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<ul><li>The prices of Dove and Pears will be reduced in the third quarter. </li><li>It has already cut the prices of its flagship brands Lux and Lifebuoy by around 4.6%.</li><li>Total price cuts in the personal wash segment will be around 6-8%. </li></ul>Hindustan Unilever, one of India’s biggest FMCG company, is looking to cut prices of Dove and Pears—its two popular soap brands further. The company said in an earnings conference call yesterday that it has already cut prices of Lux and Lifebuoy by around 4.6%. “Further price reductions are to be taken in Dove and Pears from the third quarter onwards. On overall personal wash, total price cuts to be around 6-8%,” said the company. These price cuts will cover its most popular products of the major. This quarter, the 5.3% growth in the beauty and personal care products was soft. Other segments like home care grew 9.4% while foods grew by 8.4%. A research report by Edelweiss believes that action on the pricing front will the personal care segment post a turnaround. “Though popular segment in personal wash continues to be soft, we expect the recent price action combined with higher ad spends for Lux and Lifebuoy to change the trend,” the report said. This quarter, HUL increased its ad spend by 8.3% by partially ploughing back savings in margins—to improve subdued demand. HUL’s quarterly performance overall has beat expectations as its overall volumes grew by 5%, in spite of almost flat growth from rural areas. Its profits went up by 21% to ₹1,848 crore for the quarter ending September driven by robust growth in the home care and food and beverage verticals. It is also banking on good growth from its newest segment of natural care products, along with premium products. “Monsoon has been good--- this, along with more direct transfer to farmers should aid volume growth to some extent. Near-term demand outlook, especially in rural India, remains challenging,” HUL said in its earnings conference call. Its stock went up by 2.5% in today’s trade to ₹2,065 as of 2:34 pm. It was one of the top gainers in early trade today.

Marquee soap brands like Dove, Pears, and Lifebuoy are getting cheaper as India’s largest FMCG company lathers up with price cuts and increased ads

<ul><li><keyword id="6365619" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="hindustan-unilever">Hindustan Unilever</keyword> Limited has cut prices for <keyword id="6616182" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Lifebuoy">Lifebuoy</keyword>, <keyword id="119472" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="20" keywordseo="Lux">Lux</keyword> and Dove in lieu of low demand. </li><li>The Indian economic slowdown has hit FMCG companies.</li><li>Biscuit manufacturers Parle G and Brittania too have a worried outlook for the <keyword id="34412" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="economy">economy</keyword>. </li></ul>One of the biggest FMCG companies in India – Hindustan Unilever Limited – has cut prices for some of its most popular <a href="https://www.livemint.com/industry/retail/hul-reduces-lifebuoy-lux-prices-in-latest-sign-of-weak-demand-1566928904118.html">soaps </a>– Lifebuoy, Lux and Dove. While demand is one reason for it, tapering commodity prices also allowed them to take a call and pass on the benefits, the company told <a href="https://www.livemint.com/industry/retail/hul-reduces-lifebuoy-lux-prices-in-latest-sign-of-weak-demand-1566928904118.html">Mint.</a> While the price of Lux range will go down by 4%, that of Lifebuoy will go down by 6%. The Indian economic slowdown has impacted all major companies in the FMCG sector. Parle G, a leading biscuit manufacturer said it is planning to slash 10,000 jobs due to weak demand. Even though <a href="https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/fair-tax-gst-and-big-job-cut-parle-clears-air-on-layoffs/story-G2N4IYsC5aQ0x9rINe8EHN.html">Parle G</a> has denied the same, it has also said it is “an eventuality if our demand for lesser tax rates is not met.” In the <a href="https://www.dnaindia.com/business/report-consumers-thinking-twice-before-buying-a-rs-5-pack-britannia-2781047">latest earnings conference call</a> of Britannia, the company’s MD Varun Berry raised some serious concerns about the Indian economy. "We've grown only 6% and the market is growing slower than that. And that's a little bit of a worry, because even for a ₹5 product if the consumer is thinking twice before buying it, then there is some serious issue in the economy,” he said. See Also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/indian-villagers-are-not-buying-clothes-and-cutting-back-on-hair-oil/articleshow/70856804.cms">After biscuits, Indian villagers are cutting down on clothes and hair oil too</a>

