Best printers for Home

Best Mixer Grinder

Best wired Earphones

Best 43 Inch TV in India

Best Wi Fi Routers

Best Home Theatre in India

Smart Watch under 5000

Best Laptops for Education

Best Laptop for Students

One of the strongest pillars of the <keyword id="6356076" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="indian-economy">Indian economy</keyword> - the Consumer industry - may not have shown exponential growth in the past 3-4 years, but this one has managed to keep itself insulated from the vagaries of the global macro-economic environment unlike few other vulnerable sectors. And guess who is watching this closely? It's the IIM and IIT students who have got their eyes on this sector. 
 Yes, despite the startup era, it's the <keyword id="34523" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="fmcg">FMCG</keyword> companies which are the top choice of these students even today. The Campus placement season has been seeing a promising response from this sector for years now. The sector has been stable, and in terms of salary, it hasn't dissapointed students at all. 
 
"Isn't it better to get a lesser package in a company/sector whicg guarantees job security than a one which gives more, except that it may ditch us even before we are to begin work with them," says an IIM-Calcutta student who recently picked up a 18,ooo lakh offer with a FMCG company of repute. 
 
Many B school students like him therefore have put their faith in the FMCG sector over any other offer that is coming their way. We spoke to two experts to understand this, and here are the reasons that have settled the recruitment game in the facour of the big daddies: 
 
What recent salary projections say 
 
“Even in the future, the sector is likely to be stable in terms of salary projections,” says Gaurav Gupta - Sr. Consultant, Rewards, Aon Hewitt. 
 
"With an uptake in consumer sentiments, we will see double digit growth in FMCG in the next 4-5 years. So, you can say that we are seeing a neutral to positive environment for this sector in the short to medium term. This is largely reflected in terms of the salary increases. FMCG was leading the pack in terms of salary increases unlike the service industries and financial institutions who are suffering as a result of the global economic turmoil," he said. 
 Notably, the <keyword id="1048517" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="consumer-sector">consumer sector</keyword> overall has largely two sections - the foreign MNC firms and the Indian companies. For the foreign MNCs, Gaurav says, India has been a very lucrative destination. 
 
"It has been a investment destination which is seen as an engine for growth in future. Hence, you see them investing a lot in terms of their plants, production activities and hiring top talent from the market. That's why we have seen growth in salary increases by them. On the Indian side, the picture is very different. These companies have seen aggressive growth in their top line and market capitalisation. The talent catchment area has increased as they now have competitors operating even in local markets who are also hiring their employees. From that perspective, the large Indian companies in this sector are competing with these local businesses which may be strong in the area they operate, and therefore have been looking to bridge the gap in pay levels,” he says. 
 
Moreover, there has been critical focus on ring fencing of talent in this sector. This is because talent movement across sectors has been worrisome. A lot of service firms banking, telecom, insurance and e-commerce are hiring these talent. This is why consumer industry is trying to give higher increases and bringing in sincere key talent while also retaining existing ones. 
 
Attrition: 
 
Meanwhile, Gurdit, who is also Sr. Consultant, Rewards at Aon Hewitt, informed that even as the FMCG sector has traditionally seen lower attrition rates than India average (13.5- 14% over the last 5 years consistently against an India average in the 16-18% range, and on 13.7% currently), there has been no clear trend whether it has been increasing or decreasing. 
 
Key talent: 
 
Moreover, the key talent attrition is extremely low in this sector. In the last 4-5 years, it has been below 5% and this is both voluntary as well as involuntary. Notably, the way key talent is defined is it’s a combination of high performance, high potential as well as business critical skills which are difficult to find in the market. Typically organisations earmark about 10-15% of employee base as key talent, however, it varies with different organisations. Also, key talent is differentiated on a set of factors. 
 
Gurdit explains further: “Firstly, from salary increase perspective, what we found is that over the last 3-4 years the differentiation in the salary increases given out to key talent v/s an average performer has been increasing. This is not just in FMCG, but across sectors. However the amount of differentiation in the consumer space is slightly higher. The ratio of salary increases shows that a key talent employee would typically be paid 1.5-1.8 times higher of what an average performer would be paid. Now, if you keep aside the compensation increases, the other ways companies are differentiating key talent is - they take a call to benchmark key talent at a position slightly higher than others. From the perspective of non-monetary rewards, these employees get accelerated growth opportunities, better exposure to leadership, more meaningful roles and rotation of roles in order to develop their skills faster.” 
 
To this, Gaurav adds: “With regard to foreign MNCs, we have seen a lot of global mobility programs as well, especially for key talent.” 
 
Challenges: 
 
Meanwhile, citing a few challenges the sector faces, Gurdit says: “Traditionally FMCG is known to have the best talent in the market. Therefore, war for talent in this sector is pretty high. That's the reason why most FMCG companies will typically have really good policies and from total rewards perspective, they are well placed to retain best talent. However, one of the challenges is the new lot – startups - which is absorbing the best talent and paying high salaries. For this reason, FMCGs have started focusing on how to retain younger talent. Companies are bringing in programs to cater to the Gen Y employees, they are bringing in more flexibility work arrangements to take on this challenge.” 
 
Also, Gaurav points out that the emergence of tier 2-3 FMCG players pose a huge threat to the bigger players. They are locally strong and are pulling talent. FMCG industry may have to look at curbing this in future.

