PROJECT REPORT

On

PATANJALI AYURVED

M.Com IV Sem – Marketing Management

(Session 2020-21)

THE BHOPAL SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES

Submitted To Submitted By

Dr. Amrita Sahu Name of the Student

Associate Professor Riya Khanna

Department of Commerce Roll No.- 19103042

 CERTIFICATE FROM THE PROJECT GUIDE

This is to certify that the Project Report titled “Marketing Analysis on Patanjali Ayurved”
is a bonafide work of Riya Khanna enrolment number R160190280016 undertaken for the partial
fulfillment of Masters in Commerce (M. Com) degree of Barkatullah University under my
guidance. This project work is original and has not been submitted earlier for the award of any
degree or diploma of any other University or Institution.

Signature of the Guide

Dr. Amrita Sahu

Associate Professor

Department of Commerce,

BSSS, Bhopal
 DECLARATION

I Riya Khanna, daughter of Mr. Atul Khanna certifies that the project report entitled “Marketing
Analysis on Patanjali Ayurved” prepared by me is my personal and authentic work under the
guidance of Dr. Amrita Sahu, Associate Professor, Department of Commerce.
Date: 15/06/2021 Signature of the Student

Place: BHOPAL Name: Riya Khanna

Class: M.COM (IV SEMESTER)

Roll Number: 19103042

 OBJECTIVES OF ANALYSIS

This Project work has certain objectives behind it. Without any proper objective one cannot

plan its implementation.

In India there are many sectors where the different companies or Organi-ation function within, we
have chosen the Patanjali, ayurvedic and herbal sector which directly deals with people's issues.
The main objective was to see the end of the Indian people towards Patanjaliis because of it being
a swadeshi brand, herbal and ayurvedic brand or some of the other factors. Along with this there
are some other objectives :

•To study Patanjali as a brand and its product mix.

•To analyse consumer perception about Patanjali as a brand and its products.

•To analyse the impact of brand image on loyalty intentions.

•To analyse and identify important factors influencing Patanjali as a brand

 INTRODUCTION

FMCG SECTORS

Fast-moving consumer goods are products that sell quickly at relatively low cost. These goods are
also called consumer packaged goods.

FMCG items are those items which have short life expectancy, which are utilized for brief time
and are supplanted inside days, week, and month or inside a year. Since FMCG items are
supplanted quickly they are having high market demand. They work at a lower edge. A noteworthy
bit of month to month spending plan distributed on these items. The business is continually
stretching out and growing new items to improve buyer's involvement. Real players in FMCG
enterprises are HUL, ITC, Nestle India, Dabur and P&G. The major FMCG fragments are-close
to home care, sustenance and drink, family care, tobacco and oral care. The Nourishment fragment
is the main portion in the FMCG part. Taste and inclination of clients are changing quickly so the
organizations are embracing creative processes because of mechanical improvement to match
current clients' necessity so there are gigantic open doors in the area. Additionally we try to gain
an understanding of why any discrepancies exist and whether they can be explained by the nature
of emerging markets as well as the characteristics of the FMCG industry.

PATANJALI

Patanjali Ayurved is an Indian multinational consumer packaged goods company based in

Haridwar, India. It was founded by Baba Ramdev and Acharya Balkrishna in 2006. Its registered
office is located in Delhi, with manufacturing units and headquarters in the industrial area of
Haridwar. The company manufactures cosmetics and food products.

Foundation of Brand Patanjali and Patanjali Ayurved

It all started in the year 1995 when Baba Ramdev established Divya Yog Mandir Trust with the
help of Acharya Balkrishna and Acharya Karamveer under the guidance of Swami
Shankardev ji. The trust mission was to put Yoga and Ayurveda on the world map. With the
aim of popularizing Yoga, BabaRamdev started teaching Yoga through small camps and shivirs.
The breakthrough moment came in the year 2002 when Sanskar, a spiritual channel in Hindi,
signed Baba Ramdev for its morning Yoga program. The program was a hit. Next year in 2003,
the rival channel of Sanskar, Aastha signed up Baba Ramdev for its 5 am Yoga program titled
“Divya Yog ''. This program made Baba Ramdev a household name across the country. This
also gave a big boost to Baba Ramdev’s Yoga Shivirs/Camps (Ramdev, Wikipedia) A typical
Yoga Shivir of Baba Ramdev comprises of Yoga and Pranayama postures with BabaRamdev
explaining the benefits of each of those postures, the benefits of embracing Ayurved, the
testimonials of people who got cured from terminal illnesses by practicing yoga and pranayama,
singing patriotic songs and above all Baba Ramdev explaining ill effects of the MNCs and their
products on the Indian economy and how they are looting India and exploiting Indian populace.
It is estimated that around 70 million people have been touched by Baba Ramdev through his
Yoga Shivirs and experts assume this number to rise to 200 million, going forward. The live
telecast of Yoga Shivirs was instrumental in building the Brand Patanjali, Yoga, Ayurved and
above all Baba Ramdev. Both Baba Ramdev and Acharya Balkrishna were working with a single
minded focus to restore the original place of Yoga and Ayurved as described in the Indian
scriptures and ethos. In 2006, Baba Ramdev and Acharya Balkrishna established “Patanjali
Yogpeeth Trust”. A landmark organisation fostering

