PROJECT REPORT

ON

To study the Indian packaged water industry with

focus on
BISLERI
Submitted To: - Submitted By:

Dr. Rajesh Bhagat Gautam Kumar

1906860700015
MBA 4th SEM

In partial fulfilment of the Requirements for the award of Degree of

Master of Business Administration

Accurate Institute Of Advance Management

Affiliated To:-
Dr. A.P.J Kalam Technical University
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

1
First of all I am deeply indebted to Department of Management,
Accurate Institute Of Advance Management for allowing me to
complete my research study on

‘To study the Indian packaged water industry with focus on

BISLERI’

It gives me immense pleasure to express my heartfelt gratitude to my

respected guide Dr. Rajesh Bhagat (Director) for providing me
articulate guidance and ceaseless encouragement throughout study. I
shall be failing in my duty if I do not acknowledge the contribution
of my family for their constructive cooperation.

Gautam Kumar
ROLL NO. 1906860700015
BBA (GEN) 3rd SEM

CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the research work entitled ‘To study the Indian
packaged water industry with focus on BISLERI’ has been
undertaken by Gautam Kumar under my supervision in the partial

2
fulfilment of requirement of the Post-graduation course (MBA).
The research work is candidate’s original work & this project
report has not been submitted to any other university for any
course.
This is also certified that Gautam
Kumar is the student of MBA 4th semester Accurate Institute of
Advance Management.

Project Guide:

Mohd Faiz Siddiqui

CONTENTS

 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

 Sample Size

 Analysis

 INTRODUCTION

 To the domestic packaged drinking water market

 MARKET SHARE

 COMPANY PROFILE OF BISLERI

 Background  The Present

 Future Plans

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  Technology Developments

 Purification Process

 Product & Packaging

 BOTTLED WATER ANALYSIS

 WHY BISLERI?

 EXCERPTS

 And this is how Parle Bisleri began

 THE JOURNEY TILL NOW

 VISION AND MISSION

 CURRENT PLAYERS

 SWOT ANALYSIS

 ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

 Consumer Related

 Retailer Related

 RECOMMENDATION AND SUGGESTION

 CONCLUSION

 ANNEXURE

 Consumer’s Questionnaire

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  Retailer’s Questionnaire

 BIBLIOGRAPHY

OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY:

 To learn about the domestic packaged drinking water market, its

market distribution and Brand Bisleri in detail.
 To find about consumers’ and retailers’ brand preference

 To see whether there is a threat to the mineral water market from

water purifiers and soft drinks.

 Whether the people of Delhi & its NCR and happy, paying for

water.

 Whether the people of Delhi & its NCR are getting health

conscious.

 To find the retailers view on the mineral water market and to

assess the future prospect of the market.

 To find the potential of Mineral water market in Delhi & its NCR.
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY:

5
Starting a research project needs a basic preparation regarding the

issues related to the topic selected. For this one needs to do some

deskwork. Deskwork includes:

1. Determining the basic objectives of the study undertaken.

2. Collection of secondary data related to the topic from Internet,

magazines & newspapers.

3. Study the market, which one wants to cover.

4. Analyze the objective on the basis of information collected by

secondary data.

5. All the above activities at the initial stage of the project must be

completed & then the main part follows.

Sample Size

Regions of Delhi & its NCR were covered for the study. I took 50
consumers and 10 retailers as my respondents. They were selected
by random sampling method because in this case systematic
sampling is not possible since one cannot say whether a person is
using mineral water or not.

6
Analysis

Then analysis of the questionnaire filled by the consumers & the

retailers is done on the percentage base analysis & theoretical base
analysis. On the bases of this analysis graphs were prepared showing
the relationship between two variables. The analysis formed the
bases of the inferences drawn and reaching the conclusion of the
study.

INTRODUCTION:
To the domestic packaged drinking water market

The concept of bottled mineral is quite a new one for Indian People.
Since we never consider these things as necessity and especially
when we are paying for natural resource like water which is
available freely.
The bottled water market has recently seen growth; the reason
behind this may be the growing health consciousness among Indians
or non-availability of pure drinking water. Most of the users are
daily travellers, patients or it is used in parties/seminars. Moreover
30% of the whole mineral water customers are travellers.
When governments spoke about providing drinking water to all,
little did one imagine that MNCs would package it and sell it to us.
The advent of the small bottles has increased consumption. Buying
water near the bus stop or at the railway station has become a
routine.
Indian water market has many companies selling water, on an whole
there are more than 300 big & small players in the market some of

