marico slip copy

7/27/2019 Marico Slip Copy

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ABSTRACT


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TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Topics Page

numbers

1. Introduction to Marico 42. Marico company history 53. Objective of the report 64. Maricos views on rural markets 75. Introduction to rural markets 86. Distribution network design for Marico in rural markets 97. Coverage and Reaching out the rural markets 148. PSR(Pilot Sales Representative) and his responsibilities 179. Schemes promoting rural growth 2010.Offers and schemes driving growth 2111.Visibility 2312.Forecasting an predictions 2613.Recommendations 28


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INTRODUCTION

Marico is one of India's leading Consumer Products & Services companies in the global

beauty and wellness space. From its foundations, Marico has worked outside the box, to bring

innovation to its customers through the careful creation of continuous and sustainable change.

Today, 1 out of 3 Indians uses a Marico product. From cooking oil with 'LoSorb Technology',

to rice that keeps you active, personalised skinscription services and hair oil that comes with

a battery-powered head massager, Marico believes that it pays to think differently. We have a

flat organisational structure, with just five levels between the Managing Director and the shop

floor operator. We believe in transforming the lives of all stakeholders be it our suppliers,

farmers, distributors or shareholders by helping them maximise their true potential and it

truly articulates the true Mariconian spiritto be more. Every day.

The company recorded a turnover of approximately R.s 4000 crores.Our vast portfolio of

enduring brands such as Parachute Advanced, Saffola, Hair & Care, Nihar, Mediker, Revive

and Manjal are leading household names today. In addition , the company has recently

acquired the erstwhile personal care business from Reckitt Benckiser. Marico now ownspopular brands like Set Wet, Livon, Zatak , and other personal care brands thereby

strengthening its portfolio for the youth and creating a significant presence in the male

grooming and post hair wash segments.

Marico's international portfolio includes brands like Fiance, Haircode, Camelia, Aromatic,

Caivil, Hercules, BlackChic, Code 10 and Ingwe. Marico is effectively present in Middle

East , Bangladesh and Singapore. Marico is present in more than 25 countries across Asia and

the African continent


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Company History:

The company was originally a join venture between a Lever group company and Nissin of

Japan, and its products were distributed through HLL's channels. In 1988 The Company

was incorporated on 13th October, under the name of Marico Foods Ltd. It obtained the

Certificate of commencement of business on 22nd November. In 1989 The name of the

Company was changed to Marico Industries Limited w.e.f. 31st October. In December,

the Company entered into an agreement with M/s. Rasoi Industries Limited for purchase

of its unit located at M.I.D.C Industrial Estate, Jalgaon. Saffola won the Most

Outstanding `Brand of the Year' Award instituted by the Advertising Club of Mumbai in

1993.


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OBJECTIVE

Aim of Understanding the different formats of retail with respect to availability and

distribution

Availability is one of the 4 As of Rural marketing, other three being acceptability, awareness

and affordability, all of which have been designed to make an appropriate marketing strategy

for the rural markets. The project will be focused on reaching out that last mile which is a

herculean task in distribution activities.

Prime Area of Focus:

The primary objective of doing the SLIP project was to find out the following

What are the different formats of retail that are available in rural markets? How rural markets are different from urban markets? How a sales manager or a marketing manager does forecast the rural demands? What is the distribution network design for FMCG? What are the different marketing channel strategies in place? What are the different challenges in rural marketing for a company with respect to

availability?

Finally why only few companies became successful in tapping rural markets


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COMPANYS VIEW ON RURAL MARKETS

MaricoAn Information Update for Q1FY13 (Quarter ended June 30, 2012) had the

following mentions about rural Market.

During the 12 months ended June 2012, Maricos volume share represented by Parachute and

Nihar was circa 56.5% (Q1FY12: 53.1%). Its share in the rural markets however is lower in

the range of 35% to 40%. The relatively lower share in rural markets provides headroom for

growth through market share gains.(page 4)

These market share gains have been achieved through providing consumers with specific

solutions, product innovation, packaging restaging, participation in more sub-segments of the

value added hair oils category, continued media support in some of the brands and

penetrative pricing action in others and expansion of Maricos direct retail reach in the rural

markets.(page 4)

Maricos rural sales continue to clock a faster pace of growth than its urban sales. Rural sales

clocked a growth of 26% during Q1FY13 as compared to 18% in Urban. The continued focus

on distribution expansion in rural markets has pushed the share of rural sales to circa 30% of

total Indian FMCG sales. The Company continues to make investments behind strengthening

rural distribution for the long term. While it has not yet seen significant signs of any

slowdown in demand, if the current macro-economic situation continues for an extended

period and the inadequate monsoon fuels inflation, there could be a dampening of demand in

the remaining quarters of this year, particularly in the rural markets.(page 5)

In rural areas where the market share is relatively low as compared to overall market share

the Company aims to gain market share. The Company expects to achieve volume growth 7%

to 8% per annum in the medium term.(page 12)

The Companys efforts in expanding rural reach is also expected to contribute towards

franchise expansion in coconut oils and hair oils.(page 12)


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INTRODUCTION TO RURAL MARKETS

It is not necessary that certain brands that are popular in the urban markets achieve the

same success in the rural markets and sometimes a local brand can make it big in the

rural. This unpredictability is because of the different thought process that an urban and a

rural consumer have. For example the rural consumer is more cost conscious and

affordability becomes a major issue to tackle for the marketers. A consumer in rural India

is also more value conscious and the biggest challenge for success in rural markets is

providing best value at an affordable cost.

