RESEARCH PAPER BRAND PREFERENCE IN FAIRNESS CREAMS-STUDY IN COIMBATORE

Abstract Fairness creams have become a vital product for the Indian FMCG companies in increasing their overall sales due to the importance given by Indian consumers towards fairness. As India is a country known for its diversity different consumers from different parts of the country prefer different brands. Hence, this paper aims to identify the brand preference of consumers towards fairness creams. The paper also examines the factors influencing consumers in preferring various brands of fairness creams. The data was collected in Coimbatore city of Tamilnadu, India among 150 survey respondents. Keywords: Fairness creams; Brand Preference; Coimbatore. Full Paper Introduction The market size for fairness cream in India was estimated to be Rs.800 crore. The market growth rate ranges between 15 20% on a year-to-year basis. The leading players in the market includes Hindustan Lever Ltd., (HLL's) 'Fair & Lovely' with 76 percent of the market share and Cavin Kare's 'Fairever' with 15 percent of the market share. Other important players like Godrej's 'Fairglow', Emami's 'Fair and Handsome', Vicco and Himalaya share the rest of the market share. It has been estimated that males constitute 20 percent of the total sales for fairness creams in India. The existing players are focusing upon improving the quality and ingredients and new players are also invading the Indian market. As India is a country known for its diversity different brands are used in different parts of the country. The brands which are very successful in northern part of the country may not find a place in South India. Similarly some brands are successful in rural areas and tier II cities whereas not in cities and metros. Here arises the need for a study on brand preference. Hence, this research survey has been conducted in Coimbatore city of Tamilnadu (an important tier II city in India) to identify the brand preference for fairness creams in this locality. Objectives i. To find out the brand preference for fairness creams in Coimbatore city ii. To study the factors influencing brand preference for fairness creams iii. To identify the source of awareness for fairness creams Research Methodology Primary data has been collected for the research study in Coimbatore city of Tamilnadu, India. The major reason for choosing Coimbatore is its demographic outlook (which includes both educated and uneducated, peoples from different parts of the country particularly from Kerala and changing income level) and Coimbatore

being considered as one of the important Tier II cities of India. The research design involves descriptive style. Consumers of various age groups have been conducted with the research survey. The sample size was 150 and the sampling technique used is convenience sampling. The research instrument used was questionnaire and it comprises both open and close-ended questions. Personal interview has been conducted among the target respondents. Limitations Chances of respondents' bias are involved in the research. As the research is restricted with Coimbatore city of Tamilnadu, India the results are not applicable to other parts of the State or country. Limited number of respondents has been chosen due to time constraint and this could affect the accuracy of result to certain extent. Analysis and Interpretation Table No: 1 Brand Preference and Top of the Mind Awareness (TOMA) for fairness creams*
Brand Preferred Fair & Lovely Fairever Vicco No marks Fair & Handsome Others** Total No. of Respondents 45 89 3 2 1 10 150 % of Respondents 30 59.33 2 1.33 .67 6.67 Rank 1 2 3 4 5

* Since Brand Preference and Top of the Mind Awareness results are same both have been included in the same table. ** Others include 'Fem', Godrej's 'Fairglow', Samay's 'Fair & Fresh', 'All Fair', Oriflame's 'Love A Fair' and other regional brands. Interpretation: From the above table it can be inferred that nearly 60 percent of the respondents prefer HLL's 'Fair & Lovely' when comparing with any other brand. Top of the mind awareness is also same for 'Fair & Lovely'. It can also be inferred that 30 percent of the respondents prefer Cavin Kare's 'Fairever' and are aware of them. Emami's 'Fair & Handsome' has been preferred by very few when comparing with others and the awareness is also poor.

Table No:2 Factors influencing brand preference

Factors No. of Respondents % of Respondents

Fairness Sunscreen Fragrance Total

69 42 39 150

46 28 26

Interpretation: It can be inferred from the above table that nearly 50 percent of the respondents use fairness creams in order to get 'fairness'

Table No: 3 Source of Awareness for fairness creams

Source of Awareness Friends and/or relatives Family members Retailers recommendation Television Commercials (TVCs) Newspaper Ads Magazine Ads Total No. of Respondents 13 15 4 80 8 30 150 % of Respondents 8.67 10 2.67 53.33 5.33 20

Interpretation: From the above table it can be inferred that more than 50 percent of the respondents are aware of fairness creams through TVCs.