7
the big players are Bisleri, Aquafina, Kinley, Purelife,
McDowell etc. these companies are dealing in same market, same
price & also same capacity. Bisleri is owned by Parle group,
Aquafina is owned by Pepsi, Kinley is owned by Coke, Nestle has
Purelife. But some small players also have sufficient market share in
their local market, like prime, silver drop, royal fresh are very
popular in the congested region.
Bisleri is most popular brand in North India. Bisleri is having big
contracts like with air Indian & some part of Indian railways.
Since the early 1990s, Indian attitude have changed and people are
flocking to the cities at a frenetic pace - one-third of Indian now live
in urban areas.
But in many parts of the country, quality of water is still a major
concern. Given the extreme climatic conditions in India, especially
the heat and dust, plus the fact people are now prone to dehydration
because they commute further for work and social activities, the
issues of safe drinking water is more prevalent than ever.
As the mercury soars, so do the sales of bottled water. The
advantage it has is unlike the Colas and other drinks dispensed from
vending machines, a bottle fits into a handbag and can be carried
conveniently.
The trend of using mineral water for drinking purpose started as a
means to take advantage of the therapeutic value of water. This trend
gained potential momentum during 1970s and ever since bottled
water was exported every year from mineral springs in France and
other European countries.
In western countries, the practice of bottled drinking water started
during 1950s. The first launch of bottled water in India was the
launch of ‘Bisleri’ of Parle company during 1968-69 which was a
major flop as the Indian population was not prepared to accept
the concept of purchasing water. The market of bottled water

8
remained weak and inactive for as long as 20 years. The relaunch
of Bisleri in 1994, however, was a success due to the growing
awareness and high consciousness of health and hygiene among
people.
Today many medical stores in the city are doing very well with the
sale of branded bottled water. The brand name plays an impression
on the human mind. Bottled water is available in quantities of
330ml, 500ml, 1lt, 1.5lt, 2lts, 5lts, 10lts, 20lts and 50lts.
For a particular brand to be certified as bottled water it requires approval on 4 levels
namely the Central, the state, the trade association, and individual company levels.

ILL EFFECTS OF DRINKING UNTREATED WATER

• Typhoid
• Bone deformation
• Joint pain
• Hardening of arteries and muscles
• Gastro – stomach upsets
• Excess content of fluoride can lead to flourisis
• Arsenic Poisoning

COMMONLY FOUND WATER CONTAMINATION

SOURCES –

• Contaminated storage Tanks

• Cross contamination at sources

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 • Leaks in distribution network
• Improper functioning of Purifiers
• Domestic Waste
• Bore well or contaminated ground water
• Organic matters
• Industrial waste

DISTRIBUTION NETWORK OF BISLERI

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11
 And this is how Parle Bisleri began

According to the Bureau of Indian Standards there are 1,200

bottled water factories all over India (of which 600 are in one state
-- Tamil Nadu). Over 100 brands are vying for the Rs 1,000-crore
(Rs 10 billion) bottled water market and are hard selling their
products in every way possible -- better margins to dealers,
aggressive advertising, catchy taglines.... In such a scenario, The
Strategist takes a look at how it all started -- with Bisleri -- and how
Ramesh Chauhan, chairman, Parle Bisleri created a market out of
pure water.
Bisleri mineral water was bought from the Italian company, Felice
Bisleri, in 1969 -- the company had been unable to market bottled
water and wanted to exit the market -- Parle too did not see any
potential for the product at that time.
As a soft drinks company, Parle had Thums Up, Gold Spot and
Limca (cola, orange drink and lemonade) but no soft drink company
was complete without a soda. So they merely used the name and
launched Bisleri soda with two variants -- carbonated and
noncarbonated mineral water.
But three decades ago, what could they say about a category that
had no market? They didn't know our target group. Then, since
bottled water is colourless, tasteless and odourless, it was not an
easy product to advertise.
Thus, the earlier brand building efforts focused on Bisleri being
healthy with adequate minerals. The Italian name added a dash of
class to it. The first print ad campaign captured the international
essence and showed a butler with a bow tie, holding two bottles of
Bisleri.

The punchline was, "Bisleri is veri veri extraordinari" (the

spelling of the punchline was designed to capture the consumer's

12
attention). The campaign was successful and we were being
noticed as someone who catered to the need for safe, healthy
drinking water.
However, the real boost to mineral water came in the early-to-
mid1980s when they switched to PVC packaging and later to PET
bottles. The PET packaging did not just ensure better transparency --
they could now show sparkling clear water to the consumers. It also
meant better life for the water.
Meanwhile, Bisleri soda was doing well but they had to discontinue
production as they sold their soft drink brands to Coca-Cola in 1993.
But Ramesh Chauhan’s interest was in building brands and not in
bottling soft drinks. That's when he started to concentrate on
developing the Bisleri water brand.
There was a clear opportunity of building a market for bottled water.
The quality of water available in the country was bad. It was similar
to what Europe faced before World War II. The quality of water in
Europe was extremely poor, which created the bottled water industry
there. In India, too, not only was water scarce, whatever was
available was of bad quality.
Initially, though bottled water was something only foreigners
and non-resident Indians consumed, they still had to increase the
distribution, which meant the dealer margins reduced. And because
of limited sales, the dealer margin had to be kept high to compensate
low sales. Now they had to push sales.
Hence, they introduced free sampling of Bisleri at the tables where
the elderly guests would sit. Soon customers were ordering bottled
water on special occasions. Currently, the consumption of bottled
water is far in excess of soft drinks on such occasions.
The other major challenge was distribution. Soft drink sales are in
glass bottles and the distribution model is built around picking up
empty bottles and getting them back to the factory. That's not the

13
case with the retail bottled water packs (below 2 litre). But a
product that's not available where it's needed, is useless.
The number of outlets where Bisleri is available has increased from 50,000 in 1995
to 2,50,000 at present. But that is not enough -- they need to keep looking for different
avenues. Take stationery shops and chemists, for instance. They don't keep soft drinks but
sell Bisleri. That is the kind of exclusivity we look for to get ahead of the distribution
network that soft drink companies talk of.