Lifebuoy and Lux get cheaper as HUL reduces prices because of low demand

<ul><li>The decision to remove ‘normal’ is one of many steps that <keyword id="44863" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="HUL">HUL</keyword> is taking to challenge narrow beauty ideals, as it works towards helping to end discrimination and advocating for a more inclusive vision of beauty.</li><li>More of Unilever's beauty and personal care brands will join the likes of Dove, Lifebuoy, Vaseline and Sunsilk by taking action on social and environmental challenges and advocating for the evolution of norms, policies and laws.</li></ul>Unilever today announced it will eliminate the word ‘normal’ from all of its beauty and personal care brands’ packaging and advertising, as part of the launch of our new Positive Beauty vision and strategy. Positive Beauty, which sets out several progressive commitments and actions for HUL's beauty and personal care brands, including Dove, Lifebuoy, Axe and Sunsilk, will champion a new era of beauty which is equitable and inclusive, as well as sustainable for the planet. Using Unilever’s innovation and technology, Positive Beauty will also help to drive a transformation in how its products are designed and formulated so that they do more good for both people and the planet, deliver a superior product experience, and tap into consumer trends. The decision to remove ‘normal’ is one of many steps that HUL is taking to challenge narrow beauty ideals, as it works towards helping to end discrimination and advocating for a more inclusive vision of beauty. It comes as global research into people’s experiences of the beauty industry reveals that using ‘normal’ to describe hair or skin makes most people feel excluded. The 10,000-person study, which was commissioned by Unilever, was conducted across nine countries. It found that: <ul><li>More than half of people (56%) think that the beauty and personal care industry can make people feel excluded.</li><li>People want to see the beauty and personal care industry focusing more on making people feel better, than just looking better (74%).</li><li>More than half of people (52%) say they now pay more attention to a company’s stance on societal issues before buying products.</li><li>Seven in ten people agree that using the word ‘normal’ on product packaging and advertising has a negative impact. For younger people – those aged 18-35 – this rises to eight in ten.</li></ul><cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="India highlights:" text="India highlights:">India highlights:</cmsannotation> In India, making products that cater to all people is recognised as one of the most pressing challenges that the beauty and personal care industry should address; only behind making products affordable for all and being transparent on what ingredients are included. Almost two in three people in India (64%) agree that the beauty and personal care industry makes certain people feel excluded. Six in ten people in India (59%) say the industry makes certain people feel bad about the way they look and makes certain people feel bad about themselves (59%). The beauty industry is seen as contributing to the spread of narrow beauty ideals: over six in ten people in India (63%) agree that the BPC industry shares narrow beauty ideals, and two in three (66%) think that the industry pressurising people into thinking they need to look a certain way contributes to narrow beauty ideals. The majority of people in India agree that the BPC industry still has some way to go in representing people of various body types (76%), people from different age groups (77%) people from different ethnicities (74%) and people from the LGBTQIA+ community (67%). Over eight in ten people (83%) think that using the word “normal” on beauty product packaging and in advertising has a negative impact on people. This includes making people who don’t feel as though they have “normal hair” or “normal skin” feel excluded or feel bad about themselves. The majority of people in India, feel positively about Unilever’s commitment: they agree that removing the word “normal” would inspire them to feel more positive about the way they look (70%), believe that it is the right thing to do (69%), and feel positively about the company behind it (67%). The trend is clear: two in three people in India (65%) say they now pay more attention to a company’s stance on societal issues before they buy products than they used to. Six in ten people there (63%) will not buy a product if they do not agree with the company’s vision of D&amp;I, even if the company offers the best price. With its commitment, the majority of people in India (71%) think Unilever is working to broaden the definition of beauty in society. Additionally, broadening the definition of beauty is not only the right thing to do for profit but also for people according to seven