Brand Tracking –Nirma PGDBA-A Roll No.

08, 26, 27

Brand Tracking – Nirma

15th January 2007.

Submitted to: Submitted By:

Prof. Monica Khanna Heramb Bhat (08)
Rohit Kansal (26)
Prajyot Kataria (27)

K J Somaiya Institute of Management Studies and Research

Vidyanagar, Vidyavihar, Mumbai 400077

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Table of Contents

S.No Index Page

1 Title 1

2 Introduction 3

3 The Brand Values 4

4 The Brand Vision, Mission. 4

5 The Brand Nirma.

¾ Product 5
¾ Place and Price 13
¾ Promotion 13

6 The Distribution Channels 14

7 Corporate Social Responsibilities 15

8 The Conclusion 15

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Introduction
Nirma is one of the few names - which is instantly recognized as a true Indian
brand, which took on mighty multinationals and rewrote the marketing rules to win the
heart of princess, i.e. the consumer. Nirma, the proverbial ‘Rags to Riches’ saga of Dr.
Karsanbhai Patel, is a classic example of the success of Indian entrepreneurship in the
face of stiff competition. Starting as a one-man operation in 1969, today, it has about 14,
000 employee-base and annual turnover is above Rs.25,000 crores.India is a one of the
largest consumer economy, with burgeoning middle class pie. In such a widespread,
diverse marketplace, Nirma aptly concentrated all its efforts towards creating and
building a strong consumer preference towards its ‘value-for-money’ products.
It was way back in ‘60s and ‘70s, where the domestic detergent market had only
premium segment, with very few players and was dominated by MNC’s. It was 1969,
when Karsanbhai Patel started door-to-door selling of his detergent powder, priced
at an astonishing Rs.3 per kg, when the available cheapest brand in the market was
Rs.13 per kg. It was really an innovative, quality product – with indigenous process,
packaging and low-profiled marketing, which changed the habit of Indian housewives’ for
washing their clothes. In a short span, Nirma created an entirely new market segment in
domestic marketplace, which is, eventually the largest consumer pocket
and quickly emerged as dominating market player – a position it has never since
relinquished. Rewriting the marketing rules, Nirma became a one of the widely
discussed success stories between the four-walls of the B-school classrooms across
the world.
The performance of Nirma during the decade of 1980s has been labelled as
‘Marketing Miracle’ of an era. During this period, the brand surged well ahead its nearest
rival – Surf, which was well-established detergent product by Hindustan Lever. It was a
severing battering for MNC as it recorded a sharp drop in its market share. Nirma literally
captured the market share by offering value-based marketing mix of four P’s, i.e. a
perfect match of product, price, place and promotion. Now, the year 2004 sees Nirma’s
annual sales touch 800,000 tones, making it one of the largest volume sales with a
single brand name in the world. Looking at the FMCG synergies, Nirma stepped into
toilet soaps relatively late in 1990 but this did not deter it to achieve a volume of 100,000
per annum. This makes Nirma the largest detergent and the second largest toilet soap
brand in India with market share of 38% and 20% respectively. It has been persistent
effort of Nirma to make consumer products available to masses at an affordable price.

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Hence, it takes utmost care to provide finest products at the most affordable prices. To
leverage this effort, Nirma has gone for massive backward integration along with
expansion and modernization of the manufacturing facilities.
The focal objective behind modernization plan is of up gradation with resource-
savvy technology to optimize capabilities. Nirma’s six production facilities, located at
different places, are well equipped with state-of-art technologies. To ensure regular
supply of major raw materials, Nirma had opted for backward integration strategies.
These strategic moves allowed Nirma to manage effective and efficient supply-chain.
Nirma has always been practiced ‘value-for-money’ plank. Nirma plans to extend the
same philosophy in categories as commodity food products, personal care products and
packaged food. Distinct market vision and robust infrastructure allowed Nirma to have
cost leadership. Apart from this, lean distribution network, umbrella branding and low
profile media promotions allowed it to offer quality products, at affordable prices.
In present scenario, an inspiring 59-year-old persona, Dr. Karsanbhai K. Patel, leads
Nirma, playing role of key strategic decision-maker, whereas his next generation has
already skilled management capabilities. Shri Rakesh K Patel – a qualified management
graduate, is spearheading the procurement, production and logistic functions, whereas
Shri Hiren K Patel – a qualified Chemical engineer and management graduate, heads
the marketing and finance functions of the organization. Shri Kalpesh Patel, Executive
Director, leads the professional organizational structure.

The Brand Values.

