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 • Santoor
Product
• Mysore sandal

• KSDL
• Palmolive soap
• Colgate-Palmolive
• Dettol
• Reckitt & Coleman
• Margo, Fa, Neem
• Henkel-Spic
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 • Nirma

Entrant
• No Switching Cost
• Customer
• More Bargaining
• Supplier 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!!!