the cause of Yoga, Pranayama and Ayurveda. This further strengthened the brand Patanjali.
Patanjali Yogpeeth Trust is considered to be an organization which laid the foundation for
Patanjali Ayurved Ltd to grow at a rapid pace. The basic objective of Patanjali Yogpeeth Trust is
to spread the awareness of Yoga, help the economically weak section of society by providing them
free treatment of diseases and to perform cutting edge Research and Development in Ayurved.
Patanjali Yogpeeth Trust is located on Delhi-Haridwar highway in a sprawling campus of 100
acres. It employs around 200 doctors and has a huge treatment facility through which ayurvedic
treatment is provided to the economically weaker sections of the society. It is now a multinational
organization with its branch offices located in countries like the US, UK, Canada, Nepal etc.
Through Patanjali Yogpeeth Trust Baba Ramdev has touched millions of lives till date.Baba
Ramdev and Acharya Balkrishna have established a number of institutions since they established
Divya Mandir Yog Trust. These institutions have also contributed to the success of Patanjali
Ayurved Ltd by providing raw material, manpower, technological knowhow etc. Some of these
institutions include:
 ● Patanjali Yogpeeth Trust

● Patanjali Ayurved College

● Patanjali Chikitsalaya

● Yoga Gram

● Goshala

● Patanjali Herbal Botanical Garden

● Organic Agriculture Farm

● Patanjali Food and Herbal Park Ltd

In 2006 Baba Ramdev and Acharya Balkrishna established Patanjali Ayurved to provide
products and other ayurvedic medicines to its patients. In 2012 the duo decided to unlock the
potential of Patanjali Ayurved by expanding it into the mainstream Indian retail sector.

Patanjali has been widely considered as a game changer in the Indian market. What started as
Patanjali Ayurveda Ltd. (PAL), a small pharmacy, underwent an evolutionary transformation and
accelerated its growth. The company became a dominating name in the Indian FMCG (Fast
Moving Consumer Goods) sector, also known as CPG (Consumer Packaged Goods). The
company has revolutionized the Indian market by creating a society that focuses on Yoga and
Ayurveda as a form of natural living.

The company has a diversified product range. These include biscuits, noodles, ghee, footwear,
apparel, and more. Its operational capacity consists of 15,000 stores, 100 mega-marts, and 5000
distributors.
Baba Ramdev was ranked as the 27th “Most Creative Business People of 2016” by the Fast
Company Business Magazine. Also, Acharya Balkrishna, its current CEO, according to Forbes,
ranks at 25th position in India’s 100 richest people list in 2019 with a net worth of $5.1 Billion.

They also provided Ayurvedic medicines through the Divya Pharmacy outlets. After providing
their services in the Ayurvedic Medicines niche for around 6 years, in the year 2012, Baba Ramdev
& Acharya Balkrishna extended Patanjali Ayurved Limited into Indian Mainstream Retail Sector.

Divya Pharmacy’s medicines were already a hit among the consumers & with their entry into the
retail sector, the duo launched a number of different grocery products into the market. Starting
with common household ayurvedic products Patanjali soon launched all sorts of small & big daily
use items. And the result today is that Patanjali’s mega marts available across the nation are
sufficient in providing all the essentials one might find in a supermarket along with their products
available in retail stores. But this was no easy feat to accomplish.

Ever since its establishment, Patanjali has been known for its astonishing growth rate. The
company has established itself as a major company with a 10,000 cr + annual turnover in around
a decade presently giving a tough competition to the giants of the industry including Hindustan
Unilever Limited (HUL).