Here's why B-school students ultimately opt for FMCG companies over startups during placement season

For the rank-and-file of the hundreds of app developers in India, e-commerce is now the most lucrative mobile monetisation strategy. Wondering how? Well, nowadays bigger companies like <keyword id="6354742" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Flipkart">Flipkart</keyword>, <keyword id="541988" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="SnapDeal">Snapdeal</keyword>, etc, are hiring these talented engineers from startups. Heavily-funded e-commerce firms are battling for command over mobile technologies that are reshaping consumer-facing businesses. 

	Debasis Chakraborty, founder of NAMAKH, an online store for women, has been struggling to find app developers to build a mobile presence for his startup. The IIM graduate almost hired two app developers but they opted for lucrative offers from bigger online retailers. He told the Economic Times, "All app developers are at large companies or they are running a startup themselves. There is no middle ground."
 Preetam Salian, chief executive of <keyword id="2791104" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="HiringMonk">HiringMonk</keyword>, a recruitment firm for startups, told the financial daily that well-funded e-tailers “are offering annual salaries of up to Rs 30 lakh for product managers with experience of about five years. People who have worked at a startup and identify with the culture are the ones they go after." It is important to note that these app developers are offered a salary which is two-time of what they would get in an <keyword id="6362175" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="MNC">MNC</keyword>. Last year, Indian startups and Internet companies secured a funding of more than $5 billion. Flipkart, Snapdeal, <keyword id="6381424" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Quikr">Quikr</keyword>, Housing and Ola got more than two-thirds of the amount raised. Later, these five companies used the money to hire employees at huge cash salaries, the ET report revealed. 

	In 2014, offers from the e-commerce space have increased by 120% in the past year, with starting salaries of Rs 16-20 lakh plus stock options, the business daily added.

	(Image: www.c7creative.com)

If you’re an App developer, you have reason to be very, very happy!

