Transition Into a Leading FMCG Brand from a Hair Care Company: A Case for MBA Project

Started in 1971 from Bombay Oil Industries, Marico Limited is one of the leading consumer products companies in India in the Beauty and wellness Sector. Over the last 25 years, Marico Ltd has transitioned from a hair Oil company into a leading consumer goods company with a wide range of product portfolio comprises of Hair care, skin care, edible oils, healthy foods, male grooming and fabric care. Marico is a household name in India with brands lie Parachute, Parachute Advanced, Saffola, Hair & Care, Nihar, Nihar Naturals, Livon, Set wet, Saffola Fittify, Coco Soul, Kaya Youth, Medikar and Revive. Headquarter in Mumbai, the company is present in over 25 countries across emerging markets of Asia and Africa. 

Growth of Marico’s Hair care brands

Marico’s value added hair oil brands enjoy 34 % of the volume market share in India. Hair oils, as a category, has multiple opportunities and there is tremendous scope for growth. While Parachute is the core franchise for Marico, Parachute Advansed Coconut Crème Oil is a product delivering hair nourishment. The company have had great success with the non-Parachute range as well.
Nihar Shanti Amla today is the largest hair oil brand by volumes in the country today and it has upstaged Dabur as the market leader in the North. Not many know this because Parachute is the brand that gets talked about a lot but Nihar Shanti Amla is one of our most successful brands. Nihar is a phenomenally strong brand in the eastern part of the country. Ten years ago, Shalimar was the market leader but in the last six years, Nihar has taken the lead in the East. As far as communication goes, Marico’s advertising for the Nihar portfolio is largely on TV and on mobile. For the East market again, the company has created an innovative product in the Nihar portfolio – Nihar Naturals Extra Care designed to tackle hair fall. The company is seeing a really good consumer response to this launch. For Hair & Care, Marico ltd has identified an opportunity to create a premium product with Hair & Care dry fruit oil. The company also have launched True Roots, another premium and botanical offering designed to tackle greys.

Brand Extension from Parachute to Parachute Advansed

Parachute is one of the iconic brands today in the country not just in hair oils but also in personal care. The kind of equity the brand enjoys goes beyond the category that we operate in. One of the challenges for us was that new-age millennial consumers do not typically follow the hair oiling routine that older consumers do. They look for personal care products that are quick and effective. The need for hair nourishment still very much exists among millennial consumers so our latest launch, Parachute Advansed Coconut Crème Oil was aimed at delivering hair nourishment in a quick 30-minute routine. That’s why the campaign line ‘oil ka naya avatar’ conveys a natural upgrade to the good old oiling routine. Look at another personal care category – hand washing for example, which has now moved from soap to liquid hand wash. It’s about creating new-age formats and products that drive relevance with a younger set of consumers. So far, the product has seen a good response in these early months in both modern trade and e-commerce. We have a lot of successful variants under Parachute Advansed. For example, we have the jasmine variant, which is more fragrant. Another recently launched product, Parachute Advansed Aloe Vera has been a great success too. With each of these products, we are addressing different consumer needs. Some consumers want lighter oils, while some want fragrant ones and some need products that are suitable for pre-wash nourishment. We adopt a customised strategy for different needs. You will also observe that our marketing for each of these is largely customised and localised according to specific markets. Brand extension strategy of Marico products should also be studied as part of the MBA project work.

Marketing strategy for other hair care brands in Marico portfolio

Hair oils, as a category, has multiple opportunities and there is tremendous scope for growth. While Parachute is the core franchise for us, Marico has a great success with the non-Parachute range as well. Nihar Shanti Amla today is the highest selling hair oil brand by volumes in India today. Nihar is a phenomenally strong brand in the eastern part of the country. Advertising for the Nihar portfolio is largely on TV and on mobile. For the East market again, we there is an innovative product in the Nihar portfolio – Nihar Naturals Extra Care designed to tackle hair fall. For Hair & Care, identified an opportunity to create a premium product with Hair & Care dry fruit oil, also have True Roots, another premium and botanical offering designed to tackle greys. Marketing strategy of non Parachute brand of Oil should be studied as part of the MBA Project.

Saffola range of products

Marico also have Saffola range of food products, portfolio that has seen a fair bit of diversification over the years from edible oils to oats to honey. For Saffola, the lead business is oils. The focus for us at Saffola is on prevention of heart disease early in life, this brand is largely centred on building awareness of heart disease and its prevention and good health. That was the brand’s core purpose 20 years ago and it will continue to be that way going forward. In the oats category, achievements has been making the grain more palatable. So, educating consumers and unlocking new flavours and cuisines will be the way forward for Saffola. Marketing strategy of Marico Ltd for Saffola range of products should be studied as part of the MBA project.

Conclusion

Marico has transitioned into a consumer products company in India in the Beauty and wellness Sector by brand positioning. The brand positioning strategy of the company should be studied in detail for reference of other players in the industry as part of MBA project. Dedicated faculty of Madembaezy can help a student during the MBA project study and to find a subject, select a topic, find an organisation for the MBA Project work and plan the MBA project and will act as a liaison between the student and the host organisation.