MARKET SHARE:

Currently, Bisleri continues to lead in the Rs 700-1,000 crore

organised, packaged water market with an estimated 40 per cent
market share, followed by Kinley at 28 per cent and Aquafina with
an 11 per cent share. In terms of volumes, the North and West
remain Bisleri's biggest performing markets, despite the brand's
sustained national-level presence. The market has been growing for
the last three years at an unimaginable rate of 80%. The market size
of bottled water is expected to surpass the size of soft drinks market
very soon in the near future.

Aquafina
Others
11%
21%

Others
Kinley
28% Bislery
Kinley
Aquafina
Bislery
40%

Individual Market Shares:

BISLERI-40%, KINLEY-28%, AQUAFINA-11%,
OTHERS21%

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 Some of the specifications as per the latest
notification (which were effective from April 01).
 The location of packaging should be close to the source or place of
origin of water.
 Only water obtained directly from natural or drilled underground
sources can be sold as mineral water.
 For water to be called mineral water it should also not be subject to
any chemical treatments.
 For water to be categorized as packaged bottle water, it can be
sourced from any places.
 The water has to be treated and disinfected in accordance with
specifications for it to be categorized as packaged bottle water.
 Till December ’2000 only six players have applied for license for
packaged drinking water and no company has applied for license
in mineral water category. But around 16 applications in
packaged water category and 6 applications in the mineral water
category are still in the pipeline.
 The new regulations also prohibit any claims relating to beneficial
properties of the product and the immediate casualty will be
Coca-Cola with its FFPAI endorsement. Furthermore in a bit to
provide standards for both drinking water and mineral water and
to regulate the quality and price of bottled water, BIS approval
was made mandatory from the end of 1999.
 However the BIS does not lay down any guidelines or practices for
processing water and there is no specific industrial licensing
policy for the bottled-water sector. So in effect anyone can set up
a plant without establishing the source of the water and the
technology used to purify it.

15
Till recently India was not a potential consumer for packaged
water hence the prospects are now huge. But with regulations
somewhat confusing and contradictory it is likely to be a while
before the manufacturers are able to realize their full market
potential in a country, which is fast becoming one of the principal
global markets in bottle water.
COMPANY PROFILE OF BISLERI:

:: Background

In 1967, Bisleri an Italian company, started by Signor Felice Bisleri,

first brought the idea of selling bottled water in India. It started a
company called Bisleri India. In 1969, Ramesh Chauhan, the
Chairman of Parle Exports, bought over the brand. In those days,
Bisleri packaged drinking water was available in glass bottles.

Being a returnable package owing to various other problems such as

breakage and weight, in 1972-73, Bisleri was made available in PVC
(Poly Vinyl Chloride) bottles. After this plastic packaging was
introduced, things started to change, and sales increased rapidly.

The upsurge in the sales of Bisleri started in 1993 as Ramesh

Chauhan sold off the Parle stable of brands, including Thums Up,
Limca and Gold Spot. Recognising the potential of the packaged
drinking water market, he then went on to concentrate on making
Bisleri a top selling brand in India.

:: The Present

It was around the year 1995, when Parle Exports took charge of the
brand operations and the business took off in the market. With

16
factories across India and a strong distribution network, Bisleri
established itself as a force to reckon with in the domestic
packaged drinking water market.

Earlier the packaged drinking water market consisted of five star

hotels, tourists and foreigners. As a marketing strategy, a conscious
decision was taken by the company that only 40% of the sales
should come from these outlets and 60% from general market. i.e.
paanwallas, street shops, general stores and even non-tourists.

This brought about a sea change in the perception in the consumer's

mind about consumption of Bisleri. Earlier, drinking bottled water
was considered to be more of a status symbol. That thinking has
slowly changed to the point where today, not drinking Bisleri is
considered as being behind the times. Such has been the presence
and penetration of the Bisleri brand in the bottled water segment.

About few years ago, in 1998, a strategy was adopted to concentrate

aggressively on the home market. The habit of boiling water or
using electronic gadgets was not adequate, since the source of water
itself was unreliable. The bulk packages like the 2, 5 and 20 litre
bottles were introduced to meet this market need. The price per litre
went down as a result, making bottled water very economical for the
consumer.

:: Future Plans
Bisleri was the first to market bottled water in a totally virgin market
and naturally people associate the brand with bottled water. Now
Bisleri is perhaps already ten steps ahead of its competitors and will
endeavour to widen its gap in the times to come.

Bisleri's brand positioning stresses on pure, clean and safe drinking

water.

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Some of the future plans to maintain the top spot that Bisleri
commands in the Indian market are:
• New pack sizes in bottles and cups

• Increase the distribution network with an investment of over

200 crores
• Strengthen presence in traditionally weak areas by setting up
12 new bottling facilities at a cost of Rs. 150 crores

:: Technology Developments

To make sure that the product that reaches the consumer is always of
highest standard and also meets international standards, Bisleri has
always been involved in improving its product packaging. One such
recent development is the tamper proof break away seal. Bisleri
also recognises the need to produce environment friendly products
and is working on the PET project.