<ul><li>Campa is targeting the growing market of downtraders by pricing its soft drinks attractively. </li><li>When you are drinking a cola, you are not just consuming a soft drink, you are consuming a branded experience, says Ambi Parameswaran, branding guru and author. </li><li>Campa has to get its distribution right and match the width of distribution that other colas have today, says Harish Bijoor, branding expert. </li></ul><keyword id="15793554" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="reliance-consumer" source="Orion">Reliance Consumer</keyword>’s Campa Cola relaunch at an invitation price of 200 ml at ₹10, and 500 ml at ₹20 – is clearly aimed at taking on rivals Coca-Cola and Pepsi head-on. Reliance is a master at disrupting existing categories with its entry level pricing and innovative marketing models. Just recall the launch of Jio’s high speed broadband mobile services in 2016 for free. The <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/retail/news/reliance-brings-back-the-iconic-campa-beverage-brand/articleshow/98520789.cms">launch of Campa-Cola</a> is right not just from the season point of view but also because the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/article/inflation-burns-a-hole-in-the-pockets-of-indias-lower-income-households-from-fmcg-goods-flip-flops-to-crackers-consumption-takes-a-backseat/articleshow/95536971.cms">heat of inflation has burned a hole </a>in the pockets of Indians. In the last six months, many Indians, both rural and urban, have been hit by high inflation and have been downtrading – that’s shifting to cheaper brands or even going for unbranded products. The FMCG market is in the most price-sensitive state it has even been in the last few years. Campa is targeting this growing market of downtraders, at a price that’s almost half of what other cola brands offer. “Yes, it caters to this trend,” agrees Harish Bijoor, founder of a consultancy firm, Harish Bijoor Consults, adding, “There is relevance for a lower-priced cola – a local cola with a friendly price versus an MNC cola with MNC prices.” “Penetration pricing can boost Campa’s traction among the price-sensitive Indian masses, especially in the rural markets. The aggressive pricing will magnify the impact of the relaunch amid the cost-of-living crisis, as 68% of Indian consumers are extremely concerned about the impact of inflation on their household budget,” says Bobby Verghese, consumer analyst at GlobalData. Price matters, but brand matters too Ambi Parameswaran, branding guru, author, and the former head of FCB Ulka, however, believes that it’s hard to beat established brands like Coca-Cola and Pepsi with a pricing strategy alone. “When you are drinking a cola, you are not just consuming a soft drink, you are consuming a branded experience. There have always been lower priced and local colas in the market but they found limited success. They (Reliance) will have to bring in celebrities and invest big money in marketing,” he adds. Reliance has launched Campa across three different flavours – cola, lemon and orange — which covers the entire gamut of soft drinks. “They launched one unified brand across flavours and that might work,” opines Parameswaran. Reliance also went with the slogan ‘The Great Indian Taste’ as it relaunched an iconic brand Campa which was once competitor to Parle’s Goldspot, Thums Up and Limca – the last two ended in the kitty of Coca-Cola, which made its comeback in the ‘90s. Campa, however, could not withstand the growing competition of Pepsi and Coca-Cola, and shut shop in 2000-01. After it was acquired in August last year, it’s Campa that now has a moneyed backer with marketing muscle and a giant retail footprint of 17,225 stores, offline. Reliance also retails groceries and more online and launched sales via WhatsApp six months back. It also owns a stake in Dunzo – a quick commerce retailer. “Reliance can also leverage its own offline retail and e-commerce stores to quickly narrow the gap with Coca-Cola and PepsiCo’s nationwide distribution networks and bolster Campa’s market penetration. In terms of pricing, Reliance Consumer can go toe-to-toe with multinational operators,” said Francis Gabriel Godad, business development manager, GlobalData India. Where is the footprint? Yet, the cola market is like no other FMCG brand. With the need for refrigeration and a rock solid distribution channel that Coca-Cola and Pepsi have built for years – this might be a tough act to follow if not break. “It’s not just pricing. They have to get distribution right and match the width of distribution that other colas have today. Colas retail differently – most of them are sold out of kirana stores, dhabas and others,” explained Bijoor. Reliance Retail’s footprint can drive the sales of large soda packages. “At home consumption only contributes to 20% of cola sales. The rest is purchased on-the-go,” says Parameswaran. Moreover, Pepsi and Coca-Cola have built their empires on the theory of exclusivity. For example, McDonald’s retails Coca-Cola (only) at its outlets and Burger King goes with Pepsi. In India, these brands have ‘owned’ dhabas and small-time restaurants where either of the brands’ products are retailed extensively. Since this is where most Indians eat, it also helped them make colas a part of Indian meals which matches with biryanis as easily as it does with burgers. Thanks to extensive marketing campaigns, they penetrated rural markets, killed local goli soda businesses and have become the ‘thanda’ of choice. Colas and cricket The third dimension of the cola business after price and distribution, is the ‘taste’. Even today, Thums Up is perceived as the ‘strong’ cola, with the other two colas close behind. Bijoor and Parameswaran say that with colas, it’s more about the brand than the taste and few people can recognize cola brands in a blind tasting. Yet, consumers tend to buy the brand they feel they like the most. Godad says that Campa can build a similar recall as it announced plans to launch an intensive marketing campaign at the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 – the cricket tournament with a viewership of over 200 million. This too is a page out of Pepsi’s playbook which has had popular brand ambassadors among cricketers like Sachin Tendulkar and more. At one point in time, it even engaged almost all of the Indian cricket squad to the 2003 world cup in South Africa including Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid, Harbhajan Singh and more in its ads. Reliance Consumer intends to bring similar energy into its marketing. “Reliance’s branding activity during the (IPL) event will thereby amplify Campa’s mass-market awareness in the cricket-loving nation. Moreover, as the official sponsor of the popular ‘Mumbai Indians’ IPL team, Reliance Group can rope in popular cricketers as brand ambassadors. This is a powerful marketing strategy given that endorsements by celebrities or organizations are an essential feature that 29% of Indians actively look for when purchasing products, according to GlobalData’s 2022 survey,” says Godad. In addition to all, Reliance is also not building a ‘new brand’ either, it is bringing back an old brand with nostalgia value that still rings a bell with Gen Xers and millennials — that’ll send at least a few to try a brand they once loved. SEE ALSO <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/millennials-want-the-security-of-their-own-roof-over-heads-finds-cbre/articleshow/98120129.cms">Millennials want the security of their own roof over heads, finds CBRE</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/healthcare-consumer-goods-minted-the-most-indian-dollar-billionaires/articleshow/98913863.cms">Healthcare, consumer goods minted the most Indian dollar billionaires</a>

Campa has to go beyond invitation price to build the brand & distribution network

