Lifebuoy

Lifebouy: Leviathan or Legend

PRESENTED BY:

Students of Ravenshaw Management Centre, Ravenshaw University Cuttack

FACTS

HINDUSTAN LEVERS LTD

q Indian subsidiary of the Anglo-Dutch Unilever group q Best marketing skills –advertising extensively qSeveral consumer products categories – soaps, detergents, personal care products, coffee, tea, ice-cream and oil also animal feed and specialty chemicals q Portfolio of over 75 brands in India ,mostly market leaders products qAnnual sales turnover is Rs 106 billion and soaps account for 18% of HLL’s turnover and 58% of market share qBalanced geographically q Achieved 88% of rural penetration q Regular launching and fortifying of its premium brands

LIFEBOUY q Introduced in 1895,one of the earliest soaps to enter the Indian market and first brand for any new customer entering toilet soap market q One of the flagship brands of HLL and largest selling soap having annual sales turn over of 110,000 tones q Basic feature – its signature brick red , in soap and packaging q Mostly focused on health of the customers – based on medical connotation q Captured basically rural markets by lots of rural promotions and advertising thus became a recruitment brand – Voted as India’s top brand in advertising and marketing magazine’s 1998 poll( Tandurusti–Ki–Raksha )

Lifebuoy Contd….. q Has different segments-Lifebouy , Lifebouy Active red, Lifebouy plus, Lifebouy Gold q Captured almost all parts of India – (distributed geographically) q Promotional program – “Lifebouy Lifeline Express” and “Operation Stream line” to rural areas to underscore health positioning and awareness respectively q Almost ruled up to 90s ,mid – ninetees touched around 140000 tons

NIRMA q Parent product- detergent q Different consumer products like toilet soap, shampoo, iodized salt, industrial products & Chemicals q Priced at one-third the market leader,the HLL q Tight control over its costs-low cost media and creative advertising,high dealer margins q Value of money brands and winning customers q Challenged each and every product of HLL and leadership strategy which changed its fortune-primarily Lifebouy q Grew rapidly to become a Rs. 5 billion detergent brand at the expense of all other brands

nirma contd…… q Offered 52% margin to the channels q Launched upmarket versions with a low price-Nirma beauty and Nirma premium and imitated packaging and formulation of HLL’s another brand Lux q Nirma lime and Nirma rose introduced bet Jai lime and breeze of HLL q Unsuccessful in rural markets-traditionally depended on wholesalers to push its product q To overcome this initiatives like backward integration projects , debt restructuring, cost cutting q Most successful in 90s and third biggest toilet soap in terms of volumes

Other Competitors

Godrej Ltd. • Godrej Soaps Ltd. – Products • soaps, hair dye, shaving cream,edible oil, refrigerator etc.

– Turn Over- Rs. 8 billion – Alliance with P & G – Products failed due to confusion in positioning – Comeback with Cinthol

P&G • Procter & Gamble – Global Player – Strong Brand(Camay Soap) • Failure of Camay soap • Positioning • Pricing

• Other products • Ariel • Pantene • Head & Shoulders

Other Companies & Products • Wipro Consumer Product

• Santoor • Mysore sandal

• KSDL • Palmolive soap

• Colgate-Palmolive • Reckitt & Coleman • Henkel-Spic

• Dettol

• Margo, Fa, Neem

CONCERN

Long term prospect of Lifebouy

India - 2013

Personal wash

Reasons for concerns • • • • • • •

Change in customer profile Number of Competitors Low differentiation among products Availability of different variants Confusion in positioning Distribution channels Decreasing market share

Porter’s Five Force Model

Porter’s Five Force Model

Porter’s Five Force Contd… • New Market Entrant • Customer

• Nirma • No Switching Cost

• Supplier

• More Bargaining Power

• Substitute

• No Substitute

Positioning of Lifebuoy Mission Statement ‘Make a billion Indians feel safe & secure by meeting their health & hygiene needs.’

Brand Positioning •Down Market Brand •Efforts To Upscale Product •Pan-Indian Brand •Targeted Every Indian Family

Positioning Contd… • Reposition it self • Re-established its message of health for consumers • Future positioning:-Lifebuoy as ‘a family health offering through germ protection.’

Suggestion •Shut down Life Buoy Active Red •Try to improve the margin in the distribution system •Reach out the left 30 % of rural market •Need to address the economically upgraded people •Redefine the position of life buoy in premium segment with extra feature

Suggestion contd… • Spread health consciousness programmes in rural area again • Create emotional value for it • New promotions should be lunched • Differentiation of Lifebuoy for the diversified segment of customers • Should reduce the cost of production to reduce the price • It can take help of SHG’s to promote its product • Reaching out the customer at a lower price directly

Thank you!!!