The break away seal:

Keeping in mind the consumer's need to recognise a genuine product
that cannot be tampered with, Bisleri developed the break away seal.
The unique cap has been patented and cannot be duplicated or
tampered with. This technology development in the product ensures
that the consumer will only get a highly safe product when they
consume Bisleri packaged drinking water.

Product packaging:
To ensure purity of the bottled water, the bottles that are used are
blown and filled at the factory itself, to avoid contamination.

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 The PET Recycling Project:
Bisleri is extremely conscious of environmental issues, since PET
bottles are not biodegradable and not easy to dispose. The
company is currently working on the PET recycling project, where
they will collect bottles from various places, crush and shred them.
This shredded material will then be made into ropes , PET
containers for the non-food industry and other PET items like
polyester fibre, flower vase, gift items etc.

WHY BISLERI?

 Bisleri is totally safe & protects you from all water borne
diseases.

 Bisleri is trusted by 50 lakhs households across the country.

 Bisleri is the brand leader in bottled water category.

 The water is purified through six stages of purification process that

includes reverse osmosis and Ozonation.

Why Bisleri is pure?

At BISLERI plants, water undergoes multi – stage purification
process to ensure proper blend of minerals and complete removal of
microorganisms and toxic substances. So a habit of drinking PURE
and SAFE BISLERI will ensure a healthy life

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WHAT ADVANTAGES BISLERI PURIFICATION
PROCESS HAS OVER PURIFICATION DONE BY
OTHER METHODS?
Traditional process of boiling water for purification has its
limitations. It is time consuming. For boiling, water has to be heated
to 100 deg.Celsius. Also, to kill microbe’s water should be boiled
continuously for a minimum of 20 minutes. Boiling may kill the
microbes but cannot remove other physical impurities and toxic
substances.

Many home appliances are available in market for water

purification. These gadgets use either filtration technique or Ultra
Violet rays or a combination of the two techniques. These
techniques do not guarantee 100 % purity of water.

Filtration removes only the visible suspended particles and not the
minute, invisible particles, toxic substances or microorganisms. The
filters are cleaned rarely and all the muck accumulates inside leading
to more contamination. Ideally such filters need to be cleaned every
day which is cumbersome. Ultra Violate rays kill the microbes but
cannot ensure removal of toxic substances and physical impurities.

These purification equipment are incomplete and need continuous

monitoring and maintenance.

At BISLERI, through our multi – stage purification process we

ensure removal of toxic substances as well as physical and
microbiological impurities. In our state-of-the-art processing plants
we follow rigorous Good Manufacturing Practices and strict Quality
Assurance norms so each and every bottle of BISLERI is made
tasty, pure and safe for the consumer.

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PROTECT YOUR HEALTH WITH BISLERI WHICH
USES 6 STAGES OF PURIFICATION
CHLORINATION: Kills microorganisms. Remove organic
matter.

ARKAL FILTER: Removes suspended matter and turbidity.

CARBON FILTER: Removes residual chlorine & odours

REVERSE OSMOSIS: Removes organic material. Controls total

dissolved solids in the water.

MICRON FILTRATION: Additional safety measures of filtration.

OZONATION: Ensures water remains bacteria free for longer shelf

life.

:: Product & Packaging

Bisleri is available in a range of sizes.

The Bisleri bottled water range comprises the conventional

500 ml, one litre, 1.2 litre and two litre bottles; five litre
and 20 litre jars for the home segment, and smaller packs
sizes of 250 ml cups and 330 ml bottles, though in very
limited numbers for now.

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 BOTTLED WATER ANALYSIS

Bisleri

Spring Water - Still/Sparkling

PARTICULARS Mg/litre
TDS 160
Ph Factor 7.2
Calcium 13.6
Chlorides 22
Bicarbonate 58
Magnesium 7.8
Nitrate 2
Sulphates 19.3
Hardness 66.1
WHERE CAN WE USE BISLERI ?

 Drinking
 Making tea, coffee, lassi, cold drinks, mixing with drinks
 Kneading the dough
 Cooking
 Mixing with baby foods

 Mixing with medicines.

THE JOURNEY TILL NOW:

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1969: Buys Bisleri bottled water from an Italian company, Felice
Bisleri. It was bottled in glass bottles then.
Early-1980s: Shifts to PVC bottles. Sales surge
Mid-1980s: Switches to PET bottles, which meant more
transparency and life for water.
1993: Sells carbonated drink brands like Thumps Up, Gold Spot and
Limca to Coca-Cola for Rs 400 crore.
1995: Bisleri launches a 500 ml bottle and sales shoot up by 400 per
cent.
2000: Introduces the 20-litre container to bring prices down from Rs
10 a litre to Rs 2 a litre.
1998: Introduces a tamper-proof and tamper-evident seal.
2000: BIS cancels Bisleri's licence of a water bottling in Delhi
since some of the bottles did not carry ISI label; the licence is
restored one-and-a-half months later.
2002: Kinley overtakes Bisleri. The national retail stores audit by
ORG-MARG show Kinley's market share at 35.1 per cent
compared to Bisleri's 34.4 per cent.
2003: Bisleri says it plans to venture out into Europe and America to sell bottled water

:: Vision
A major, diversified, transitional, integrated consumer product
manufacturing company, with National Leadership and a strong
environment conscience, playing a national role in safe water
and Agro based drinks.