<ul><li><keyword id="7038252" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="yoga-bar" source="Orion">Yoga Bar</keyword> recently entered the children's nutritional <keyword id="527314" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="snacking" source="Orion">snacking</keyword> segment, a move that Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer of <keyword id="13466990" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="yoga-bar-suhasini-sampath" source="Orion">Yoga Bar Suhasini Sampath</keyword> is confident will help take the Rs 200 crore brand to Rs 1000 crore within the next 2-2.5 years.</li><li>We speak to Suhasini who walks us through the brand's journey so far and how they plan to achieve their goal.</li></ul>When sister-founder duo Suhasini and <keyword id="13466989" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="anindita-sampath" source="Orion">Anindita Sampath</keyword> Kumar founded Yoga Bar in 2014, the market for energy and protein bars in India was at a nascent stage. However, in the last 8 years that it has been in existence, the brand has been able to carve a niche for itself and got itself a loyal following, of consumers who are on the lookout for healthy snacking options. The brand that started out by selling energy and protein bars has now also expanded its portfolio to Muesli, Peanut Butter, Whey Protein and Gluten-Free Oats. In fact, it recently entered the children’s nutritional snacking segment, adding a much wider segment to its overall portfolio, a move that Suhasini is confident will take the brand to touch the Rs 1000 crore mark within 2 years. “Historically, we have grown 100% year-on-year. We are at Rs 200 crore currently and at this rate, we expect to reach Rs 1000 crore in 2-2.5 years,” she said. She is confident that the brand's entry into the children's segment will help take it to its target soon. Yoga Bar comes under the umbrella of <keyword id="13466991" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="sproutlife-foods" source="Orion">Sproutlife Foods</keyword> where Suhasini, Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer is responsible for driving high-impact business results and overseeing brand-building initiatives while her sister, Co-founder and CEO, Anindita Sampath, leads the operations, R&amp;D and product inventory and food technology vertical. The brand came into being in 2014 when both the sisters were still students in the US. They felt the need of a brand like Yoga Bar when they would get hungry after a yoga session and picked up a bar. “Anindita took a bar from a Trader’s Joe after our Yoga class and said ‘I wonder why thee aren’t such products in India. She also said, “If I had a product like this, I would name it Yoga Bar, and that’s how the brand was born,” shared Suhasini. After coming back to India, for the first few years, the duo only sold energy bars, but a lot of their consumers started asking for natural protein bars. Then came the breakfast bars because a lot of consumers said they were busy in the mornings with no time to make food. Once the breakfast bars were in the market, the next step was to go deeper into the breakfast category with the launch of muesli and oats. “After the breakfast portfolio, we wanted to focus on the children’s segment because most of what is available for children is loaded with sugar. I am the mother to a two-year-old and am very conscious of what I give her to eat, so we went into infant porridges and kids’ cereals. We also advocate a ‘No-Maida’ policy, unlike other brands, ensuring that kids are not consuming maida-filled snacks,” shared Suhasini. Suhasini also explained that the brand is very particular about the quality of the products they sell and the fact that they have they have their own manufacturing facility helps them keep a strict control on what they put in their products. The brand has also been very transparent about the ingredients it uses in its offerings, something that has worked in its favor, considering there has been a strong movement in the last few years of eating healthy and more natural food products. What is also interesting is that the brand spent hardly anything on marketing in the initial years. So I asked Suhasini what helped them win over consumers in those initial years? “There was inherent trust because the products that we entered with had very clean labels. That's something consumers always appreciated us for, because they could see the ingredients they were consuming. I can say with a lot of confidence that if your mother was making an energy or protein bar for you, she would do it the exact same way we did it, and that’s not a claim that a large company can make. Our process of creating our products is very different from a large-scale MNC. Simply putting some products into the market is not how we do things. We only sell products that we will feed our own families, which is a big difference between us and larger brands. Also, we don't think we will replace homemade breakfast dishes like paratha or poha. But on the days where you feel like you're in a hurry, our products are a good alternative.” Millennials and GenZs are the brand’s primary target audience. So without spending on marketing, how did the brand make its presence felt? “We did not spend much on marketing in the initial years and focused a lot on sampling, and a lot of it happened through word-of-mouth. We do some performance marketing within our channels but we have never run an ATL or BTL. campaign. It was the strength of the product which led to the word-of-mouth,” she added. Yoga Bar’s products are currently available in over 10000 outlets across the country. Currently almost 60% of its sales comes from offline stores. “For our next phase of expansion, we will focus on expanding our distribution, putting our products much wider. We might also run one strong marketing campaign. In terms of getting into newer segments, we might look at coming up with salty and savory snacks using dry fruits and makhanas etc,” said Suhasini.

Here’s why Yoga Bar is confident of becoming a Rs 1000 crore brand in the next 2 years

New Delhi, June 20 (IANS) India's largest smartphone seller Xiaomi is "more Indian" than any other smartphone brand, company's India head Manu Kumar Jain said on Saturday amid growing chorus for boycotting Chinese goods in the country. Stressing that the company's mobile phone R&amp;D centre and product team is in India, the Xiaomi India Managing Director also pointed out that it employs 50,000 people in the country. Other reasons he cited in a tweet to substantiate his claim that Xiaomi is more Indian than anyone else included the assertions that most of its phones and TVs are "Made in India", the entire leadership team is Indian and that the company pays its taxes in India. The tweet drew mixed reactions from Twitter users. While some agreed with the reasoning of Jain, some others pointed out that the parent company continues to be Chinese. "Sir Xaomi name itself is Chinese (sic)," said Twitter user Deepak (@deepaknrn) whose bio in the social media account simply reads "A Proud Indian." "Where does the Final profit go???," asked Twitter user Siddharth Sharma (@Siddhar97465501). Some others argued that the so-called "Made in India" Xiaomi products are actually "assembled in India". However, some users supported XIaomi. "I love Xiaomi. Waiting for new smartphone launch," replied one user on Jain's tweet. The Xiaomi India MD also shared a link to his interview to news channel CNBC-TV18 where he said that the company invests back in India. He argued that even American smartphone companies selling their products source components from China and the same is true about Indian smartphone brands. While admitting that there is currently an anti-China sentiment on social media, he said that it has not impacted Xiaomi's business in the country. Earlier, Realme India CEO Madhav Sheth who is also very active on social media said that Realme is an Indian startup. In his latest episode of 'Ask Madhav' series on YouTube, he said: "I can proudly say Realme is an Indian startup, which is now a global MNC (multinational corporation)". Amid border tensions with China and a growing chorus for boycotting Chinese goods, top Indian executives of some of the most popular phone brands have found themselves in hot water every time they tweet to promote their upcoming or existing products. --IANS gb/na