Nirma believes in bonding with the consumer. And, therefore, it puts value-for-
money above all. Today, the Nirma brand is synonymous with value for money. The
brand believes in offering consumers 'better products, better value for better living.

The Brand Vision, Mission.

Nirma is a customer-focused company committed to consistently offer better quality
products and services that maximize value to the customer.
This customer-centric philosophy has been well emphasized at Nirma through
¾ Continuously exploring & developing new products & processes.
¾ Laying emphasis on cost effectiveness.
¾ Maintaining effective Quality Management System.
¾ Complying with safety, environment and social obligations.

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¾ Imparting training to all involved on a continuous basis.

¾ Teamwork and active participation all around.
¾ Demonstrating belongingness and exemplary behavior towards organization, its
goals and objectives.
Nirma is a phenomenon and synonymous with Value for Money. The brand transcends
the specific dynamic of any particular product category, which is best captured in its
above mission statement - a statement of sustained innovation, an unceasing effort to
deliver better value to consumers, through better product quality. Nirma's vision
visualizes itself as a vibrant, pro-active and widely admired, ethical corporate citizen.
Nirma believes that exemplary achievements on the business points are not enough in
the making of a good corporate citizen. In fulfillment of this role as a responsible part of
the society and environment in which one operates, Nirma has undertaken a host of
activities in the educational and social development areas.

The Brand –Nirma

Product.
Since the launch of Nirma detergent powder in 1969, the Nirma portfolio has
expanded to include fabric care products, personal care products, food products,
packaging and chemicals. However, the underlying philosophy remains consistent - to
deliver value-for-money products to consumers. In the fabric care category, Nirma has
three products for the lower-end market. The Nirma Yellow Washing Powder is available
in pack sizes of 30 gms, 200 gms, 500 gms and 1 kg, and is ranked as the largest selling
single detergent brand in the world. The Nirma Detergent Cake - also yellow in colour -
is ranked as the most distributed detergent cake brand in the country.
The Nirma Popular Detergent Cake, available in pack sizes of 125 gms and 150
gms and targeted at lower income consumers, sells in huge volumes without any
advertising support. In the mid-priced segment, the Super Nirma Washing Powder
successfully debunked the myth that high quality products had to be high-priced. The
powder is available in polybags in pack sizes of 25 gms, 500 gms and 1 kg and is 40%
cheaper than its nearest competitor. The blue-coloured Super Nirma Detergent Cake
was introduced in 1990 to make consumers shift from the then available detergent
brands. In the scouring products category, the Nirma Bartan Bar was launched with the
tagline 'Bartan hai ya darpan' which addressed the need for a scouring product that puts
the shine back in utensils. The Nirma Clean Bar was launched to enable users of

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unbranded detergent powders and cakes to switch to a value-for-money branded

product.
Nirma's foray into the toilet soaps category was launched with Nirma Bath Soap, a
carbolic soap which positioned itself against the largest selling carbolic soap brand,
Lifebuoy, from the Hindustan Lever stable - at half the latter's price. The more up market
Nirma Beauty Soap with four perfume variants also became an instant success and is
the third largest selling brand in the country, today. The company entered the foods
category with the launch of Nirma Shudh Salt in 2002. Nirma Shudh is only the second
vacuum salt in the country and is manufactured through world class Akzo Nobel
technology. The salt manufactured under the most hygienic conditions is free from
human touch - from production till it reaches the consumer. Apart from these consumer
products, the company also sells a number of industrial products, all of which conform to
the Nirma philosophy of better products, better value, better living. The Brand name of
Nirma comprises of two sections. The Consumer and the Industrial products.
The Consumer Products category consists as follows.
¾ Soaps
¾ Detergents
¾ Edible Salt
¾ Scouring products

Soaps

The soap category can be further classified into

¾ Nirma Bath Soap
¾ Nirma Beauty Soap.
¾ Nirma Lime Fresh Soap
¾ Nirma Rose
¾ Nirma Sandal.

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The details of each category of soap are as follows.

Nirma Bath Soap.

Toilet soap market in India was dominated by a very few MNCs which could
monopolistically price their product. In 1992, sensing a strong need to expand the
market through Penetrative Pricing, Nirma entered this market with the launch of ‘Nirma
Bath Soap’, which is a carbolic (Red) soap. Although the carbolic soap segment is on
decline, Nirma Bath has generated larger volumes each year. Packed in a red colour
wrapper and available in 75 gram and 150 gram pack sizes, this soap has a Total Fatty
Matter (TFM) of 60 %.

Nirma Beauty Soap.

