be around Rs 90 crore to Rs 100 crore. We have lined up a lot of product launches this year, for which we will be coming with several marketing initiatives,” the Whirlpool of India Vice-President, Corporate Affairs, Mr Shantanu Das, told PTI.

“We are bringing a whole range of cooking appliances, including microwaves, ovens and dishwashers. It will be out in the market by next month. This will be our first entry into the kitchen appliances market and it will be positioned in the mass to premium segment,” he said.

The company, which witnessed a decline in its net profit by 18.96 per cent to Rs 47 crore during the quarter ended March 31, 2011, said commodity prices have been a challenge and the demand for refrigerators and air-conditioners has slowed down during the quarter.

“Food inflation and commodity prices have been a challenge during the quarter. We hope that it eases a bit in the coming months. However, demand is picking up. Because of late summer, the demand for ACs and refrigerators had slowed down,” he said.

Mr Das said the company expects a 20-30 per cent jump in sales by the end of this fiscal on the back of various innovations and products lined up this year. Last fiscal, Whirlpool of India registered sales of Rs 2,612 crore.

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