Xiaomi 'more Indian' smartphone brand than any other: Manu Jain

New Delhi, Jan 9 () The biosimilars global market is on the cusp of exceptional growth and presents attractive opportunities for select domestic pharmaceutical companies in the years to come, according to rating agency Icra.
 The biosimilars global market, which stood at USD 5.9 billion in the calendar year 2018, is expected to grow to USD 23.6 billion by 2023, backed by several biologicals losing patent protection globally, Icra Research said in a statement.
 Select Indian pharma companies with strong research and development capabilities will be in a position to exploit these opportunities in the key markets of USA, Europe and "Rest of the World" (ROW), it added.
 "ICRA believes that only select Indian companies based on joint development model with MNC Generics will be able to successfully launch several biosimilars over the next 3-5 years," Icra Corporate Ratings Vice-President Gaurav Jain said.
 Economies of scale in manufacturing and ability to allocate adequate R&amp;D resources on product development would be key differentiators going forward, he added.
 "This will be credit positive for such select successful players though at an aggregate sector level, it is unlikely to materially impact credit profile owing to limited participation from Indian players," Jain said.
 While only a few Indian companies have been able to launch biosimilars in developed markets of the US and Europe, ROW has seen much better participation, he added.
 A biosimilar medicine is a biological medicine that is similar to another biological medicine that has already been authorised for use. AKT HRS

Biosimilars global market to provide promising opportunity for select domestic pharma firms: Icra

New Delhi, Dec 18 () Ratings agency Icra on Wednesday said the Indian pharmaceutical industry is expected to grow around 10-12 per cent between FY2019 and FY2022 while maintaining a stable outlook on the sector.
 Icra cited abating headwinds from pricing pressure in the US (which is the largest regulated market), stable growth for the Indian market driven by increasing healthcare spending and better accessibility as likely key growth drivers for the Indian pharma companies, coupled with comfortable balance sheet structure. 
 It, however, said increased cost related to regulatory compliances, especially for the US market, price controls across markets and mandatory genericisation for Indian market remained key risks. 
 "The domestic pharmaceutical industry has gained adequate scale and generic drug development capabilities over a decade of growth which will keep them in good stead to capture bigger opportunities, especially in the specialty/niche segments in the regulated market," Icra said in a statement.
 The FY2019-2022 compound annual growth rate (CAGR) is expected to be around 10-12 per cent for domestic pharmaceutical companies, it added.
 Icra said growth from the US picked up in FY2019 to 12.1 per cent after seeing a decline of 13.1 per cent in FY2018. 
 "The growth was supported by higher market share for Indian players as several generic MNC players optimised product portfolios along with new product launches," it added.
 The pricing pressure led by consolidation of supply chain in the US market and faster abbreviated new drug application approvals is abating and is expected to remain in mid-single digit in FY2020 compared to low teens in FY2018. 
 Icra, however, warned that while the US growth is expected to remain at high single digit to low double digit, it will face headwinds given the relatively moderate proportion of large size drugs going off patent, generic adoption reaching saturation levels in the US market and increased regulatory scrutiny as reflected in increased issuance of warning letters/import alerts. 
 It further said productivity of research and development expenditure, operational risk related to increased level of due diligence by regulatory agencies and price controls were key concerns. RKL ANS
ANS

Indian pharma sector expected to grow at 10-12 pc during FY19-22, outlook stable: Icra

Japanese multinational corporation (MNC) <keyword id="199230" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Sumitomo-Corporation">Sumitomo Corporation</keyword> has bid a staggering Rs 2,238 crore for a three-acre plot in the prime Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) in central Mumbai, an official said here on Tuesday. "We have received the bid from the company for the plot here. However, the bid will be scrutinised and evaluated and will undergo our processes for other formal approvals before it is finalised. We cannot fix a timeframe for this," Dilip Kawathkar, Executive Director, <keyword id="64095" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Mumbai-Metropolitan-Region-Development-Authority">Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority</keyword> (MMRDA), told IANS. The bid, which works out to around Rs 745 crore per acre, is billed among the biggest in the country in recent times, though the MMRDA officials declined to elaborate. Officials said if Sumitomo Corporation wins the bid, it may be entitled to a floor space index (FSI) of 4 permissible on the BKC plot, or a built-up area of approximately a million square feet. Established in 1919, the Tokyo headquartered Sumitomo Corporation is spread across Japan, Asia, Europe, America, Africa, East Asia and other countries globally, dealing in <keyword id="17408" type="DOMAIN" weightage="20" keywordseo="infrastructure">infrastructure</keyword>, realty, media, metal products, transportation and construction systems, minerals, energy and chemicals.

Japanese multinational Sumitomo has bid a whopping ₹2,238 cr for a 3-acre plot in Mumbai's Bandra Kurla Complex