With its market promise to offer “Better Products, Better Value, Better Living,” Nirma
introduced ‘Nirma Beauty Soap’ in the year 1992. Available in three different variants
and pack sizes, this soap has a TFM content of 70%. Due to its admirable perfume and
a higher TFM content, this brand, within a short span of five years, had achieved the
status of the third largest selling toilet soap brand and still continues its outstanding
performance.

Nirma Lime Fresh Soap

This product had created a sensational marketing history in the Indian Toilet soaps
market, when it was launched in 1997. Seventeen million packs of Nirma Lime Fresh
soap were sold in the very first month of its soft launch. Packed in a poly coated 75 gm
carton, which is printed on the world’s best Cerruti 8-colour printing machine, this soap is
available in green colour. With a lime aroma that tingles in one’s sensory buds for a long
time, this soap contains 80% TFM. The product launch of Nirma Lime Fresh had been
extremely successful.

Nirma Rose.
The remarkable and phenomenal market response received by Nirma Rose soap within
just two months of its launch once again proved the merits of Nirma’s commitment
towards its consumers. Nirma Rose soap has got an exceptionally soft rose fragrance –
which remains around body for a long time even after bath. The high TFM content of this
product allows a consumer to have pleasant bath. This brand had carved a niche in its

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segment by achieving leadership position just within two months of its launch. It is
available in 100g and 150g pack sizes.

Nirma Sandal.
Over the period, Indian toilet soap market has fragmented & has seen emergence of
prominent floral fragrance segments as Sandal, Rose, Jasmine, etc. Nirma Sandal is a
one of such product in floral segment. This toilet soap has 80% TFM content, with rich &
exotic fragrance. It promises benefits of Sandal oil & Turmeric powder. It is a premium
product from Nirma stable and is available in 100g and 150g packs

Detergents.

The Detergent category can be further classified into

¾ Nirma Washing Powder.
¾ Nirma Detergent Cake.
¾ Super Nirma Washing Powder.
¾ Super Nirma Detergent Cake.
¾ Nirma Popular Detergent Powder.
¾ Nirma Popular Detergent Cake.
The details of each category of Detergent are as follows.

Nirma Washing Powder.

This product created a marketing miracle, when introduced in the domestic marketplace.
In 1969, when the detergents were priced so exorbitantly that for most of the Indians, it
was a luxury item. Nirma envisioned the vast Fabric Wash market segment and sensed
a tremendous potential therein. This product was priced at almost one third to that of the
competitor brands, resulting into instant trial by the consumers. Owing to its unique

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environment-friendly, phosphate-free formulation, the consumers became loyal to this

brand, helping it to over-take the decades’ old brands, in terms of volumes. This brand
had been ranked as the “Most widely distributed detergent powder brand in India” .As
per the ORG-MARG Rural Consumer Panel, Nirma brand has been ranked as highest in
terms of penetration in washing powder category.

Nirma Detergent Cake

Deriving inspiration from its success in the Detergent Powder market, Nirma expanded
its product portfolio by introducing the “Nirma detergent cake” in 1987. Here again, the
excellent price-quality equation tempted the consumers to try the product. Available in
125g and 250g pack sizes, this brand has done exceptionally well. AIMS survey ranked
Nirma detergent cake as “The Most widely distributed detergent cake brand”. Due to its
unique formulation, this product offers benefits like less melting in water, better stability,
and therefore lasts longer. As per the ORG-MARG Rural Consumer Panel, Nirma brand
is ranked highest in terms of penetration in washing cakes / bars category.

Super Nirma Washing Powder.

Exploding the myth that ‘better quality always demands higher price”, Nirma introduced a
spray-dried blue coloured washing powder in the premium segment, in 1996. This brand,
within a short span of two years, had cornered substantial market share in the premium
detergent segment and continues to perform well.

Super Nirma Detergent Cake

To meet the growing aspirations of consumers and to offer them value-chain product
portfolio, Nirma introduced Super Nirma Detergent Cake, in 1992. Available in 125g and
250g pack sizes, this product, within a short span, convinced the consumers of
competitor brands to switch their loyalty towards Super Nirma detergent cake. With a
high detergency value, this product offers quality wash to their consumers.

Nirma Popular Detergent Powder.

To cater to the needs of the specific target audience, Nirma launched a good quality
product at a very affordable price. The objective is to convert the non-users of
detergents into users and also prevent the competitors and local manufacturers to lure
away the prospective Nirma consumers by sub-standard products. This product has

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created a loyal consumer base of its own and has established substantial amount of
volumes. It is available in pack sizes of 500g and 1000g pack sizes.
Nirma Popular Detergent Cake
The positioning of Nirma Popular Detergent Cake is similar to that of Nirma Popular
Detergent Powder. This product is available in 125g and 250g pack sizes, targeted to
first-time detergent cake user segment.

