Detergents

Industry Structure
World’s third largest detergent market
 Market
Total detergent market: Rs 6000 crore
Detergent powder: Rs 3300 crore

3300 crore 23 lakh tonnes/ annum

55% Other forms:
Detergent bars (43%)
Liquid detergents
6000 crore Compacts

 Per capita consumption: 3.2 Kg

 Industry growth rate: 6-8% per
annum
Marketing in Practice Detergent Powders
 Industry Structure

 National Sales 38%

Distribution
• Urban – 60%
• Rural – 40%

28% 16%

18%

Marketing in Practice Detergent Powders

 Industry Structure

 Strong and consistent growth

Detergent Demand in India (th MT)

2000
1800
1600
1400
1200
1000
800
600
400
200
0
1990-91

1991-92

1992-93

1993-94

1994-95

1995-96

1996-97

1997-98

1998-99

1999-00

2000-01

2001-02

2002-03

2003-04

2004-05
Marketing in Practice Detergent Powders
 Industry Structure

 Very high penetration

 Growth
• Upgradation from bars
to powder
• Increasing per capita
consumption
• Increasing use of
premium powders

Marketing in Practice Detergent Powders

 Industry Structure

 Detergent powders segmentation

• Premium
­ Surf Excel, Ariel, Henko (Surf Excel + Ariel ~ 90%)
­ Rs 75 per Kg
• Economy
­ Henko White, Rin, Tide, Sunlight
­ Rs 35-50 per Kg
• Popular
­ Nirma, Wheel, Ghadi, Check
­ Rs 18-22
• Compacts

Marketing in Practice •T Detergent Powders

 Industry Structure
 Market share
• HLL is the largest player. Operates in all segments
• Nirma leader in the popular segment
• P&G present in the economy and premium segments
14%

HLL
12% 42% Nirma
R&B
Henkel SPIC
4%
P&G

7%
Others

21%

Marketing in Practice Detergent Powders

 Industry Trends
 Detergent market has good penetration – but slow growth
 Saturation hits urban areas
 Bar form of detergents are losing out. Premium quality synthetic
detergents are experiencing growth due to drop in unit price.
 Compact detergents meant for washing machines are getting
slow entry.
 Price competition among major manufacturers getting more
intense.
 South India offer good potential and growth.
 P&G has chosen an expans‫ ﭩ‬绿ｷ럿 strategy by lowering prices.
 HLL trying to build brand loyalty for Surf by innovative ad
campaign.

Marketing in Practice Detergent Powders

 Consumer Behaviour

Across all segments:

 The main attributes that consumers look for in a detergent are:
• Value for money (how effective the detergent is in cleaning clothes vs
affordability)
• Ease of use (must dissolve fast) – this was specific to households which do
not have washing machines
 Apart from the cleansing action, detergents should also be easy on
the skin and must have a fragrance: Ariel Spring Clean (roses),
Ariel Fresh Clean (mogra)
 Main factor influencing consumers’ expectations:
• Improved affordability
• Ad campaigns

Marketing in Practice Detergent Powders

 Consumer Behaviour

Within a segment:
 Very little perceived difference in a particular category and a price
point
 Consumers are more or less indifferent among leading brands as long
as prices are comparable
 This commoditization nature of detergent business that is forcing
players to fall in line with lower prices superior quality detergents at
an affordable price
Between two segments:
 With price cuts, upgradation
 With slowdown, downgradation

Marketing in Practice Detergent Powders

 Major Players
 Premium
• Surf Excel
• Ariel
• Henko Stain Champion
 Economy/Mid Priced
• Tide
• Rin Shakti
• Henko Mr. White
 Popular
• Nirma
• Wheel

Marketing in Practice Detergent Powders

 Positioning Map - Detergents
Cleaning Power

Concentrates

Popular

Price

Economy

Marketing in Practice Detergent Powders

Whiteness
 Surf Excel
 ‘Surf’ launched in 1959: first in Indian detergent market
 Surf Excel launched in 1992
 Complete migration of Surf to Surf Excel Blue in 2004
 Premium segment: Market leader
 Positioned as very effective with any kind of stains: ‘Surf Excel Hai Na’
• Less effort in cleaning and lower water consumption
 Focus on building brand loyalty through emotional connect: ‘Daag Acche
Hain’ campaign
• Positioned against generic hate stains attitude
• Assurance: Go ahead and get dirty
• Latest campaign: Colour
 Variants:
• Surf Excelmatic: Specially for washing machines
• Surf Excel Blue: Stain removal with fabric care (midpriced segment)
• Surf Excel Liquid: Liquid concentrate