:: Mission

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 To provide the highest quality product, keeping in mind all
aspects including freshness, purity and safety, and making it
easily available to the consumer at a very affordable price.
 To achieve international standards of excellence in all aspects
of energy and diversified business with focus on consumer
delight through value and services of product and cost
reduction.
 To enhance capital and fixed assets of the group to withstand
challenges and tough market trends.
 To attain leadership in developing, adopting and assimilating
state or art technology for competitive advantage.
 To provide better quality of product and services through
sustained market research and product development.
 To foster a culture of participation and innovation for
employee growth and contribution.
 To cultivate high standards of business ethics, and total
quality management for a strong corporate identity and brand
equity with continuous and positive growth.
 To help enrich the quality of life of all the communities
specially the neglected ones and preserve ecological balance
and heritage through a strong environment conscience.

CURRENT PLAYERS:

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The mineral water industry is in a churn. The market is proving to
be yet another battlefield for an ongoing battle between the desis
and the MNCs. So far, MNCs have been winning. Only time will
tell what the final outcome will be but I strongly feel that here too,
like in all other markets, MNCs are going to win. Though the fate
Indian companies will suffer at the hands of these MNCs makes
me sad, the choices the consumers will have makes me happy. A
few years back, the mineral water market had been crawling at the
rate of 3-4%, or even a lower figure. Indians carried drinking water
in earthen pitchers, plastic or PUF bottles. But increasing cases of
typhoid and other waterborne diseases began to be reported. In
addition to this, liberalization happened and the mineral water
industry began to be stirred and shaken. The market started
growing an astounding rate of over 100% per anuum. The fact that
there were very few players in the market meant that their business
grew by leaps and bounds. Bisleri became a household name and
is now generic for bottled water. The market today has grown to
Rs11bn. The organised sector -- branded mineral water -- has only
Rs5bn of market share. The rest is accounted for by the
unorganized sector which is dominated by small regional players.
The market is still growing – at a rate greater than 80% per annum.
In the branded segment, Bisleri is the market leader as it continues
to lead in the Rs 700-1,000 crore organised, packaged water
market with an estimated 40 per cent market share, followed by

25
Kinley at 28 per cent and Aquafina with an 11 per cent share. In
terms of volumes, the North and West remain Bisleri's biggest
performing markets, despite the brand's sustained national-level
presence The boom in the market has also encouraged
unscrupulous players to gain an entry. In the name of mineral
water, a number of regional players have even started selling plain
tap water. Many people have fallen sick after drinking this spurious
mineral water. The common man’s faith in the product was shaken.
However, not everyone was put off. Sensing the opportunity that
this segment holds, MNCs have begun to draw up plans to enter
the market, but not without testing the waters first. They carried
out the appropriate feasibility studies. However, among the first to
challenge Bisleri's near monopoly was Pepsi's AquaFina followed
by stiff competition from Parle’s Bisleri and Coca-Cola India’s
Kinley.
The first entrant in the bulk water category was Bisleri, while
Coke, through Kinley, entered the segmen 4 years ago. Over the
past five years or so, Bisleri has become a major player in the bulk
water segment in the water-starved southern states. The 20-litre
bulk water packs are targeted at the institutional and the home
segment. Pepsi is aiming to make its brand available throughout
the country soon. The company has also ruled out entering the bulk
water segment in India. Meanwhile, the action is all in Coca-Colas

26
bulk water business. The 20-litre bulk water packs are targeted at
the institutional and the home segment

SWOT ANALYSIS:

BISLERI
Bisleri announced the re-launch of its 20-litre home pack with a
more “consumer-friendly format” in thread fitting and valve cap,
against the conventional snap-on fittings. The existing 20-litre
Bisleri packs are now being withdrawn and the rollout of the new
jars, priced between Rs 40-60, is on.
Bisleri’s focus on the bulk water market has grown in the past few
years, mainly owing to the stiff competition posed by innumerable
brands in the packaged bottled water market. Not only are there big
multinational players like Coke with their huge distribution
networks, regional players exist side by side, enjoying local clout.
Bisleri continues to lead in the Rs 700-1,000 crore organised,
packaged water market with an estimated 40 per cent market share,
followed by Kinley at 28 per cent and Aquafina with an 11 per
cent share. In terms of volumes, the North and West remain
Bisleri's biggest performing markets, despite the brand's sustained
national-level presence the fact remains that the new kids on the
block are nibbling away at Bisleri's stranglehold over the bottled

27
water segment. Only three years ago, the bottled water market was
estimated at about Rs 300 crore, of which Bisleri commanded a
dominant 80 per cent share.
To ensure Bisleri packaged drinking water is held safe free from
contaminations, ultraviolet treatment and ozonisation process is
carried out. Ozone is unstable trivalent oxygen, a very powerful
bactericide with no side effect, as it disintegrates into oxygen
within couple of hours Sterilization effect of ozonised water
continues even after water is packaged, thereby ensuring safety of
Bisleri up to its final packing. To ensure high quality of packing
materials, components like caps and bottles are manufactured
inhouse from resins of quality suppliers.

Good Manufacturing Practices are stringently followed at all times.