Edible Salt

Nirma Shudh Iodized Salt.

Nirma Shudh Salt, manufactured with state-of-art production facilities, using the vacuum
drying process, is the only salt in the country to be manufactured in an entirely
automated plant and is free from any manual handling, involved at any stage of
manufacturing. The fully automated process helps in controlling each and every
parameter so as to sustain the basic characteristics and quality of the product, with a
guarantee of being the best in the quality parameters of iodine content, free flow nature,
saltiness, whiteness and the size of the granules. It is being offered in an eye-catching
and colourful special moisture proof 1 kg pack.

Scouring Products

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The Scouring Products Category can be further classified into

¾ Nirma Clean Dish Wash Bar.
¾ Nirma Bartan Bar.

Nirma Clean Dish Wash Bar

Scouring bar is a potential emerging market in India. By offering Nirma Clean Dish Wash
Bar, Nirma tried to tap this huge market. It is also a one-type of value product to the
brand loyal consumers, catering their distinct needs. This product, like other products
from Nirma stable, offers best quality at the most affordable prices. It is available in 300g
pack size.

Nirma Bartan Bar

Nirma Bartan Bar also addresses the emerging market of scouring bars. It is being
offered in 200g and 400g pack sizes. From initial launch days, it has got huge market
success and consistently performing well. Inspired by the success of the bar, Nirma
Bartan Dishwash Powder was also, subsequently soft-launched, in 1000g pack size.

The Industrial Products are as follows.

¾ LAB ( Linear Alkyl Benzene )
¾ AOS ( Alfa Olefin Sulfonate )
¾ Sulfuric Acid
¾ Glycerin
¾ Soda Ash
¾ Pure salt
¾ Vacuum Evaporated Iodized Salt
¾ SSP ( Single Super Phosphate )
¾ Sodium Silicate

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Acquisitions.

Nirma Consumer Care, the wholly-owned subsidiary of Nirma, obtained the license
of the trademark Camay from Procter and Gamble Home Products (PGHP) for an
undisclosed license fee with effect from October 2002. The arrangement is valid for a
rolling period of five years and covers toilet soaps.
Camay constitutes one of PGHP’s leading brands among their portfolio and has
been one of the oldest brands in the PGHP stable dating back to 1926. In this era,
women prefer white soaps since many imported soaps have colour’s added to mask
impurities. For many years, Camay was advertised as “the soap of beautiful women.”
Camay was coined from the French word camee, which means cameo, the jewel. The
brand was launched in India in December 1993. Camay is available to consumers
across North America, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia.
Nirma has an exclusive arrangement to manufacture and market Camay for the Indian
market. Nirma’s distribution and marketing strengths coupled with the “strong legacy”
built by the company will infuse a fresh lease of life into the glorious history of Camay’s
brand equity.
Nirma has always been a forward-looking company and with the introduction of
Camay we have proven our unflinching commitment to our loyal consumers once again.
Nirma is now truly ready to set a new paradigm for the 21st century India.” Camay is
positioned as a premium product priced at Rs13 for a 100-gm bar. The soap is white-
coloured and has an excellent fragrance, which gives a unique soothing experience.
Camay contains milk cream, saffron and glycerin as key skincare ingredients. It will be
positioned as an international skincare soap that nourishes the skin and keeps it soft.
Nirma created markets for its products and through its unique offering of value for
money, Nirma converted a luxury into a necessity for Indian consumers.

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Place and Price

Nirma Lime Fresh soap was launched as mid-priced toilet soap without any
advertising support. In the first month of its launch, seventeen million packs were sold,
vindicating the company's belief that value-for-money products are what consumers are
looking for. The product sells for half the price of its nearest comparable rival. Nirma
Rose and Nirma Sandal are the other toilet soaps that are on offer in the mid-priced
category. Products like Super Nirma Washing Powder available in 25g, 500g and 1000g
packs, has out-classed its competitor brands. Though, priced almost 40 % lesser, thus
providing a very attractive ‘value-for-money’ proposition.

