PRINCIPLES OF MARKETING-MGT1036

DIGITAL ASSIGNMENT-I
FACULTY:DR.VENU GOPAL.P NAME:K.SAGAR
SLOT:F1+TF1 REG NO:16MIS0221

ARTICLES RELATED ON PRICING STRATEGIES OF MASKS AND SANITIZERS:

ABSTRACT
Due to the sudden outbreak of covid-19 in our country and also the whole world, the
prevention from one person to another person is very necessary. This has led to the
increase of the use in human face masks to cover their face by being prevented from the
virus and also sanitizers to clean the hands regularly by protecting ourselves then and there.
Here are the list of articles which are related to the price hiking strategies of masks and
sanitizers of various companies.

[1] https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/magazines

N95 masks that sell for around Rs 150 were being sold for up to Rs 500. Amid a coronavirus scare in
Delhi-NCR, the demand for surgical and N95 masks increased manifold in Noida on Tuesday with
some people claiming they were being sold at rates much higher than the actual cost.

People claimed surgical masks which usually sell for Rs 10 were being sold for Rs 40 or higher, and
N95 masks which sell for around Rs 150 were being sold for up to Rs 500. "If a pharmacy sold 10-15
masks daily on an average, today the demand went up to 100. Several retailers went out of stock in
Noida and Greater Noida, while wholesalers too had a tough time meeting the demand,"

The is the simple principle of demand and supply. And in situations like these when panic binds
people the tendency of hoarding also goes up. Thus happens at every level, customers, retailers,
wholesalers.

[2] https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/masks-hand-sanitizers-declared-
essential-commodities-govt-can-cap-storage-quantity-fix-price/articleshow/
With masks and hand sanitizers flying off the shelves, the government on Friday notified them
as essential commodities till June 30 and the pharmaceutical pricing regulator asked states to ensure
there was no black marketing or hoarding of such products.

The applicability of Essential Commodities Act also gives allows state governments to regulate prices
amid reports that manufacturers have increased the MRP printed on such items. Prices went up
exorbitantly in the past two weeks as demand peaked.

The government also invoked the Disaster Management Act to ensure price regulation and availability
of masks and hand sanitizers.

[3] https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala/fix-prices-of-sanitizers-masks-hc-tells-
govt/article31099998.ece

A Division Bench of the Kerala High Court on Tuesday directed the State government to
publish a notification fixing maximum retail prices of face masks and hand sanitizers
forthwith.

The Drugs Controller had made all efforts to boost the production of sanitizers by
permitting three additional manufactures to produce them. As a result, sufficient quantity
of these products were made available for the day-to-day use in the State. Besides, the
drug control departments had conducted State-wide raids to unearth illegal manufactures
of the products.
The government further submitted that the officers of the drug department had also
ensured that sanitizers were not sold at exorbitant prices. The officers had also been asked
to maintain strict vigil on the unscrupulous activities such as hoarding and charging of
excess prices for sanitizer and hand masks.

[4] https://www.newindianexpress.com/

Bengaluru shops raided for selling hand sanitizers, masks at high price.

The police booked cases against many pharmacies for allegedly selling the essential medical

items 2-3 times over the MRP.

Over 200 medical shops were raided in the city for allegedly selling masks and hand sanitizers

at exorbitant prices, cashing in on soaring demand due to Coronavirus outbreak.

A special drive has been initiated across the city to check and regulate supply of masks and
sanitizers to retailers, which have been selling them at higher rates due to their shortage amid rising
demand.

[5] https://www.nytimes.com/
 As the coronavirus outbreak spread, some people saw an opportunity in the rising demand for
products like hand sanitizer and masks.

Matt Colvin stayed home near Chattanooga, preparing for pallets of even more wipes and sanitizer he
had ordered, and starting to list them on Amazon. Mr. Colvin said he had posted 300 bottles of hand
sanitizer and immediately sold them all for between $8 and $70 each, multiples higher than what he
had bought them for. To him, “it was crazy money.” To many others, it was profiteering from a
pandemic.