Processing is religiously monitored at every stage. Testing source
water, processing parameters, microbial quality, packaging
material integrity and finally, shelf life studies, forms an integral
part of quality and safety assurance plan.

Strengths:

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 Core business of company.

 First mover in this business since 1969.

 Good brand awareness and brand positioning.

 Available in different packs like cups, 500 ml, 1 lit, 1.2 lit, 2 lit, 5

lit and 20 lit.

 Has become generic name in the mineral water market.

 Availability of Bisleri in all over India with solid infrastructure

facility.

 Focus on customer orientation through low price strategy.

 Product differentiation by introducing patented break way seal

cap.

 Best service and proper response to dealers and customers.

Weakness:

 Lack of brand loyalty as MNC’s are entering the market like

Nestle’s Purelife, Pepsi’s Aquafina.

29
 Lack of Global Awareness in brand.

 Lack of proper advertising to create brand awareness.

 Market coverage is not fully utilized.

 Institutional sales are not penetrated properly.

 Lack of technological up gradation.

Opportunity:

 Indian bottled water industry is still at growth stage.

 Influence of tourists and expatriates.

 Bisleri as a daughter company of Parle has a strong presence in

India.

 Unreliable municipal water quality.

 People are becoming health conscious.

Threats:

30
 Numbers of players like Kinley and other local players are

present in the market have already captured the market.

 Tough competition from MNC's like Coke & Pepsi.

 Fluctuation in sales due to seasonality.

 Local manufacturers who refill used bottle Hampers the image of

the industry.

 Water filters and soft drink industry is a major threat to industry.

 Coke and Pepsi are already having strong distribution network in

bottle water industry with their own fleet of trucks & vans.

Bisleri goes green naturally

20 October 2006

New Delhi: The Ramesh Chauhan-promoted Bisleri International,

which pioneered the packaged drinking water business in India,
catering to consumers' need to have hygienic drinking water while
on the move or even at home, is literally changing its colours and
going for a makeover.

31
The brand that was till now marketed as packaged drinking water
(cleaned through reverse osmosis) will now be available in a
natural avatar.

Bisleri International will invest Rs100 crore for the project which
constitutes a Rs40- crore investment in two plants in Uttaranchal
and Himachal Pradesh in line expansion, Bisleri International
chairman Ramesh Chauhan said. The plants will come up next
year. Chauhan said the rest of the investment of about Rs60 crore
would go into infrastructure development. The investment would
be funded through internal accruals.
Launching 'Bisleri Natural Mountain Water' he said the company
was looking for four more locations from where we look to source
natural water. The likely locations would be in South and West
India he said. Bisleri has 23 plants across the country producing
bottled water.
Bisleri Natural Mountain water will be available in aqua green
packaging against the blue packaging of old and will be available
in six sizes. The company is also planning an aggressive marketing
and advertising campaign with a two-year budget of Rs60 crore.
Chauhan said the new packaging has been adopted in order to
stand apart from the others and in Chauhan's words, "As leader, we
want to differentiate ourselves and hence have adopted this
aquagreen colour," he said. Priced at a significant premium to
packaged water Natural Mountain Water will be available for Rs20
per litre.
The natural water segment, which accounts for about 5 per cent of
the total bottled water segment, is expected to grow by leaps and
bounds as health awareness and disposable incomes rise.
According to the company the foray into spring water will be
followed by an entry into the packaged ice segment (Bisleri Ice) as
well into flavoured, vitamin and sparkling water categories. The

32
company is said to be setting up R&D facilities for ice and
studying various packaging options. Ramesh Chauhan, chairman,
Bisleri International expects to sell 10 million cases of Bisleri
Mountain Water over the next two years- a turnover of Rs200
crore. The bottled water industry is worth Rs1,000 crore in India
and is growing at 40 per cent per annum. It is projected to reach
Rs5,000 crore by 2010. The main players in the spring water
segment are Himalaya, Catch and Leh Berry. At present Himalaya
leads the segment with a 50-per cent market share.
Bisleri claims to have a 40-per cent market share of the organized
packaged water market. The natural spring water market is very
small and accounts for 5 per cent of the entire segment. Bisleri is
projecting a turnover of Rs300 crore this financial year, as against
Rs220 crore last year.
Chauhan says he is also preparing for an entry into the US market
with his spring water and is talks with US authorities for this. He
would not export India-bottled Bisleri into US, but would set up a
bottling operation there as transportation costs are a huge obstacle
in sourcing the product from India. "We are in the process of
getting the regulatory approvals for the venture," Chauhan said. He
said Bisleri was at par with companies in the developed world as
far as meeting international standards were concerned.

KINLEY

Kinley Water–a product of the Coca-Cola Company-is the

established market leader in the drinking water segment. A product
offering of the World’s No. 1 beverage company, Kinley Water is
brought to You with the time-tested expertise of the Coca-Cola.
Backing Kinley Water, is the promise of delivering ‘Trust in every
33
Drop’. Kinley Water’s 25 litre bubble top containers made of
Lexan- a polycarbonate polymer (plastic) that is made especially
for the purpose. Unlike other brands which use recycled plastic,
Kinley bubble tops are made from what is known as Virgin Plastic.

In addition to this, Kinley offers Kinley water dispensers. These

water dispensers come in four basic models. The water dispensers
are ergonomically designed to suit both domestic as well
commercial requirements.