BASIC INFORMATION

Company: Patanjali Ayurved Ltd

CEO: Acharya Balkrishna

Year founded: 2006

Headquarter: Haridwar, Uttarakhand, India

Number of Employees (2018): 2, 00,000

Public or Private: Private

Annual Revenue (FY 2018): Rs 8,148 Crore

Profit before Tax (FY2018): Rs 528.9 Crore

VISION
Keeping Nationalism, Ayurveda and Yoga as their pillars, they are committed to create a healthier
society and country. To raise the pride and glory of the world, they are geared up to serve people
by bringing the blessings of nature into their lives. With sheer dedication, scientific approach,
astute planning and realism, they are poised to write a new success story for the world.

MISSION

Making India an ideal place for the growth and development of Ayurveda and a prototype for the
rest of the world.

PRODUCTION

Patanjali Food and Herbal Park at Haridwar is the main production facility operated by
PatanjaliAyurved. The company plans to establish further units in India and in Nepal. In 2016, the
Patanjali Food and Herbal Park was given a full-time security cover of 35 armed Central Industrial
Security Force (CISF) commandos. The park will be the eighth private institute in India to be
guarded by CISF paramilitary forces

PRODUCTS
PatanjaliAyurved produces products in the categories of personal care and food. The company
manufactures 444 products including 45 types of cosmetic products and 30 types of food products.
According to Patanjali, all the products manufactured by Patanjali are made from Ayurveda and
natural components. Patanjali has also launched beauty and baby products. PatanjaliAyurvedic
manufacturing division has over 300 medicines for treating a range of ailments and body
conditions, from common cold to chronic paralysis.

PRODUCTS RANGE

1. NATURAL HEALTH CARE

This category mainly contains products like digestives, health & wellness products, diet
food and Health drinks & beverages. Patanjali’s Cow’s ghee, which is estimated to have
 generated revenue of 1308 cr. Rupees in the Financial Year 2015-16, belong to this
category.

2. NATURAL FOOD PRODUCTS

This category includes a wide range of food products, extending from biscuits, jams &
noodles to spices & pulses, a number of products come under this section. This is a rather
important sector of products for PAL since people trust Patanjali for being herbal &
chemical-free.

3. AYURVEDIC MEDICINES

This category has been the USP for Patanjali, making them the kings they are today. The
company owes a big share of their sales profit to the ayurvedic medicines category. Before
entering the FMCG sector, Patanjali had been selling Ayurvedic Medicines under the name
of Divya Pharmaceuticals. These medicines, being effective to consumers have been a
good enough reason for Patanjali’s rise today

4. HERBAL HOME CARE

This category of products includes products required for Pooja regularly. Not just Agarbatti
& Dhoop Batti, but instead Patanjali provides a whole range of Pooja essentials including
Hawan Samagri, Camphor, cotton wicks & even air fresheners. As usual, Patanjali boasts
that their Home care products are natural & thus completely harmless to everyone.

5. NATURAL PERSONAL CARE

Another category of Patanjali Products includes Personal healthcare products & toiletries.
This category includes all sorts of daily use items from body care products to dish wash &
other cleaning products too, which are claimed to have the goodness of natural ingredients
in them making them more effective than their Chemical Counterparts.

6. PATANJALI PARIDHAN
 Patanjali Paridhan is Patanjali’s brand working in the apparel sector. Patanjali Paridhan is
an exclusive apparel brand with over 3000 products under three sub brands, viz. a
womenswear brand Aastha, Unisex sportswear brand Livfit and a menswear brand Sanskar.
Though these products are only being sold at the Patanjali Paridhan stores at New Delhi,
Meerut, Aurangabad, Haridwar and Berhampur, Patanjali is targeting to soon open stores
in every major city of the country. It is also expected that these products will soon be
available on e-commerce sites like Amazon, Flipkart & PayTm mall.

SEGMENTATION, TARGET, POSITIONING

Like any other FMCG company, it uses a mix of demographic and psychographic segmentation
strategies to make its offerings appropriate/ relevant to the particular set of customer groups.

It uses an undifferentiated targeting strategy, as the main objective Patanjali is to offer healthy
products to all people. It uses product based and value-based positioning strategies to establish a
sense of trust and satisfaction of being healthy in the mind of the customers.

MARKETING MIX OF PATANJALI

Products in the marketing mix of Patanjali Ayurved

Baba Ramdev is constantly pushing Indian people to start using Indian brands and save the
economical growth of the company. Patanjali is planning to take over all reputed brands dealing
in beverages and foods.

