``I am going to focus on high-volume growth which will ultimately reflect on the company bottom line,'' he said while meeting the press for the first time since he took over the country's largest FMCG company.

HLL registered a 32 per cent bottom line growth on a 7 per cent topline growth in 1999.

``We have done exceedingly well in personal products and other product areas. However the slack performance in areas such as tea and certain foods has reflected poorly on topline performance,'' explained Banga.

Banga said that the foods business would be a focus area in the time to come.``There is tremendous opportunity in foods. We will not just sell peripheral products but will get to the centre of the Indian consumers plate,'' he said.

Commenting on stagnating growth rates in high penetration markets such as soap and detergents, Banga said,``Being market leaders we cannot afford to remain complacent to market stagnation. It is our responsibility to see through category and market definitions and unlock the barriers to growth.''

Stating the example of the personal wash market which is growing at 2 per cent rates at the moment Banga said, ``Close to 50 to 60 per cent of the baths are had without soap in India currently. The scope for personal wash products, therefore, is that many times higher.'' It is key for companies to understand the consumers needs better and unleash triggers to growth in the market, he added.

The company will increasingly look at exploiting such opportunities in the near future informed Banga.

``In foods, we are looking at increasing the occasions of consumption outside the home to unleash the growth potential of the market,'' he said.Referring to the ongoing e-initiatives of the company, Banga said that the company will exploit various channels of reaching out to the consumer. This will include telephones and the mobile phone besides the Internet. ``We are thinking in terms of a movement akin to the STD revolution that made long distance communication to accessible to consumer in remote locations,'' said Banga.