 Refrigerator Model with Hot and Cold facility

 Hot and Cold Model
 Compacta
 Elegance

Advantages of Kinley:

 Good brand positioning.

 Available in different packs like 500 ml, 1 ltr, 2 ltr, 5 ltr and 20

ltr.

34
  Easy availability of product in all over India after Bisleri

with solid infrastructure facility.

 Benefit as a product of Coca-Cola.

 Focusing on institutional sales to create brand awareness

aggressively.

 Use of technological up gradation.

Disadvantage of Kinley:

 Lack of proper service to customers.

 Lack of strong infrastructure.

 Non-availability of a variety of range like Bisleri.

 Focus on distributors not on small retailers.

AQUAFINA

PepsiCo India launched the packaged water bottle brand Aquafina

about five years ago in a 750-ml pack, basically targeting the
youth. The brand now retails in conventional retail pack sizes of
500-ml and 1-litre bottle
35
Aquafina’s market share in the retail segment is estimated at about
12 per cent and it remains to be seen how PepsiCo succeeds in
penetrating the bulk water market. Pepsi Foods, too, expects its
Aquafina brand to turn national by the year-end. "Bisleri is the
market leader and a good brand that has been built over the years.
But we are gradually consolidating our bottled water business,
even if our positioning is somewhat different," says Pepsi Food's
official spokesperson.

Advantages of Aquafina:

 Strong distribution network.

 Good brand awareness and brand positioning.

 Available in different packs like 500 ml, 750 ml, 1 ltr.

 Easy availability of product in all over India.

 Benefits as a product of Pepsi.

 Focusing on institutional sales to create brand awareness.

 Use of technological up gradation.

Disadvantages of Aquafina:
36
 Compared to Bisleri and Kinley the service from Aquafina is

not satisfactory.

 Lack of strong infrastructure.

 Non-availability of a variety of range.

 Market coverage is not proper.

 Focus on wholesalers not on small retailers.

37
 ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION
CONSUMER RELATED

WHICH BRAND DO YOU PREFER

WHILE BUYING MINERAL WATER?

Bisleri Kinley Aqufina Others

Name of Brand Consumer preferences

Bisleri – Most Preferred 60%

Kinley 20%

Aquafina 12%

Others 8%

38
 NUMBER OF RESPONDENTS USING MINERAL
WATER FREQUENTLY
40%
35%
30%
25%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
Always Often Sometimes Never

Always Often Sometimes Never

20% 27% 38% 15%

According to the survey conducted in Delhi & its Ncr it was

analyzed that 38% of the mineral water users go in for an
occasional use while there are still 15% of the respondents who
never go for packaged water.

RESPONDENTS CHOICE AMONGST

MINERAL WATER AND SOFT DRINKS

39
 Mineral water Soft drink
55% 45%

Determining whether, in a thirst condition, an average individual

opts for mineral water or soft drink, one can observe that the
ratio is quite similar still more preferring Mineral water.
50%

40%
BRAND AWARENESS OF MINERAL
30%
WATER AMONG RESPONDENTS
20%

10%

42
0%
 0 to 2 3 to 5 6 to 10 10 & above

Brands Respondents
0–2 40%
3–5 50%
6 – 10 10%
10 and above 0

The observation shows that most of the people know only about
the main brands which are owned by the big companies and are
advertised hugely. Mainly 3 –5 brands only comes to the minds
of the customer in regards to mineral water.

CUSTOMER PREFERENCES FOR

60%
BOTTLE
50%

40%

30%

20%

10%

0% 43
0.5 ltr 1 ltr 5 ltr 20 ltr
 SIZE

Size of Bottle (in ltrs.) Consumer preferences

0.5 ltr 60%

1 ltr 20%

5 ltr 5%

20 ltr 15%

Total 100%

CUSTOMERS PREFERENCES REGARDING

PRICE WORTH OF MINERAL WATER
Yes No
Respondent’s view Yes No
% of respondents 42% 58%

The observation shows that most of the people are not happy
paying the price, the companies are charging for the product.
They feel that the price should be a little lower.

44
 EFFECT OF ADVERTISING ON
54% PURCHASE
52%

50%

48%

46%

44%

42%
Yes No

Respondents Yes No

Perception
% of respondents 46% 54%

The observation shows that most of the populations buy the

Mineral water just for the sake of buying it rather than buying it
due to its advertising. Very few people are actually affected by
the advertisement of the product. In the interior parts, people
who do not watch much of a TV generally does not know the
importance of ads. So they buy it only for the sake of buying it.
GROWING HEALTH CONSCIOUSNESS

45
 AMONG INDIANS

80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Yes No

Yes No
73% 27%

The observation shows that most of the population in Delhi & its
NCR now a days is getting Health Conscious. The reason being
the knowledge of the fact that the normal water which we get is
not always very hygienic and may cause many diseases.
RETAILER RELATED OBSERVATIONS

AND FINDINGS

46
 TYPES OF BRANDS RETAILERS KEEP

Advertised Non-Advertised Both

35% 5% 60%

According to survey, 35% of retailer go in for advertised products

and non-advertised products do not have any weight Around
60% retailer believe in the combination of both (advertised and
non-advertised version). The survey was based on retailers.