Some of the sectors where Patanjali products are already doing great:

Foods – Including jams, biscuits, noodles, oats, pulses and many other lines of food products.

➔ Beverages

➔ Healthcare & Medicines

➔ Personal care products

➔ Cleaning agents

Products where Patanjali is present and beating competition are

● Dabur Honey: Patanjali Ayurved is providing people with the option to buy quality honey
at around 30% lesser price than Dabur.

● Colgate: Patanjali Ayurved is preaching how Colgate cheated people in early days. And
how ayurveda is the best way to treat your gums and your teeth.

● Patanjali Noodles: Patanjali Noodles rose to fame while Maggi was away from the market
and has done quite damage to Maggi, which once was the king of Noodle’s ma

In all categories, the company claimed that its products were natural. In dental care,
Patanjali's Dant Kanti toothpaste became very popular and gave competitors like Colgate
andHUL a run for their money.

Even in the slowed-down Indian market, Patanjali's results were not all bad. The
comparison of 2019 with 2018 showed that the company did well in some categories and
declined marginally in others.
Pricing in the marketing mix of Patanjali Ayurved

Two factors that have made Patanjali Ayurved the fastest growing FMCG company in India are:
a) Use of Natural Ingredients and Ayurved and

b) Pricing.

Pricing plays an extremely important role in putting Patanjali Ayurved ahead of its fierce
competitors. Hindustan Unilever and P&G are trying their level best to cope up with the
competition but the love for Indian products growing in people is not helping them.

Patanjali is educating people about the benefits of using their products and is also using price
comparison as an effective marketing strategy. The pricing strategy is clearly penetrative pricing
because Patanjali knows that it cannot conquer the market with higher prices. Plus, if the
ingredients are natural and domestic, the cost of the product is lesser too. There is a drop of 25-30
percent of price in almost every product when compared to International Brands which is helping
Patanjali reach each and every household in India.

Place in the marketing mix of Patanjali Ayurved

Patanjali created a vast distribution channel to cater to the Indian market, with 47000 retail outlets,
3500 distributors, 18 warehouses and 6 proposed factories. The products were initially marketed
and promoted at Patanjali yoga camps, given that these camps were attended by a large number of
people who had ready acceptance of the brand. Gradually the company created formal channels
for sales, warehouses, distributors and retailers.

Patanjali Ayurved is India’s fastest growing FMCG Company but it is not stopping it from
spreading its wings to neighboring countries like Nepal. Patanjali has a manufacturing unit in
Nepal. Patanjali also imports herbs from Himalayas in Nepal; the well-established trade relation is
helping Patanjali expand its wings in Nepal with great ease.
With the growing outreach in India and Nepal, Baba Ramdev surely will be aiming to overtake the
market in a lot of other countries. With an impressive revenue of 5000 Crores, Patanjali is surely
going to have a lot of funds for expansion and growth.

In India, 1000’s of stores are now selling Patanjali products, and these stores are exclusively selling
Patanjali, making the local retailer quake. The penetration levels will only rise further as the
margins in the product are good too.

Promotion in the marketing mix of Patanjali Ayurved:

Patanjali Ayurved goes with the Slogan “Prakriti ka Ashirwad”. Well, Patanjali Ayurved has
acquired the requisite fame and popularity among people because of the globally recognized Yoga
Guru, Baba Ramdev. This brand ambassador of Patanjali is single handedly responsible for the
success of the brand. His contribution to people’s life through Yoga is incredible hence people felt
aligned towards him when he launched his very own Indian FMCG Company.

While a lot of people shifted to Patanjali Products because of Baba Ramdev, a pool of Indians
started following him when they realized how good and cheap Patanjali products actually are.
Patanjali Ad campaigns have always focused on surpassing information to people that “revenue of
Patanjali is for Charity and not for Brand Owners'. Secondly, it is better that the revenue generated
from day to day products remains within India rather than the profits going out to foreign
companies. Till date, Indians did not have many alternatives to foreign products but now they do
have localised products.

Baba Ramdev took the opportunity in his hands and has started influencing Indians by sharing
information about price gap and how useful herbal Patanjali products actually are. Baba Ramdev
has seized the opportunity with both hands and has made a huge difference to the branding of
Patanjali Ayurveda. Now, Patanjali is also selling the products online through E-commerce,
increasing their penetration even further.
 COMPETITOR ANALYSIS

The major competitors for Patanjali are HUL(Hindustan Unilever Limited), Dabur, and
Baidyanath. Both of these FMCG and Natural products industry giants, yet Patanjali succeeded in
turning the tables in its favour, in a short period. The company owes its success to multiple factors
that have helped the company flourish over time.