Gurgaon is home to many a BPO, MNC and IT office. Employees based out of the millennial city have to continue working from home until the end of July, according to state officials. Around mid-March, the Gurgaon district administration has issued an advisory asking companies to allow their employees to work from home. “As of now, it appears this advisory for work from home will continue till the end of July. All those who have offices in Gurgaon should continue to work from home to the extent possible,” said Gurgaon Metropolitan Development Authority CEO V S Kundu. He is in charge of handling the COVID-19 crisis in the district. Most companies have already declared that working from home may be the ‘new normal’ for them. They have also highlighted how there’s been an increase in employee productivity since the commute time has drastically been cut down. Most people, it would take at least one-and-a-half to two hours in either direction to travel between office and home. However, he pointed out that many real estate projects, including those which fall under DLF, will be allowed to resume work provided they follow all social distancing norms. “Construction sites where labourers are already staying on the site or those where labourers stay within walking distance are allowed to resume work while adhering to social distancing norms,” said Kundu. So far, there have been 51 reported cases of the Coronavirus in Gurgaon. Of these, 35 have recovered. Nonetheless, it has been declared a red zone by the Harayan government since it’s one of the worst affected districts in the state alongside Nuh, Palwal and Faridabad. Kundu described the situation in Gurgaon as “fairly under control” and said there is no evidence of community transmission. Gurgaon has effectively been under lockdown since March 22 – two days before Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s announcement of a pan-India shutdown to stem the spread of the disease. This gave the administration a head start and enabled it to handle the situation effectively, the official said. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/dhfls-kapil-and-dheeraj-wadhawan-taken-into-custody-by-cbi-for-role-in-yes-bank-scam-case/articleshow/75388823.cms">DHFL's Kapil and Dheeraj Wadhawan taken into custody by CBI for role in Yes Bank scam case</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/pm-modi-says-indias-fight-against-coronavirus-is-people-driven/articleshow/75387305.cms">PM Modi says India's fight against Coronavirus is 'people-driven'</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/lockdown-may-be-extended-in-covid-19-hit-urban-areas-of-maha/articleshow/75386981.cms">Coronavirus lockdown may extend beyond May 3 in urban areas of Maharashtra</a>

Gurgaon-based employees may have to ‘work from home’ until the end of July, according to Haryana officials

As consumer sentiment runs high amid growing chorus for boycotting Chinese goods in the country, the fluid market situation offers new opportunities for various smartphone makers, especially the non-Chinese ones like Samsung, Apple, Nokia, Asus and others, to realign their strategies and regain the lost market share in the face of fierce Chinese competition. The challenge here would be not to look "opportunistic" and leverage the current explosive situation on just riding on the anti-Chinese sentiment but to offer real challenges in the form of top-end devices with solid internals at affordable price points, feel industry experts. "The current market conditions in India are fluid and open up new opportunities for smartphone original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to focus and leverage," Prabhu Ram, Head-Industry Intelligence Group, CyberMedia Research (CMR), told IANS. In the first quarter (January-March) this year, Samsung's shipments were driven by its upgraded A and M series (A51, A20s, A30s, and M30s). According to Counterpoint Research, Samsung managed to hold third position in Q1 2020 due to launches across several price tiers, especially in the affordable premium segment (S10 Lite, Note 10 Lite). The South Korean smartphone maker last week announced a ₹4,000 price drop on its popular Galaxy Note10 Lite smartphone that will now cost ₹37,999 (6GB variant). Earlier this month, Samsung launched two new smartphones, Galaxy M11 and Galaxy M01, with powerful batteries under ₹15,000 in India. The Galaxy M11 comes in two variants. The 3GB+32GB will be priced at ₹10,999 while the higher 4GB+64GB variant will be available for ₹12,999. Samsung has also launched an affordable Galaxy A21s smartphone with quad-camera system and 5,000mAh battery at a starting price of ₹16,499. On the other hand, Apple grew a strong 78% year-on-year driven by strong shipments of iPhone 11 and multiple discounts on platforms like Flipkart and Amazon in Q1, according to Counterpoint. Apple has also brought its cheapest yet powerful new iPhone SE that costs ₹38,900 (64GB) in India with a special offer from HDFC Bank. The new iPhone SE is powered by the Apple-designed A13 Bionic, the fastest chip in a smartphone and features the best single-camera system ever in an iPhone. According to Tarun Pathak, Associate Director, Counterpoint Research, consumer sentiments are running high and a section of users will look for alternatives, benefitting global and Indian brands. "However, we do not think non-Chinese brands will run aggressive campaigns based on the situation as it might look like being opportunistic," Pathak told IANS. It may actually let brands of Chinese origin try to run aggressive campaigns on their presence and scale. "Some of these Chinese brands have been active in scaling up local value addition, creating jobs and investing in research and development," Pathak noted. On Saturday, market leader Xiaomi said that it is "more Indian" than any other smartphone brand. The company's India head Manu Kumar Jain said that the company's mobile phone R&amp;D centre and product team is in India, it employs 50,000 people in the country, the entire leadership team is Indian and that the company pays its taxes in India. Earlier, Realme India CEO Madhav Sheth who is also very active on social media said that Realme is an Indian startup. In his latest episode of 'Ask Madhav' series on YouTube, Sheth said: "I can proudly say Realme is an Indian startup, which is now a global MNC (multinational corporation)".

Can non-Chinese mobile brands leverage current consumer sentiment in India?