Promotion
Nirma's success is synonymous with its advertising and marketing strategy. When
Karsanbhai Patel started selling his detergent powder, he decided to call it Nirma,
derived from the name of his daughter Nirupama. In the early years, the Nirma packet
featured a lady washing a garment. Later, however, the design was changed and an
image of his daughter was featured on the pack. The white dancing girl, featured in
Nirma's television advertising, is perhaps the most enduring image of Nirma. Though Ms.
Patel passed away in a car accident, she continues to live on in the corporate logo and
the best selling brands of the company.
Nirma's advertising has always focused on the value-for-money angle. Its simple
and catchy jingle - Dudh si safedi Nirma se aye, rangin kapda bhi khil khil jaye - has
continued to echo in the drawing rooms of middle-class Indian homes through the
decades. While the jingle stresses on the product, it also salutes the savvy and budget-
conscious Indian housewife. It is one of the longest running jingles and the spot has
seen very few changes since the time it was first aired. For the re-launch of Nirma, the
company has developed new spots but they are variations of the old favorites. Once the
re-launch is complete, the company plans to go back to the original advertisement.
Nirma's promotion strategy, too, has many firsts to its credit. The company
pioneered product sponsorship through the electronic media. Besides, the company has
developed a unique advertising strategy - new products are launched with no advertising
support. Once the distribution glitches are sorted out and the product reaches the
shelves of retailers, the company begins to advertise it. The umbrella branding strategy
helps to give new products instant recall without increasing the advertising expense.

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The Distribution Channels

Nirma Limited markets its products through its fully owned subsidiary Nirma
Consumer Care Limited (NCCL), which was incepted in 1985. NCCL in turn resells these
products in the market under the umbrella brands “NIRMA” and “NIMA” along with
extensions. The distribution strength of Nirma is based on mutually rewarding and
satisfying relationship. Nirma pioneered the concept of flat distribution network. Nirma
Consumer Care Limited operates with two parallel distribution networks. The NIRMA
brand is marketed through the first network, which consists of about 450 exclusive
distributors. It is one of the lowest cost FMCG distribution channels of the country.
Principal Channel [Nirma Products]
¾ Lowest Cost system in India
¾ Speed in distribution
¾ Flexibility
The Nima range of products is marketed through a parallel marketing network that
comprises of more than 2000 distributors.
Parallel Channel [Nirma Products]
¾ Wider Reach
¾ Speedy Market Intelligence
¾ Competitive edge & Better focus
¾ Complementing Principal Channel
All Nirma and Nirma range of products have a retail reach of over two million retail
outlet’s and more than 40 million loyal consumers spread all over the country. The
Company has been successful in establishing an extremely good urban as well as rural
presence through the two distribution channels. The distribution channels have played a
significant role in making Nirma a household name. The efficient network has made
Nirma Washing Powder and Nirma Detergent Cake, the brands with highest penetration
in the respective product categories in the market. The network is well equipped to meet
the demands of the loyal consumers of the Company across the country. The robust
network ensures the availability of various products at different retail outlets across the
nation. The Distribution channel is geared up to enhance trade relations, build up the
retailer base by providing various benefits and incentives, organize and implement
different activities to generate sales and manage numerous other programmes, schemes
and activities concentrated towards business development.

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Corporate Social Responsibilities

Realizing the significant role of education - especially technical and managerial in
socio-economic development of the nation, Nirma played a vital role by establishing the
Nirma Education & Research Foundation (NERF) in 1994. Recently, this Foundation has
been awarded University status. This status gives way to shape up and expand into a
body providing education in other courses like medicine, nursing, biotechnology, etc.
along with the existing courses under a single roof of Nirma University. Today, this state-
of-the art academic infrastructure runs various institution bodies such as Institute of
Technology, Institute of Management, Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Institute
of Diploma Engineering. These all institutions are located in a disciplined, serene and
pleasant environment. The campus blends beautifully with the green landscaping,
aesthetic elegance of arches and the vibrant pursuit of knowledge by the young
aspirants. The environment gives full scope for group activities, which are plenty, as also
to individual pursuits for development on preferred tracks. Chanasma Ruppur Gram
Vikas Trust in Mehsana of which Mr. K. K. Patel is the founder trustee and President
provides education, maintenance of public health and related facilities in rural areas. The
trust has started several institutions in Ruppur, including the Arts & Commerce College,
and an ITI training institute and a ladies hostel.

Conclusion
Nirma believes in disciplined, serene and pleasant working environment. Such
environment helps to inspire the internal customers to deliver their best with greater
satisfaction. Empowerment, Equality, Security and Opportunity are the vital values which
organization infuses in its vast employee-base. The conventional wisdom at Nirma
empowers every employee to have autonomy in the way he can plan, organize and carry
out his work. Apart from these values, the management philosophy constitutes the
management ethos of high order. Developing human resources is a continuous process
at Nirma involving overseas training programmes, on-the-job orientation for the trainees,
in-house computer education and personality development sessions. The belief is that
all this makes an individual a better person, which in turn leads to better productivity and
a spirit of accountability and commitment in each member of the Nirma family.

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