in ten of people in India. Sunny Jain, President Beauty &amp; Personal Care, said: “With one billion people using our beauty and personal care products every day, and even more seeing our advertising, our brands have the power to make a real difference to people’s lives. As part of this, we are committed to tackling harmful norms and stereotypes and shaping a broader, far more inclusive definition of beauty. “We know that removing ‘normal’ from our products and packaging will not fix the problem alone, but it is an important step forward. It’s just one of a number of actions we are taking as part of our Positive Beauty vision, which aims not only to do less harm, but more good for both people and the planet. “With more consumers than ever rewarding brands which take action on the social and environmental issues they care about, we believe that Positive Beauty will make us a stronger, and more successful business.” In addition to removing the word ‘normal’, Unilever will not digitally alter a person’s body shape, size, proportion or skin colour in its brand advertising, and will increase the number of advertisements portraying people from diverse groups who are under-represented. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Driving positive change for people and planet" text="Driving positive change for people and planet">Driving positive change for people and planet</cmsannotation> Central to Positive Beauty is the ambition to do more good, not just less harm, for people and the planet. Our decision to remove ‘normal’ from our packaging and advertising is just one action within the set of three commitments we have made to create real and measurable impact: Taking action through our brands to improve health and wellbeing, and advance equity and inclusion, reaching 1 billion people per year by 2030. They will focus on: <ul><li>Helping to end discrimination in beauty and champion inclusion, by challenging narrow beauty ideals and building a more inclusive portfolio of products.</li><li>Driving gender equity, including stepping up brand programmes, advocacy to challenge the status quo and #unstereotyping advertising.</li><li>Improving health and wellbeing through existing educational initiatives in handwashing and oral hygiene and expanding focus into new areas, including physical health and mental wellbeing.</li><li>Helping to protect and regenerate 1.5 million hectares of land, forests and oceans by 2030, which is more land than is required to grow the renewable ingredients in Unilever’s beauty and personal care products.</li><li>Supporting a global ban on animal testing for cosmetics by 2023, working alongside lawmakers, animal protection organisations and like-minded companies. Twenty-three Unilever beauty and personal care brands are now PETA Approved, with more working towards certification.</li></ul>At the heart of the delivery of these commitments will be Unilever’s beauty and personal care brands, many of which have a track record of delivering impactful programs and purpose-led growth. More of its beauty and personal care brands will join the likes of Dove, Lifebuoy, Vaseline and Sunsilk by taking action on social and environmental challenges and advocating for the evolution of norms, policies and laws. Sarah Degnan Kambou, President of the International Center for Research on Women said: “Every day, we see and hear messages about how to ‘fit in’, how to be included in very narrow definitions of what is ‘normal’. In order to champion equity, we need to challenge these restrictive ‘norms’ and create societies and communities that celebrate diversity – and the unique qualities and ideas that each person brings. Beauty is no exception. We look forward to seeing Unilever advance these commitments and hold themselves to the high standards they have set out before them.” Consumers increasingly expect brands to take a stand on the issues they care most about. Unilever’s brands perceived as more purposeful grew more than twice as fast as the rest of the portfolio in 2020. The company’s research further supports this trend, with the majority of people (69%) saying they will recommend a beauty brand to their friends and family if it caters to a wide range of skin and hair types, while half of respondents would pay more for these products. Positive Beauty will also accelerate our science and technology programmes and innovation partnerships, driving the continued transformation of how our products are designed and formulated to become more people and planet positive. This includes developing tailored products to serve the diverse needs of people around the world, delivering real and meaningful consumer benefits, backed by cutting-edge science. Innovation will also advance the use of more natural, biodegradable, and regenerative ingredients – alongside continued packaging innovations that use less, better or no plastic.

