Soap industry entrants spurn stiff competition

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The entry of new players in the 6,500-crore toilet soaps industry is expected to bring about a new twist in the "Indian soap opera".

While Emami is foraying into the toilet soaps segment, ITC Ltd is investing in aggressive brand-building and product development projects to promote its brands, Fiama De Wills, Vivel and Superia.

On the other hand, Godrej Consumer Products Ltd (GCPL) and Wipro Consumer Care Lighting (WCCL)--established players in this sector--are beefing up their research projects and advertising plans to take on new rivals.

"With increasing competition, this sector is expected to register a healthy growth this fiscal," said an analyst based in Mumbai. The sector registered a 15% value growth last fiscal, he added.

This quarter, GCPL is hiking its advertising budget by 20% to gain high visibility for its brands.

On the other hand, ITC Ltd will focus on developing--in the words of Sandeep Kaul, chief executive-personal care products business, ITC Ltd-" innovative products".

Speaking on the company's strategy, he said, "Our core focus will be on developing innovative products. We will be investing in high-voltage ad campaigns to promote our brands in competitive markets."

Incidentally, ITC has just roped in southern cine star Ileana to endorse its mass-market brand Superia. The company is now getting ready to launch a multi-media ad campaign featuring Superia's the new endorser.

At present, cine stars Deepika Padukone and Kareena Kapur endorse ITC's Fiama De Wills and Vivel.

Across the road, Wipro Cosnumer Goods is also sharpening its focus on product innovations and aggressive ad campaigns. "We plan to expand our product portfolio with the launch of new variants," said Binit Agarwal, CEO, WCCL.

"Recently, we launched Santoor white to meet the changing needs of consumers," he informed, addin that currently, Wipro is placed third in this sector. Film star Madhvan is the brand ambassador for Santoor.

Quite like its competitors, GCPL too is fine tuning its research and development projects and mass media campaigns to sustain its competitive edge, according to HK Press, executive director of GCPL.

"We are reinvigorating our brands with new ingredients, variants and graphics. Recently, we relaunched Cinthol with value additions," said Press, adding that GCPL is currently placed second in the sector. It has roped in film star Hrithik Roshan to endorse its flagship brand Cinthol.

Increasingly, FMCG majors are relying on star power to promote their brands in the Indian market place, according to industry analysts.