1. Targeted Marketing Strategy

Every product runs with a targeted marketing strategy that later acts as the major reason behind a
product’s success. Brands like Baidyanath made quality products that attracted consumers but
could never find a successful targeted marketing strategy to expand. Patanjali with its brilliant
marketing strategy yet high-quality products was able to expand while generating amazing demand
from its successful marketing strategy. As a result, it earned a profit of more than INR 9000 crores
in 2019, whereas Baidyanath’s turnover is only INR 700 crore in the same year.

2. Face Value

The second vital reason is “Face value”. With the growing media and face value, brand
ambassadors act as a trust stamp. Ramdev Baba is known for his yoga and ayurvedic knowledge
for years added to the success of Patanjali’s marketing strategy. His face in various advertisement
campaigns created trust amongst the consumers which acted as a vital reason for it to be a hit in
the market.

These two factors are the core pillars of Patanjali’s success strategy. With a brilliant marketing
campaign and branding strategy, they outmanoeuvred well-established companies like Dabur and
Baidyanath.

Digital Marketing Strategy of Patanjali

Patanjali has a very holistic approach to its digital marketing efforts. It has several digital
campaigns that revolve around showcasing its products and reiterating how healthy and natural the
products are. With its amazing effort’s it has reached a massive following on Instagram Patanjali’s
approach is two threaded. It boasts such a massive array of products that all its posts revolve around
showcasing these products. Their posts try to showcase the health benefits and ways to use these
products in ordinary day cooking. With such a massive following, Patanjali has focused a lot of its
marketing efforts on converting youngsters to appreciate it’s products.

Secondly, Patanjali uses Baba Ramdev as its brand ambassador on their posts, very frequently.
They have successfully married their healthy products with the brand image of a yoga guru, known
for curing the country of daily ailments through healthy living. With digital marketing efforts, they
have made sure this image sticks and the customers are heavily swayed by this stratagem.

Patanjali Advertisement and Campaign Strategy

A marketing campaign means using different types of media and online platforms for promoting
a product. The specific pieces of promotion they create constitute their advertisement strategy.
They have to be carefully planned as marketing campaigns play a major role in any brand’s success
or failure.

Patanjali Ayurved has done great research on their target audience and understands the message
they should put across through their advertisements and which campaign medium is most effective
for their strategy. The advertisements that were the most memorable,:
#Swadeshi ka swabhiman

After achieving great success in the FMCG sector, Patanjali has now entered into the brand apparel
segment with its new brand named “Paridhan. Invoking the national image of cloth weaving,
Patanjali has made a move on to the textile industry. With the rising concerns of dependence on
other countries for necessities, and combining itself with the “Make in India” trend, Patanjali has
targeted the most essential items we all need, clothing.

# Healthy India banaenge, Patanjali biscuit khaenge

Patanjali has launched its biscuit with the tagline “Healthy India banenge, Patanjali biscuit
khaenge” which means “India shall be healthy, Patanjali biscuits is what we shall eat”. Patanjali
claims that their biscuits contain zero maida, sugar, and trans fats, and are healthier than any other
biscuits. Taking a moment marketing spin at the growing obesity in the 21st century and sugary
food overload, Patanjali marketed itself as a healthy option for biscuits. This struck

nerve with the Indian audience, especially with the 35-year-old+ customer segment, who daily
enjoy a biscuit with their teas as a lifestyle habit.
 MARKETING STRATEGIES

1. The Face of the Patanjali

One notable fact about Patanjali is that unlike most companies, they have never completely
depended upon celebrity endorsers to endorse their products, but rather made Baba Ramdev
the face of the company. The company has always vastly benefitted from Baba Ramdev’s
following.
 Being a yoga guru, Baba Ramdev has already led many people to pursue a healthier life
through his yoga camps and the initial consumers of Patanjali were his followers that not
only worked as consumers but also helped market the brand through their positive reviews
of the brand. Through his speeches & whenever speaking on stage, Baba Ramdev has
always talked not just about Yoga or its benefits, but rather India & its culture in general

He has been known to shun MNCs for looting India with their products & advised people
to boycott their products. He has always encouraged people to buy as much ‘Swadeshi’ or
products made in India to avoid filling the pockets of foreign companies. His speeches have
also always reflected a sense of patriotism in them that has encouraged in people a sense
of love for their motherland. These are the things that Patanjali has used to market their
products positively among the people of the nation.