The next day, Amazon pulled his items and thousands of other listings for sanitizer, wipes and face
masks. The company suspended some of the sellers behind the listings and warned many others that if
they kept running up prices, they’d lose their accounts. eBay soon followed with even stricter
measures, prohibiting any U.S. sales of masks or sanitizer.

[6] https://www.livemint.com/news/india/

 The government has capped the price of a 200 ml hand sanitizer bottle at ₹100
 Lifebuoy sanitizer, hand wash and Domex floor cleaners to become cheaper by 15%
The government and the private sector are both taking steps to make personal care, hygiene and
sanitation products more affordable as they up the ante to combat the rapidly spreading coronavirus.
The government on Friday capped prices of hand sanitizers while Hindustan Unilever moved to
reduce prices of products under its Lifebuoy and Domex brands.
HUL said it is cutting prices of personal care and home hygiene brands—Lifebuoy sanitizer, liquid
hand wash and Domex floor cleaners—by 15%.
To meet the surging demand in the market, HUL has also ramped up the production of Lifebuoy
sanitizers, Lifebuoy hand wash liquid and Domex floor cleaners and is committed to scaling it up even
further in the coming weeks, the company said in its statement.

[7] https://www.financialexpress.com/industry/
In an attempt to make personal care, hygiene and sanitisation products more affordable and within the reach of more
people, the government and the private sector have taken several steps to help prevent against Coronavirus. These
include the capping of prices of hand sanitizers, face masks, and alcohol used in manufacturing of hand sanitisers so as
to carry out operations against hoarders, speculators, profiteers and black marketeers to prevent overcharging.
The price of two ply mask will be Rs 8 per mask while that of three ply will be Rs 10 per mask. He further added that the
retail price of 200 ml bottle of hand sanitizer has been capped at Rs 100. Bottles of other sizes will also be proportionate
to this. These prices will be applicable across India till June 30, 2020.

[8] https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/bathinda/3

Three medical store owners in Kotkapura have been arrested by the police for selling hand sanitisers
and face masks at inflated rates. Though the state government has issued direction capping the price
of a face mask at Rs 10, the suspects were charging upto Rs 35 per mask and also selling hand
sanitisers at exhorbitant prices. Those arrested have been identified as Rocky, Ravi Kumar and Abhey
Kumar, said Kumar Saurabh Raj, the Deputy Commissioner (DC) of Faridkot.

After receiving complaints that the chemists were selling the equipment essential to prevent the
spread of the Covid-19 at highly-inflated prices, a raid was conducted on the shops and the suspects
were arrested, said the DC. Strict action would be taken against those found to be “fleecing” people,
 he said. We have asked the people to be cautious against such illegal practices and bring the cases to
the notice of the administration, said the DC.

[9] https://www.businesstoday.in/latest/trends/coronavirus

Price of a 2 ply (surgical) mask has been capped at Rs 8 and that of 3 ply (surgical) mask at Rs 10 till
June 30, Consumer Affairs Minister Ram Vilas Paswan said in a statement.

"The price cap has been imposed taking into account the sharp increase in prices of raw materials
used in making of face masks and hand santizer," Paswan said.

Earlier this month, the government had declared sanitizers and masks essential commodities" to
prevent hoarding and price manipulation of such goods.
On March 19, the government had placed price limits on alcohols used in making hand sanitizer.

[10] https://www.cbsnews.com/news/coronavirus-price-gouging-hand-sanitizer-face-masks/

In New York City, pharmacies are having trouble keeping up with demand, As fears over
the coronavirus grow, retail stores are selling out of products like hand sanitizer, disinfectant wipes
and face masks. And some customers are reporting much higher prices than normal.
When I went in to pay, she said $50, and I think that's disgusting, and they're taking advantage of
people right now.
New York City is issuing $500 fines to any stores found price gouging, starting this week. "This is not
a time to be trying to make a quick buck on the backs of hard-working people who are just very
anxious and scared,"
Many health officials say the best steps to take for protection are to wash your hands for 20 seconds
and refrain from touching your face. They say masks are a good idea for people who are already sick,
so they don't infect others, but wearing a mask won't stop you from getting the virus.