HUL to eliminate the word ‘normal’ from all of its beauty and personal care brands’ packaging and advertising

<ul><li>Despite consistent sales, <keyword id="6359432" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="britannia">Britannia</keyword>’s profit margin shrank significantly compared to the Q1 of last year.</li><li>The century-old company has blamed <keyword id="22195" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Inflation">inflation</keyword> and crude oil prices for its receding profit margins in Q1 of FY2022.</li><li>Just like its competitors, Britannia too is looking to increase its price over the next quarter.</li></ul>Inflation is biting even for some of the country’s largest companies. For instance, even though the $11.3 billion king of the cookies business, Britannia, was able to show some decent sales between April and June this year, its profit margin shrank significantly compared to the same quarter of last year. <div type="image" title="From cookies king Britannia to soaps titan HUL, inflation is eating profits away ⁠— so, you may have to pay even more for daily essentials" msid="84977168" hostid="261"></div> The same has been true for other giants like <keyword id="6361485" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="marico">Marico</keyword>, which makes the edible oil brand Saffola, as well. Varun Berry, the chief executive (CEO) of Britannia, wants to increase prices of Britannia products. The inflation rate has increased to around 6-7% compared to April-June 2021. Meanwhile, fuel prices have increased another 1-2%, which has hit the company’s supply chain. “It’s a very high inflation number that we are currently sitting on. A situation like this, just necessitates [price increase]. Cost efficiency can never take care of this kind of inflation. Two-three percent we can usually take care of, but this necessitates price increase and that’s why we move forward with that,” Britannia’s chief executive officer Varun Berry, said in a call with analysts on August 2. Basically, Britannia managed to offset about half the rise in input prices by cutting costs. <div type="image" title="From cookies king Britannia to soaps titan HUL, inflation is eating profits away ⁠— so, you may have to pay even more for daily essentials" msid="84977142" hostid="261"></div> "While Britannia continues to gain market share, relative market share (versus Parle) has fallen in recent quarters. We believe Britannia needs to step up the pace of new launches and category forays to drive sustained acceleration in revenue momentum," said Kotak Institutional Equities in its report dated August 2. There were two reasons why the Britannia shares rallied on Monday. The 1% drop in revenue from sales was better than the estimated<a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/britannia_industries_2-quarter-earnings-preview-q1-1030656615"> contraction </a>and that the company wants to improve margin with price revision. And, it has the might to do so. <div type="image" title="From cookies king Britannia to soaps titan HUL, inflation is eating profits away ⁠— so, you may have to pay even more for daily essentials" msid="84977184" hostid="261"></div> In fact, Britannia is not the only company that has witnessed such a trend. Another <keyword id="34523" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="fmcg">FMCG</keyword> brand Marico — which makes popular products Parachute oils, Set Wet, Livon and Saffola — noticed such a dip in their profit margins despite the overall increase in sales. While India’s biggest FMCG brand <keyword id="6365619" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="hindustan-unilever">Hindustan Unilever</keyword> has managed to pave its way out of this circle with little to no impact, all thanks to its strategic pricing practices taken up last year. The company too has admitted that the inflation and rising input cost has been putting its business under pressure as well. <div type="image" title="From cookies king Britannia to soaps titan HUL, inflation is eating profits away ⁠— so, you may have to pay even more for daily essentials" msid="84977203" hostid="261"></div> From Britannia to Hindustan Unilever, consumer product set to be more costly Hindustan Unilever has already increased the price of some of its flagship products like Lux soap and Lifebuoy by 9% over the last one year. Lux, which used to cost ₹22 in April 2020, was priced at ₹28 in May 2021. The company had also indicated this price rise in its earning call for April-June quarter of FY2021. “We are taking some judicious price increases in parts of our portfolio. Some of it has already landed and some of it will land in due course because the quantum of inflation is a lot. And also, we'll do it in parts of the portfolio where it makes sense,” Srinivas Phatak, former chief financial officer (CFO) of Hindustan Unilever <a href="https://www.hul.co.in/Images/jq-2020-transcript---final_tcm1255-553839_1_en.pdf">said</a>. He has currently taken up a global finance role at Unilever’s London head office. Even companies like <keyword id="6356830" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="nestle-india">Nestle India</keyword>, Colgate Palmolive, Emami, Tata Consumer Products, Wipro Consumer Care have taken up such pricing practices over the last one year to overcome the inflation troubles. <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none; table-layout: fixed; width: 468pt;" class="redcator-table-advance"></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Company </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">April-June margin squeeze </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Hindustan Unilever </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">950 up </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Colgate Palmolive </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">1770 up </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Emami </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">9640 up </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Nestle </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">1100 up </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Marico </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">592 down </td></tr></tbody><tbody></tbody><tbody></tbody></table>*bps stands for basis points. 100 basis points make one percent. “As the market leaders, we are always the first to take price increases. The market leaders always have to initiate that. We are not ones who believe in price wars or taking advantage of situations like this. We believe in taking the price at the right time and that’s what’s got the entire industry to the situation, where the industry is making a lot more margin than what we have ever made in the past,” said Britannia’s CEO Berry said. SEE ALSO <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/check-out-policybazaar-ceo-yashish-dahiya-salary-and-remuneration-for-other-key-execs-in-paisabazaar-and-pb-fintech/articleshow/84971063.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink">PolicyBazaar’s CEO Yashish Dahiya took home about ₹3 crore ⁠— here’s a look at other top paid execs at the fintech startup headed for IPO</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/exclusive-indias-largest-zinc-miner-is-eyeing-a-share-of-the-bangladesh-economic-boom/articleshow/84963388.cms">EXCLUSIVE: India's largest zinc miner is eyeing a share of the Bangladesh economic boom</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/jack-dorseys-square-agreed-to-buy-afterpay-which-has-a-buy-now-pay-later-service-for-29-billion-in-stock/articleshow/84962218.cms">Jack Dorsey's Square agreed to buy Afterpay, which has a 'buy now, pay later' service, for $29 billion in stock</a>