Table No:4 Consumer intention towards replacing their existing brand of fairness creams
Consumer Intention To replace Not to replace Total No. of Respondents 4 146 150 % of Respondents 2.67 97.33

Interpretation: From the above table it can be inferred that more than 95 percent of the respondents are not interested in replacing their existing brand of fairness creams. This shows their 'brand loyalty' towards existing brand of fairness creams.

Table No: 5 Classification of fairness cream users based on Age

Age Less than 25 25 35 35 45 More than 45 Total No. of Respondents 45 64 17 24 150 % of Respondents 30 42.67 11.33 16

Interpretation: From the above table it can be inferred that most of the respondents who use fairness creams are youngsters as it was clear from the table that 42.67 percent of them belong to the age group of '25 35' and 30 percent of them belong to the age group of 'Less than 25'

Table No: 6 Classification of fairness cream users based on Sex

Sex Male Female Total No. of Respondents 35 115 150 % of Respondents 23.33 76.67

Interpretation: From the above table it can be inferred that more than 75 percent of the respondents who use fairness creams were 'females'.

Table No:7 Classification of fairness cream users based on Education

Education School Under graduation Post graduation Professional Diploma Total No. of Respondents 86 52 6 2 4 150 % of Respondents 57.33 34.67 4 1.33 2.67

Interpretation: From the above table it can be inferred that nearly 60 percent of

the fairness cream users have school level education. It can also be inferred that nearly 35 percent of them have under graduation.

Table No:8 Classification of fairness cream users based on Annual Income

Annual Income Less than Rs. 1lakh Rs. 1 3 lakhs Total No. of Respondents 128 22 150 % of Respondents 85.33 14.67`

Interpretation: From the above table it can be inferred that around 85 percent of the fairness cream users have an annual income of less than Rs.1 lakh.

Findings It has been found out that most of the consumers prefer HLL's 'Fair & Lovely' fairness cream. The awareness level of it was also higher for this brand. Consistent portion of them also prefer Cavin Kare's 'Fairever' and were aware of it. Only very few consumers prefer brands like Vicco, No marks, Fair and Handsome and Fair glow. Most of the consumers buy fairness creams in order to get 'fairness'. TVCs play an important role in creating awareness towards various brands of fairness creams. Suggestions As the market has been dominated by few players a new entrant or an existing player interested in improving the market share has to focus on 'fairness' as HLL's USP Fairness in Six Weeks has worked better for it. The companies have to give importance for TVCs as most of the consumers were remembering the ad of Fair & Lovely television ad and the recent Fairever celebrity ad. Awareness can easily be created with these kinds of celebrity ad appeals. Conclusion

Fairness creams constitute a consistent proportion of income for the FMCG companies in India. As most of the Indians are very much bothered about their colour complexion the fairness creams enjoy very good market growth rate when compared with other related product categories. As Fair & Lovely's USP has done wonders, other players in the market can also follow their philosophy of 'fairness'. It is not sufficient if a company has the right product with right quality. It has to be communicated properly to the target audience. Hence, TVCs which were widely remembered and recognized by Indian consumers for fairness creams can be made use for creating the awareness for various brands of fairness creams. Bibliography 1. Big Brands Big Trouble Lessons Learned the Hard Why, Jack Trout, East West Books (Madras) Pvt. Ltd. 2. Brand Management The Indian Context, YLR Moorthi, Vikas Publishing House Pvt. Ltd. 3. Black, White and Various Shades of Brown", Man from , Penguin India 4. "Men playing the fairness cream game", Ratna Bhushan, Times of India Fair and Handsome accounts for almost 15 per cent of the company's total turnover, which is mainly created by the cream's positioning and promotion. It has been growing at almost 45 per cent on a year-on-year basis.