<ul><li><keyword id="279712" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Etsy">Etsy</keyword> has set up a team in <keyword id="66" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Delhi">Delhi</keyword> to help more local entrepreneurs go international. This is among the first few seller-focused teams formed by the company </li><li>It is also planning to recruit and assist new sellers online and offline, by offering free listings, giving incentives and hosting workshops to introduce existing and potential sellers to each other. </li><li>Etsy will encourage craftsmen to continue their family trades and set up their own businesses with minimal investment. </li></ul> Etsy, a US-based <a href="https://retail.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/e-commerce/e-tailing/global-marketplace-etsy-enters-india/65157475">marketplace </a>for unique and creative goods, has announced its entry into the Indian market and has set up a team in Delhi to help more local entrepreneurs go international. The team’s focus will be on creating more opportunities for Indian artistes to sell their products worldwide. The company aims to target independent designers with limited capital or traditional artistes working in remote areas. This is among the first such seller-focused teams formed by the 13-year-old company. Sellers from <keyword id="3658" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="India">India</keyword> have been using <a href="https://www.vogue.in/content/etsy-makes-way-indias-untapped-community-local-entrepreneurs/#s-cust0">Etsy </a>since the early days of the company and there are currently more than 650,000 items available on Etsy from Indian sellers including ethnic jewellery, traditional clothes, parasols, fabrics, bed-covers, and quilts, among other items. However, on their India launch, the company did not disclose the number of Indian sellers. To get the ball rolling, the <a href="https://qz.com/1336123/etsy-has-a-plan-to-corner-indias-crafts-market/">e-commerce </a>website is planning to recruit and assist new sellers online and offline, by offering free listings and incentives to all new sellers in India on the platform. It will also host workshops to introduce existing and potential sellers to each other. This offers Indian sellers the opportunity to grow their business and create a marketplace for authentic Indian handicrafts. The scenario here, however, is different from what it would have been if any other successful MNC would have entered the country. Etsy will encourage craftsmen to continue their family trades, instead of forcing them to switch to more ‘modern’ jobs. Furthermore, it could also help budding artists and designers to set up their own trades with minimal investment. Founded in <keyword id="71339" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Brooklyn">Brooklyn</keyword> in 2005, the company connects two million creative entrepreneurs, 87% of whom are women, with nearly 35 million buyers from nearly every country around the world. The company generated $3.25 billion in gross merchandise sales in 2017. India as always been an important market to Etsy as it has seen “interesting organic activity, without us having to do much”.

Local goes global as Etsy steps into India

<keyword id="6406649" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Patanjali-Ayurved">Patanjali Ayurved</keyword>, yoga guru <keyword id="6355107" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Baba-Ramdev">Baba Ramdev</keyword>'s homegrown FMCG company, has come out with a new advertising campaign, comparing its multinational rivals to the East India Company. 
 
It’s not the first time that the yoga guru has played the ‘Made in India’ card, however doing that out in the open with <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Baba-Ramdevs-Patanjali-is-under-limelight-for-all-the-wrong-reasons-Heres-why/articleshow/52550015.cms">Patanjali's ads</a> is a first. 
 
Also read: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Toothpaste-fight-gets-fierce-as-Colgate-launches-herbal-toothpaste-to-counter-Patanjali/articleshow/53487115.cms">Toothpaste fight gets fierce as Colgate launches herbal toothpaste to counter Patanjali</a> 
 
"Though we got political freedom 70 years back, economic freedom is still a dream," reads the print ad. "The way East India Company enslaved and looted us, multinational companies are still doing the same by selling soap, shampoo, toothpaste, cream, powder and similar daily items at exorbitant price." 
 
Also read: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Baba-Ramdevs-Patanjali-is-under-limelight-for-all-the-wrong-reasons-Heres-why/articleshow/52550015.cms">Baba Ramdev’s Patanjali is under limelight for all the wrong reasons. Here’s why</a> 
 
RSS affiliate Swadeshi Jagran Manch (SJM) also rolled out a protest against the new FDI policy on August 9, almost in line with the launch of this campaign. As per SJM, allowing foreigners to engage in food processing and marketing of agricultural produce will ultimately kill small shops and units in India. 
 
Also read: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Ram-Bharat-Patanjali/articleshow/52142568.cms">It takes two to tango and three to jive, so who’s the third wheel in Patanjali’s success?</a> 
 
On the other hand, All India Food Processors' Association (AIFPA), which has MNCs like Coca-Cola and Cadbury as its members, says that India is a free market which is open to everyone to do business. 
 
Also read: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Patanjali-rapped-for-misleading-hair-oil-other-advertisements/articleshow/52453185.cms">Patanjali rapped for 'false and misleading' hair oil, washing powder ads</a> 
 
"Every company whether MNC or homegrown has to operate in accordance (with regulations). It is a free market and every company can sell depending upon the trust of the consumer," AIFPA President Sagar Kurade told ET. "At the end, the consumer has to choose which product they believe in." 
 
<a href="http://theviralvent.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/o-BABA-RAMDEV-facebook.jpg">Image source</a>

For Patanjali Ayurved, rival MNCs are nothing short of East India Company

“Tired from work, braving traffic jams to get to a jam-packed grocery store? Use our app, select the groceries you want from your nearest stores and get them delivered at your doorstep in no time. Best quality guaranteed at the cheapest rate!” Now, anyone in this world would fall for that idea. It is a great concept we agree, but not so great when the grocery apps fail to fulfill the tall promises they make. What seems like a heavenly service more often ends up becoming a nightmare when wrong products are delivered, or it takes an eternity for orders to reach you. Oblivious to how it is detrimental to their image in the market, our desi <keyword id="3162812" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="grocery-delivery-apps">grocery delivery apps</keyword> unfortunately are losing a great concept to poor customer service, something that forms the foundation of this business. 
 