From cookie king Britannia to soap titan HUL, inflation is eating profits away ⁠— so, you may have to pay even more for daily essentials

<ul><li>Despite a slowdown in 2019, Marico continued to hold on to market share and refrained from cutting down its marketing budgets.</li><li>Its focus on constantly innovating and coming up with premium products while keeping the consumer at the core of all its strategies helped the brand brave the slow times.</li><li>Koshy George, Chief Marketing Officer, Marico Limited walked us through the factors that helped the brand put up a good show in a difficult year, and its marketing game-plan for the year ahead. </li></ul>
 <div type="Video" msid="73255971" hostid="261" title="Koshy George, CMO, Marico Limited walks us through Marico's performance in 2019 and the key areas of focus in 2020" thumbUrl="https://denmark.timesinternet.in/cmslite/api/app/images.jpg?msid=73255971"></div>




It's been just about a year since Koshy George came on board as the Chief Marketing Officer at Marico Limited. While 2019 wasn't particularly an easy year for the overall industry, thanks to the economic slowdown, Marico’s core brands have managed to hold on to their leadership positions. The reason for this growth is perhaps its strong marketing game and the fact that the brand has been focusing on innovation and premiumisation, to solve consumer pain points. Before Marico, George spent close to 15 years in Hindustan Unilever, working on prominent brands like Lifebuoy, Pears, Dove, Lux, Lifebuoy and Sunlight, amongst others. In Marico, George is leading the company’s core hair nourishment brands that include Parachute Advansed, Nihar, Hair &amp; Care, Shanti Amla and Livon, among other brands. For a while now, premiumisation has been helping bridge the gap between what once could be termed as luxury products and products with a more mass appeal. It is also making products more appealing to millennials and a younger set of audience, that is ready to shell out some extra bucks, to get a better consumer experience. Despite being a legacy brand, Marico identified this as a growth area and has been focusing on innovating and coming up with premium products under its portfolio. Why premiumisation will continue to be critical The last year saw the economy witness a slowdown that led to muted growth across industries and FMCG wasn’t untouched by its effects. The effects were most starkly felt in rural markets, which witnessed a substantial dip in sales. However, despite the strong headwinds, Marico succeeded in gaining significant market share in the segments they play in. Its core brands like Parachute and Shanti Amla continued to perform well. “There is a headwind coming in, in terms of the growth of the overall categories shrinking. Competitively, we are doing well, our brands are looking very strong. However, what we need to realize is that the slowdown is here to continue and in such a scenario, how do re-tweak our strategies and get people back to help grow the category,” says George. In such a scenario, what does a marketer do, to protect a brand from being impacted adversely? The answer, George shares, lies in ensuring that consumers get better value from their products. “One of the things we are looking at differently is how do we pass on more value to our consumers? There is obviously some price or promotions we have initiated in the market that ensure that people get the right value at a time like this. Moreover, if you look at the other spectrum, there are channels like modern trade and e-commerce that continue to grow and premiumise. So at that end of the spectrum, we are looking at getting more premium innovations to drive growth there. So we are looking at very different approaches in different parts of the market,” he explains. Livon and its growth story When it comes to the hair serum category, Marico had a clear first-movers advantage when it launched Livon. Years after its launch, despite the category getting cluttered with the entry of a lot of national and international brands, Livon has managed to hold its own. Today, the brand holds about 70% of the serum category. Speaking about Livon’s growth trajectory and the factors that have helped the brand hold on to its leadership position, George says, “Livon has done fabulously well and has stepped up growth in the last few years. For Livon, the core task continues to be driving relevance and building the category, considering it’s a very different format. Most of India is still rooted to using oils, so it’s our job to create the market and educate people on when a serum is used and that continues to be our number one focus. So we have got the product at accessible price points. We also continue