Marketing in Practice Detergent Powders

 Ariel
 Launched by P&G in India in 1991
 First to bring compact detergent technology
 Premium: Positioned as a stain remover that is easy to use
P&G: Slashing prices of Ariel to expand its consumer base, more
affordable.
 Two variants, Ariel Spring clean and Fresh clean (scented)
 “A to Z daag ke liye jo de taaza khushboo”.
• A man cooks dinner for his wife, who is away. He stains his shirt in the
process, but uses Ariel to remove the stain
• Key emphasis: Ease of use, fragrance, stain removal
 Target segment: Women, age group 25-35 years
 Variant: Ariel Front-o-Mat (front loaded washing machines)
Marketing in Practice Detergent Powders
 Henko Stain Champion

 Launched in ’94 in the South: Direct competition to Surf

 Top end premium: Market share ~9%
 Focused on stain removal (highest order need for Indian consumer):
Pre-treater powerpearls (proprietary technology)
 High-on-quality, relatively low-on-price proposition
 Earlier campaigns: Positioning Henko as a better option (usage of
Surf was more a habit than conviction)
• Celebrities; Freebies; Regional association to strike emotional chord
 “Iske power pearls kapro mein geheraee tak jaye aur daag ko jar se
nikal”
• Focus on product performance superior as compared to rivals
• Technological aspect: No social/emotional angle as such

Marketing in Practice Detergent Powders

 Tide
 Launched in 2000: Mid priced ; Price cuts: moved to
popular
 “Fastest growing and one of the most deeply penetrated
detergents in households across India” – ORG-AC
Nielsen
 Target: "superior whiteness" and "whiteness
maintenance" laundry needs of a homemaker in India
 “Chaunk gaye? White ho to Tide ho…”
• Showcase its cleaning power; superior whitening
• Focus on value proposition: High performance at low cost
• No emotional aspect: Beg stage of PLC
• Social consciousness of white clothes
Marketing in Practice Detergent Powders
 Rin Shakti
 Re-launched in 2004 as Rin Advanced to counter Tide
 Mid-priced brand
 May lead to cannibalization of other HLL customers due to
forced price cuts of Surf Excel Blue
 “Double safedi”
• Focus on whitening: Direct competition with Tide
• Pure clean technology: Absence of residue
• Social acceptability due to white clothes
• Focus different from Surf Excel Blue: However, does not completely
eliminate cannibalization given similar prices

Marketing in Practice Detergent Powders

 Henkel Mr White
 Mid priced: Market share ~14%; No 2 in segment
 Only eco-friendly detergent in its segment: not emphasized
 Promises superior product performance;unique dazzling whiteness
• Mr White - personifying the brand clearly
 Relaunched this year: enhanced formulation, a fresh new fragrance,
in an all-new pack
 “Thoda sa green thoda sa blue. Thoda sa jadoo. Mr. White. Sabse
white”.
• Social consciousness: Ensure that clothes are the whitest
• Uses expert: Research on voices of authority
• Promises the “Power of 2 - Lime + Blue”
• Focus on premium values: Good quality at a reasonable price
Marketing in Practice Detergent Powders
 Wheel
 Launched in 1987 by HLL to counter Nirma
 Single largest detergent brand by value
 Popular segment: Mass market
 Superior formulation to Nirma
• Promise: Clean tough stains easily; not harmful to hands
• Lemon fragrance
 ‘Mehnat kum, phir bhi dhulai No. 1’.
• Positioned as the smart housewife’s choice for the mass market
 Introduced a fresh fragrance along with Wheel Green: “Naya
khushboodaar Wheel. Mehengi wali dhulai, budget mein samayi”.
 Premium variant: Active Wheel
• Quality Clean and Care at affordable price
• Brightness of coloured clothes, fresh fragrance
Marketing in Practice Detergent Powders
 Nirma
 Caused a marketing miracle when introduced
• Targets bottom of the pyramid
• Priced 1/3rd of competitors; caused immediate trial
• Unique environment-friendly, phosphate-free formulation—
consumers become loyal
• 0% of the market share in 1976 to 61.6% of market share in 1987
• HLL launches Project STING
 Unique marketing mix: Lowest pricing, distribution
through small retailers and heavy advertising
 Communication of Value: Simple messages and catchy
jingles
 Has a variant in the premium segment
• Priced almost 40% lesser - 25g, 500g, 1000g
Marketing in Practice Detergent Powders
 Future Trends

 Detergent industry set to grow at 10% per annum

 With penetration already high, growth to come largely
from:
• Upgradation from bars to powder
• Increasing per capita consumption
• Increasing use of premium powders
 Effort by firms to avoid the commoditization of the
product
 Greater stress on branding and emotional connect
Marketing in Practice Detergent Powders