47
 SIZE OF BOTTLE SELLING MORE

Size of bottle 0.5 ltr 1 ltr 5 ltr 20 ltr

% of respondents 60% 20% 5% 15%

Surprisingly both 0.5 Ltr and 1 Ltr version are selling well but 5 ltr
are selling very less as compared to others.
GROWTH DURING THE LAST FIVE

48
YEARS ACCORDING TO RETAILERS

Retailer’s view Yes No

% of retailer 67% 33%

Last five year seen a tremendous growth in the mineral water

segment. The growth rate has been very high, owing to
increased health consciousness amongst the population, arising
from scarcity of potable drinking water.
FUTURE PROSPECTS OF MINERAL

49
 WATER MARKET

Saturation for mineral water market is expected with in the next

5 years after which the market will stabilize from today’s point
of view the market looks quite disruptive because of heavy
competition.
For observing retailers, 20 retailers were identified in some of

major areas in the city. Following inferences were drawn ….

50
1. Initially we enquired about the numbers of brands that the
retailers sell and most of them specified not more than 3 – 4 .
This indicates that the retailers prefer only the main brands.

2. Most of the retailers usually keep highly advertised brands.

3. Here two basic question as to which brands are selling more

and which one is being supplied more were combined. The
answer was obvious and i.e., the one which is sold more is
supplied more and it is ‘Bisleri’ (in most cases).

4. The retailers’ answers as to which size of bottle is selling more

were inclined towards the 1 ltr. and 500 ml bottles with certain
exceptions.

5. It was a mixed reaction of the retailers when asked about the

highest margin paid to them by a company out of 100

40% - Bisleri

20% - Kinley

15% - Aquafina
15%-others

RECOMMENDATION AND SUGGESTION

 Campaign, stalls to beat local brands & create awareness.

51
 Retailers need to concentrate on 5 and 20 litr bottle which

can be possible only if properly advertised & home delivery of

jars are done to the end customers.

 The market is too congested and confused in the Delhi & its

Ncr region, so the company should properly promote &

Strengthen the distribution channel to survive the competition.

CONCLUSION

After analysis of the data & facts we have collected from consumer
& the retailers & matching them with the objectives one can say
that there is very good future for mineral water market. Soft
drink market might be some threat to the mineral water at
present but within few years the scenario is going to change.
Trend signifying increasing health consciousness amongst Indians
could also be observed.

Market has seen a tremendous growth from the early nineties &
now it is increasing by 70% to 90% every year so one can easily
say there is great potential in the mineral water market.

It could also be observed that the living standards of the People

improving & as they are becoming health conscious are ready
to pay for water now. On the question of survival of so many

52
companies government has made policies & restrictions from
April 2001 which will force many manufactures to shut down
their factories. But due to potential in the market companies with
quality product will survive.

Finally from the data collected at both primary and secondary level
one can confidently say that Bisleri as packaged water brand is the
current market leader.

ANNEXURE

CONSUMER QUESTIONNAIRE

Name of the respondent______________

Address of the respondent____________

Contact no.________________________

QUESTIONS
Q 1.How often do you consume mineral water?

a) Always b) Sometimes

c) Often d) Never

Q 2. When felling thirsty you opt for?

53
 a) Mineral water b) Soft drink

Q 3. How many brands of mineral water are you aware of?

a) 0-2 b) 3-5

c) 6-10 d) 10 and above

Q 4. Under what circumstances you opt for mineral water?

a) While traveling

b) During parties, meeting, seminars

c) When drinking water is not available

d) During illness

e) Others

Q5. Which size of bottle do you prefer?

a)500 ml b) 1ltr.

c) 5 ltr d) 20 ltr

Q6. Do you think mineral water is much more hygienic than

normal water?

54
a) Yes b)No

Q7. Do you think the price the companies are charging, is

worth the product?

a) Yes b) No
Q8. Does advertising of this product has any effect on your

purchase?

a) Yes b) No

Q9. Do you think Indians are getting more health conscious

day by day ?

a)Yes b) No

Q10. Which brand do you prefer while buying mineral water?

a) Bisleri b) Kinley

c) Aquafina d) other
RETAILER’S QUESTIONNAIRE

Name of the respondent______________

Address of the respondent____________

Contact no.________________________

55
 QUESTIONS

Q1. How many brands of mineral water do you sell (specify)?

a) 2-3 b) 3-5

c) More

Q2. What types of brands do you have?

a) Advertised b) Non-Advertised

c) Both

Q3. Which brand is selling more?

a) Bisleri b) Aquafina

c) Kinley d) Others

Q4. Which size of bottle is selling more?

a) 500 ml b) 1 ltr
c) 5 ltr d) 20 ltr

Q5. On which brand do you get more margins?

a) Bisleri b) Aquafina

c) Kinley d) Others
Q 6. Do you feel there is growth in the mineral water market in
the last 5 years?

56
a) Yes b) No

Q 7. What is the future prospect of this market?

a) Excellent b) Good

c) Unlike d) Poor
BIBLIOGRAPHY

PRINT MEDIA ---- 

Business World

 A&M

 Economic Times

 Business India

VISUAL MEDIA…….

 Cable Network

 Internet

 Britannica Encyclopaedia

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