to work on upgradations while promoting it around our brand proposition of salon finish hair. Thirdly, we are bringing about a lot of innovation. We now have Livon Colour Protect. We are now looking at opening at sub-segments and targeting modern trade and e-commerce more sharply.” George also says that being the market leader gives them the added responsibility of helping the category grow, which is why he is unfazed by the ever-increasing competition in the category. “Competition coming in is always good because it grows the category faster. We are quite sure that we have a pole position building the category and hence it will always work for us. The trick is to keep innovating and that we continue to drive category upgradation,” he adds. Getting the right marketing mix While slowdowns usually directly impact advertising and marketing budgets, Marico refrained from cutting down on their budgets. Explaining why, George says, “We haven’t really tempered down on our marketing investment because we believe that once you start investing on brands, there will be cycles where the markets fluctuate, but if we continue to invest, we will get the benefits in the long-run.” While TV continues to be Marico’s lead medium, Digital has been witnessing a steady growth, in terms of marketing spends. In the last 2-3 years, the brands spends on Digital has almost doubled. However, George explains that the media mix for any campaign would depend on the purpose of the campaign and the kind of audience they want to reach out to. “While for a lot of our mass brands, TV continues to be the lead medium, there will be cases when Digital will take the largest chunk of our investments. Our investments will depend on our brand and the TG we are targeting,” he explains. Moreover, as a part of their digital investments, Marico is also looking at spending more on new-age social media platforms like TikTok. Marico’s marketing game-plan While premiumisation will continue to be a big focus for Marico, it will also continue to work on bringing people present in the unorganized loose oil category into the organized hair-oil segment. “We believe there is a huge opportunity in premiumisation in all the categories across personal care and we will continue to focus on that. We will continue to invest in new brands, new formats and new benefits for our consumers. Equally while we do that, our strength lies in playing in the core of the market which we have successfully done over the years in terms of upgrading consumers from the belly of the market. So it will be a dual strategy but both for me will lead to meeting our growth ambitions,” adds George.

Why premiumisation will continue to be a focus area and growth driver for Marico

<ul><li><keyword id="6354731" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="state-bank-of-india">State Bank of India</keyword> (SBI) and other public sector banks are cutting down staff to 50%. Canara Bank has suspended passbook printing services.</li><li>India’s largest truck maker, <keyword id="42747" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Tata-Motors">Tata Motors</keyword>, is scaling down operations at its Pune factory while promising full wages.</li><li><keyword id="6365619" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="hindustan-unilever">Hindustan Unilever</keyword> (HUL), the country’s largest consumer goods company, has pledged ₹100 crore to fight the <keyword id="1754604" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="coronavirus">Coronavirus</keyword> pandemic. </li></ul>As the Coronavirus pandemic worsens in India, with <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/data-of-coronavirus-patients-state-wise-in-india/articleshow/74669748.cms">258 confirmed cases</a>, some of the biggest organisations are shoring up for a fight. The State Bank of India (SBI), India’s largest public sector bank, has instructed all branches to cut its staff to half. Government-owned Canara Bank is also suspending passbook printing services starting today, March 21. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nvzO3DFR478">Tata Motors</a>, the country’s biggest truck maker, is preparing to shut down its factory in Pune but will still give its daily workers full wages. Meanwhile, Hindustan Unilever (<a href="https://www.hul.co.in/news/press-releases/2020/hul-stands-with-the-nation.html">HUL</a>), the largest consumer goods company in India, has pledged ₹100 crore to fight Covid-19. State Bank of India — India’s largest public sector bank Public sectors banks can’t shut down, even amid fears of Coronavirus, because they provide an essential service. However, they are taking the necessary precautions to keep the infection from spreading. 
 