The irony is, for customers, it ends up complicating their lives instead of simplifying it! Here’s how: 
 Vikram Sanghvi, an employee with a Gurgaon-based MNC, who used <keyword id="964794" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="BigBasket">Bigbasket</keyword> service found grave faults with the app recently: “I received a phone call at the delivery time saying that my order is out of stock and I will be sent an alternate option. I found out that the delivered product was of higher price compared to the one I wanted. Now, is it my fault that you have run out of stock. If you have, the app should not reflect such products so that one does not order it, but why should I compromise and pay a higher price for something I don't want,” he says. 
 Unlike Vikram,Vijaya Singh, a homemaker based in Gurgaon, who thought of trying out <keyword id="2466939" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Grofers">Grofers</keyword> app was delivered an alternative without informing her: “I ordered MDH masala packets. When I received the order, they sent me Catch masala packets instead. It makes me feel that they want to promote one brand over the other.” She also pointed that while ordering multiple products from various sections of Grofers – fruits and veggies, cosmetics, bakery – different delivery boys come at different time which she finds quite inconvenient. "One order and you have the door bell ringing 3 times in 15 minutes. I personally don't like this way of delivery," she says. 
 
Akash and Mandeep, both running their start-ups in South Delhi, have a bigger plight. Only half of the ordered items were delivered to them by Grofers. While Akash opted for the cash on delivery option and did not have to pay for all that he had ordered on the app, a furious Mandeep says “It has been over 45 days and still they haven't returned my money close to Rs 520. There is no money return policy, it’s shameful. You make the mistake and customer pays the price for it. Who runs a business like this.” 
 
For Janki, a mother and employee working at an MNC in Gurgaon, it was worse because the products were not delivered until the next day and what she was in store for is quite annoying: “I had ordered pampers for my kid from ZopNow. First, they postponed the order for another day and then they cancelled my order without informing me. When I called them for my money that I paid online, they said supervisor will call back but nobody reached out to me. Pathetic customer service,” she says. 
 We have all heard of late deliveries, but 6 days!! “We generally shop online and decided to give Godrej <keyword id="938654" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Natures-Basket">Nature's basket</keyword> online website a chance. It was the biggest mistake ever. We were told our order will be delivered in 48 hours, however even after 6 days we haven't received the order, neither have we received any update. The service is obviously very unprofessional and cannot be trusted, which we did not expect from a Godrej,” he says. 
 
Another young working lady, Shikha Singh, swears she won’t use the apps ever as it gave her the most embarrassing moment ever: “I ordered some grocery through Bigbasket app and I needed it urgently because some guests including my boss were coming over. The order was placed successfully and their call center confirmed the same to me. Not only were they late, but I got a call two hours later only to hear from the team that the items were out of stock and couldn’t be delivered. I had to order food from the restaurant for them. It was embarrassing as I had invited them to a home-made litti-chokha treat.” 
 
Not everyone has been that unlucky though. A couple of them we spoke to said that they received the right orders, except that it took them an eternity to get them at their doorstep. “The orders never seem to reach you before 2-3 hours, even the smallest orders take time. What if you have guests over? One can bring things from the market and finish cooking by the time they deliver,” says Saba Haider, a journalist working with a reputed media house in Noida, who uses Grofers for her household needs. 
 
There are even several users complaining of price disparity. They can’t stop short of calling it fraudulent practices. “I ordered Tropicana 100% orange juice from Nature's Hub. MRP for this product is Rs 120, but on the site it was displayed as Rs 99. Obviously, I was happy at the discount being offered and ordered 5 of them for Cash on Delivery. When the product came, they charged me Rs 120 (original MRP) for the product mentioning this was incorrectly priced on the site. Since I was not at home at that moment and my wife wasn't aware of it, she paid and opened the pack. Now this is totally unacceptable and misleading,” said Ashish Naik, a businessman based out of Mumbai. 
 
Dear concerned companies, we hope you are listening to them. Our humble advice – Please, treat your customers like god. If you don’t, you might fall out of the race even before you picked up. Don’t forget, you are because they are.

You Searched For "MNC products" and got 13 results

Here's why B-school students ultimately opt for FMCG companies over startups during placement season

Anushree Singh

If you’re an App developer, you have reason to be very, very happy!

BI India Bureau

Campa has to go beyond invitation price to build the brand & distribution network

Katya Naidu

Here’s why Yoga Bar is confident of becoming a Rs 1000 crore brand in the next 2 years

Samarpita Banerjee

Xiaomi 'more Indian' smartphone brand than any other: Manu Jain

IANS

Biosimilars global market to provide promising opportunity for select domestic pharma firms: Icra

PTI

Indian pharma sector expected to grow at 10-12 pc during FY19-22, outlook stable: Icra

PTI

Japanese multinational Sumitomo has bid a whopping ₹2,238 cr for a 3-acre plot in Mumbai's Bandra Kurla Complex

Gurgaon-based employees may have to ‘work from home’ until the end of July, according to Haryana officials

Prabhjote Gill

Can non-Chinese mobile brands leverage current consumer sentiment in India?

IANS

Local goes global as Etsy steps into India

BI India Bureau

For Patanjali Ayurved, rival MNCs are nothing short of East India Company

BI India Bureau

The reality of Desi grocery delivery apps, how horribly they fail at what they promise to customers

Anushree Singh

Popular Keywords

Buying Guides