2. Branding of Products

Every aspect of Patanjali products tells the story of its being natural & thus better than its
counterparts. The brand has very cleverly worked on each & every aspect of their brand to
make themselves stand out amidst the competitors.

Consider the brand name & logo, for example; the name ‘Patanjali’ comes from the name
of a 2nd-century scholar, who is considered as the Father of Yoga. Not just that, but their
logo represents their name with a green & a saffron line below, invoking a sense of
patriotism in the people.
 In fact, the logo of Divya yogpeeth is quite interesting as well, as it invokes a sense of
Hinduism, as represented by the Om sign, while at the same time advocating herbal &
Yoga.

3. Marketing Research and Satisfying Demands

Patanjali has an applaudable Market research team that works endlessly towards providing
customers with the products they need. Patanjali has been known to keep customer needs
above all & launch products catering the same. Now, what makes them stand out against
their competitors is that they understand their customers better.

Baba Ramdev & his team interact with their audience on a large scale, using various media,
including his yoga sessions, health care services, dispensaries & executives working to
serve this purpose. These interactions help them understand what their customers need &
then cater products that could serve those needs.

Good examples of this have been products like their Bottle gourd Juice & Aloe vera juice,
that are not essentially a medicine, but rather daily wellness products that the customers
can rely on to lead a healthy life. Now, the reason we mention this here is that it is products
like these that have helped Patanjali takeover the FMCG sector completely. The reason for
this being that their rivals were not ready to give them enough competition, owing to the
requirement they created & the lower prices at which they offered their products.

4. Market Segmentation and Satisfying Demands

A big reason for Patanjali being so popular among the masses is that through their
marketing approaches they have also targeted all sections of the society & people of all
ages. They broke the common misconception of “Ayurvedic is for Elderly” & made it cool
enough to be adopted by the young & the old all the same. From their Gooseberry candies,
chocolates, noodles & other similar products, they have been trying hard to become a
favourite among the kids & the generation Z. Not just that but the cosmetic & body care
products too are quite effective & thus loved by young adults.

The price & packaging of the products has also been done keeping in mind the needs of all
sections of society. Where even though they have daily use products at cheaper rates so
that even people from lower classes can afford them, they also have products that target
the higher economic classes of the society.

Now to cater to this increased need in society, they also need to manage the Supply chain
systems, which they do very well, owing to their 10000+ outlets throughout the nation.
Moreover, now their products are also available at the non-Patanjali retail stores, helping
them manage the demand-supply chain easily.

SWOT ANALYSIS
Started only a decade back, Patanjali has already become the third largest FMCG company in
India. Considering all that they have done over time, here’s a small SWOT analysis of Patanjali.

STRENGTHS

● Innovative & Harmless Products – Being Natural, Patanjali’s products are mostly
harmless, thus generating more demand for them. Also, they have a history of
creating innovative products to fulfil customer needs.

● Strong Distribution Network – Patanjali has a large distribution network in the

country, covering not just the Urban, but also the rural areas of the nation, helping
them cater to a larger group of people.

● Image Of Trust – Owing to the social image of Baba Ramdev & Acharya
Balkrishna, Patanjali has a solid image of trust in the eyes of its consumers. This
image goes a long way in profiting the company to serve people better.

● Social Responsibility – From free Chikitsalayas to Hospitals & other social works
that Baba Ramdev & Acharya Balkrishna have been doing over the years, helps
 create a better image of Patanjali in the eyes of its consumers, further helping them
do better.

● Make in India & Swadeshi Initiatives – The company has always been promoting
the use of Desi products. This has been a major part of their marketing strategy &
it has been fruitful for them too. The icing on the cake has been their cheaper
products, further empowering these initiatives.

WEAKNESSES

● Concentration in North & West India – Patanjali’s outlets are mostly concentrated
in Northern & Western India. Since Patanjali’s products are highly preferred
throughout the nation, the lesser number of outlets throughout the eastern &
southern India can prove harmful to the company as they are almost leaving half of
the country untouched. If the company can tackle the problem & provide more
products there, they can untap larger opportunities in the future.

● Less Promotions – Though this looks like a benefit today, low promotions will
cause harm to the company’s Marketing in the long run. It’s high time that Patanjali
starts considering increasing their promotional activities.

● Easy Availability of Substitutes – This is not new, as many new companies face
the problem of fakes of their product in the market. These fakes are though not
effective, often cheaper than the original products, thus harming the brand’s
revenue.