 <div type="image" title="SBI_edited" msid="74745911" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;SBI branch in Bhopal&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div>





 “It must essentially ensure that regular banking operations, support functions like ATMs, CACs [Client Adviser Competency Standards], alternate channels, and digital services are not interrupted” said SBI in its notice to employees. Half the employees will be working from home, and the other half will have to report for duty — without any loss of pay. The two groups will switch every alternate day. These instructions come into effect today, March 21 and will be enforced up to April 4. “Staff members who are not required to attend office on a particular day as per the roster drawn up, must ensure that they are available on telephone and mail at all times — and are available for duty in case of exigency,” said the circular. Some public sectors banks, like Canara Bank are implementing three day shifts instead. A new notice issued to Canara Bank today, March 21, has also asked branches to suspend all passbook printing services until futher notice to reduce the amount of contact between bankers and customers. "This message may be displayed in prominent places of branch premise from informing the same," said the memo sent to employees, seen by Business Insider. Tata Motors — India’s biggest truck maker Tata Motors, which also owns brands like Jaguar and Land Rover in India, is scaling down its operations as a measure to tackle Coronavirus. One of its biggest factories is in the worst-hit state in India, Maharashtra, where over 50 cases of the infection have been reported so far. 
	
	<div type="twitter" handle="TataMotors" handlename="Tata Motors" image="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/899609798299205633/DZLt0_e2_normal.jpg" favoritecount="30" retweetcount="7" status="Our CEO &amp; MD, Mr. Guenter Butschek, shares insights on the recent outbreak of #Coronavirus. Explaining about the si… https://t.co/3dOQ0PFJXw" createdat="1584761144000" id="1241204315806527489"></div>





 Tata said it will be ready to close down its Pune plant by Tuesday. In addition, most employees will still get their wages. Tata Son Chairman N Chandrasekaran announced that all temporary and daily wage workers would be covered from March and April, even if they are unable to come into work due to self-isolation or quarantine. 
 
 <div type="image" title="tatamotors_edited" msid="74745944" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Tata Motors factory in Pune&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div>





 HUL - India largest packaged consumer goods company HUL has its fingers in a lot of pies, but none is more important than soaps and disinfectants right now. In a bid to help fight the covid-19 infection, the company announced that its slashing the prices on all personal cares and home hygiene brands by 15%. This includes Lifebouy hand-sanitizers and hand wash, as well as Domex floor cleaners. 
 
 <div type="image" title="HUL_edited" msid="74745939" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Lifebouy hand wash ad&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div>





 It’s also ramping up production of these items so that there is enough supply in the market as customers rush to stores to stock up on supplies. HUL also announced that it will donate 2 crore Lifebuoy soaps for free over the next few months “to the sections of society which need it the most”. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/data-of-coronavirus-patients-state-wise-in-india/articleshow/74669748.cms">Coronavirus cases in India state wise: 258 infected, 23 cured and 4 dead</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/policy/economy/news/covid-19-cii-suggests-direct-cash-transfer-of-5000-to-20-crore-people/articleshow/74742855.cms">COVID-19: CII suggests direct cash transfer of ₹5,000 to 20 crore people</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/coronavirus-railways-puts-brake-on-709-trains-on-saturday/articleshow/74743005.cms">Coronavirus: Railways puts brake on 709 trains on Saturday</a>

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