● No Clinical Approval – Being all Ayurvedic, Patanjali Products do not have the
‘Clinically Approved’ label on them, since they are tested only in their personal
labs. This can cause the downfall of the company later, if any rival gave too much
air to it.
 OPPORTUNITIES

● An inclination to Herbal & Natural – Owing to the harmless products, people are
relying more on Natural & herbal products these days. This opens a large avenue of
opportunities for Patanjali to work on.

● Untapped Markets – Even though Patanjali distributes to a large section of India,

it still has a lot of untapped markets to capture. This mostly includes the rural
markets & the domestic markets in the Southern & Eastern India,

● Changing Lifestyles – The hectic lifestyles these days, compels people to work
harder at keeping themselves fit & there’s no better way to do it than with natural
products. ANd Patanjali can make use of this fact to expand even further.

● Export Potential – Baba Ramdev has a large popularity outside India too &
Patanjali can use it to expand their market internationally by exporting more
products with time. This will help them explore more untapped resources of
revenue.

THREATS

● Products in Controversy – The fact that some Patanjali Products are facing
controversy, can create a sense of mistrust in them. This can disrupt the initial strong
image of the company.

● The threat of International Competition – As the brand will flourish & go

international, they will face Competition from larger, multinational brands. To
compete with them, they will have to have a better & stronger strategy at hand.

● Political Indulgence – Baba Ramdev is often seen on many political platforms,

giving speeches. Though not actively involved in Politics, this indirect indulgence
 can also affect Patanjali. One wrong or controversial statement can hamper the
image & reputation of the brand.

CHALLENGES PATANJALI FACED :

Maintaining quality and brand promise – The key to buying any Patanjali product is
quality and purity (possibly, that’s why it's cow milk ghee’s sales form ~50% of its revenues). This
stands as a core brand promise. Consumers associate Patanjali with these attributes. Without a
consistent adherence to quality standards across all its product categories, Patanjali cannot shake
the boardrooms of FMCG giants. Quality becomes even more important as the company starts
relying on contract manufacturers for newer and “inconsistent” product categories. You just can’t
open an apparel and shoes manufacturing plant overnight, if you are running a food and medicine
plant!

An ever expanding product portfolio with brand extensions – Few brands, such as
Virgin Group, have done a tremendous job at brand extensions, though with failures in many
categories. Considering Patanjali has forayed into categories (such as shoes, apparels, home
cleaning solutions, etc.) that are not directly linked with ayurveda or purity or goodness, ensuring
their loyal consumers do not get confused with what it wants to do with the brand and how far it
wants to stretch, could be a challenge in the longer run.

Absence of a key sub-branded range under Patanjali “Umbrella” - Further, most of

its products are branded under “Patanjali” umbrella and are then linked with generic names such
as Patanjali Atta Noodles, Patanjali ghee, Patanjali Cornflakes. Their communication largely
focuses around the name “Patanjali” and not around any sub-brand. This could affect sales of their
key categories, if inconsistent product categories do not perform well. It can also confuse
consumers if Patanjali wants to increase “product depth” and launch variants with minute
differences. Parle, a biscuit and snacks company, first nurtured its hide and seek range to a “brand”
and then launched newer “related” biscuit categories within Parle’s Hide and Seek range. Patanjali
can do something on similar lines.

Image driven branding – Consumers don't just buy products to suit their needs, instead they
buy a solution that offers them value with “trust”. “Patanjali” is largely co-branded/co-promoted
with Baba Ramdev and his companion Acharya Balkrishna. Any questions arising on their
integrity will surely affect the brand’s performance.

Employees- Patanjali also faced controversies due to its employee relations and reports on its
management style, which differed from typical corporate culture. Employees at its Haridwar
branch were required to collectively chant “om” every morning and follow a dress code; failure to
do so led to deductions in pay and other actions. Patanjali claimed to employ 25000 people and
have openings, but an ex-employee stated that they cut hundreds of jobs last year. Rapid changes
in processes and systems reportedly disrupted the establishment of a culture among its employees.

CONTROVERSIES
The government and public reaction to Ramdev’s launch of Coronil and Swasari, with the claim
that it’s a ‘cure’ for Covid-19, is a stark reminder of Patanjali’s launch of its instant noodles brand
in 2015. Before the Patanjali Atta Noodles could hit the stores, the Food Safety and Regulatory
Authority of India (FSSAI) issued a restraining order, saying the company hadn’t taken product
approval.

Punched in the wake of the Maggi noodles fiasco, Patanjali’s Atta Noodles displayed an FSSAI
licence number on its packets. But FSSAI’s then-chairperson Ashish Bahuguna was categorical in
rejecting it: “How can a licence be given for a product that has not been approved? I do not know
how the licence was procured.” The government later served a notice on Patanjali for violating
food safety norms.

But such controversies aren’t an exception for Patanjali. In its launch year itself, the National Aids
Control Organisation, a division of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, had to release a
statement denouncing Ramdev’s claim that yoga can cure AIDS. Doctors had similarly rejected
Ramdev's claim that yoga can cure cancer. “If he says a cure for cancer and AIDS is available, he
might be misleading patients who may refuse treatment on the basis of his statement and suffer.’’

In 2015, the company’s product named ‘Divya Putrajeevak Beej’, which claimed to treat infertility,
was being “sold by some (Patanjali) pharmacies as medicine that can guarantee the birth of a boy.”
However, the Ministry of AYUSH had defended the product, saying the medicine was named after
a herb that is used to stabilise the menstrual cycle in women.
In 2016, the retailing platform for India’s defence forces, the canteen stores department (CSD),
suspended the sale of Patanjali’s flagship amla juice after it was deemed unfit for consumption.

Patanjali was back in the FSSAI’s radar in 2018 for selling a medicinal product with future
manufacturing date. Later that year, Patanjali was forced to shelve the plan to relaunch its
‘swadeshi’ messaging app Kimbho.

CORRECTIVE MEASURES TAKEN

Brands are built over a period of time. And companies do everything in their capacity to hold on
to the reputation and trust they eventually acquire. Not Patanjali, though. Despite all the
controversies, it continues to function unaffected, sailing through every crisis riding on people’s
unquestionable trust.

Even when its sales decline and outlet owners begin to worry about the future of their business,
Patanjali puts up a strong face, confident that it “will be back as top advertisers and top FMCG
company”.

The confidence is not unfounded, though.

After posting a fall in 2018-19, Patanjali bounced back to register its highest ever revenue, Rs
3,562 crore, in the first half of any financial year in 2019-20.

The Covid-induced lockdown has hit all big and small businesses hard and it remains to be seen
how its effects play out for Patanjali, on top of the negative publicity brought on by the backlash
over the Coronil launch. But if the public’s unflinching trust in Ramdev and in the empire he has
built has established anything by now, it’s that all those things that would otherwise be a nightmare
for another company are, for Patanjali, only minor hiccups.

SUGGESTIONS
They have to keep momentum by launching disruptive products in their core areas of expertise
(herbal/Ayurvedic space), offering quality and price advantage. At the same time, they have to
improve their distribution and supply chain network. They have to make sure that the products are
available easily to their loyal consumers in their stores. Patanjali will do wonders in near future if
they combine their marketing intelligence and competitive strategies to counter the threats and
pose a greater challenge to their rivals.

Patanjali should focus on fewer product categories that are linked and consistent. They should also
focus on creating sub-brands for newer product lines with a solid brand architecture to offset any
future risks associated with umbrella brand “Patanjali ''. This will help them create an even greater
product depth and appeal to different consumer segments. Moreover, a consumer who uses cow
urine-based “Patanjali Shuddhi '' for home floor cleaning is less likely to buy “Patanjali Ghee”. So
you Patanjali folks, better use market analytical skills to market Ghee and Shuddhi together.
Having said that, they should also, at least slowly, move away from being a “Baba image-driven”
company, in case they wish to stay relevant and longer in the Indian market.

CONCLUSION

Patanjali as a brand has generated quite a ripple in the FMCG sector, right from its very start. Each
of their steps has been very cleverly strategized to bring the best to the brand. Every effort made
by the company in the last decade has brought them only benefits. Even though facing a few
obstacles along the way, the company is standing tall as ever, being the fastest growing company
in the Indian FMCG sector. Headed by two hermits, with no degrees in Business or Marketing,
Patanjali is expected to go a long way in the future, only if it manages to keep its head above water,
as the road ahead will be tougher than before.

REFERENCE
● https://patanjaliayurved.org/

● https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/cons-products/fmcg/patanjali-
indian-fmcgs-new-baahubali/articleshow/58523174.cms

● https://theprint.in/

● https://www.investopedia.com/terms/f/fastmoving-consumer-goods-fmcg.asp

● Principles of Marketing -- Philip Kotler & Gary Armstrong, 2000.

● Marketing Management -- Philip Kotler, 2000.