The rural markets

What differentiates the two markets is not mere income, but a host of other infrastructural

& socio-cultural factors. Thus, the rural market cannot be tapped successfully with an

urban marketing mind set & would definitely require its thorough understanding. Marico

has the best reach in terms of availability in rural markets and its parachute oil is available

over the counter even in the interior most rural India. In Maharashtra the Parachute enjoys

immense brand loyalty and unchallenged popularity. So how has Marico successfully

achieved this feat of reaching almost every outlet in the every corner of the country?

Firstly, rural marketing cannot be considered any longer a subdivision of urban marketing

but it is a new mainstream altogether. In other words, the approach toward rural markets

needs to be distinct from the one adopted for the urban markets.

For Marico also the approach is different in rural and urban marketing. The primary

distinction is the presence of super distributor who is an intermediate between the

warehouse and the stockist. Marico's distribution width and penetration is acknowledged

as one of the best in the industry and is a leverageable strength.


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DISTRIBUTION NETWORK DESIGN FOR MARICO IN RURAL MARKETS

Distribution Channel:

Urban Chain: WarehouseDirect DistributorWholesaler / Retailer

RuralChain:WarehouseSuper distr ibutorStockistWholesaler/Retailer

CFA/

Warehouse

Super Distributer Super Distributer

StockistStockist Stockist Stockist

Direct

Stockist

R

RRW

W

R

WR W R W

R

Direct

Stockist

W

R

Factories


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The above screen clipping is from Maricos 2012 Annual report which provides facts and figures

about the distribution network of Marico

The rural markets is also divided into three parts on more generic terms for

distribution purposes

Wholesaler Chemist OthersOther categories occupy a huge chunk of distribution network which are normal retailers,

kirana shops, small road side shops and also stalls in the weekly markets that are famous

in this part of the country.

Weekly Markets in Pune District: We got to know that there are weekly markets

happening in some or the other part of the region on daily basis, for example there is a

Friday market that happens in Yevat village and Saturday market that happens in Loni

Kalbhor village(note that this is a case of indirect distribution). Here the rural retailer

travels to different villages on daily basis and sells the goods in the respective markets.


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Concept of Super Distributor

The concept of super distribution was introduced in Marico in the mid 90s when

companies had already begun to understand the enormous potential of the rural markets.

Marico was pioneer in establishing an effective super distribution network and companies

like Godrej, Colgate, Amul etc. followed this strategy.

The need for hiring a super distributor arises because it is not feasible for a company to

handle all operations from a central hub and hence delegation of work is very important.

Also to cover such a geographical area requires focused networking and relationships

which can be made possible because of this model.

The above is snapshot of felicitation certificate for Pravin agencies, Super Distributor for

Marico in Pune district and neighbouring districts. Pravin Agency is situated in a town

called Urli Kanchan (population of 60,000 +) which is a fast growing town because of

manufacturing industries incubating in the area. Similar is the story of several Indian

towns.

The above felicitation was for the Angol Program , when enquired we got a brief about

the program and its history associated with Marico.


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Angol Program : Historically, It was a program launched by Marico when scented oil

market was not large enough. Scented oil was still a premium product and people in India

used to buy scented oil only on special occasions, one such very special occasion was

Diwali, Peheli Angol or the Abhyang Snaan( i.e. the first auspicious bath). The Maricodecided to capitalize on this consumption opportunity by launching the Angol Program.

This perfumed oil market grew because of such initiatives, and probably because of this

program people became habitual to use perfumed oil throughout the year.

Marico involves all its partners when it launches schemes like this, hence it was

necessary to mention about this when I explain about the distribution channel. A

competitive environment is created among the channel partners, which is finally

responsible for boosting sales. Now Marico has many products lined up in perfumed oil

category from Hair N Care, Parachute Jasmine (a fragrance oil having a cultural bonding

with Indians) and Nihar Shanti Amla (an almond scented hair oil brand purchase from

HUL) and many others.

Roles and Responsibilities of different positions in Marico: (TSE, ISR, PSR)

The work at the super-distributer level is handled by a TSE (i.e a Territory Sales

Executive). In general a TSE handles the entire rural operations and is responsible forsuper distributor to stockist activity. The distribution in the rural can be direct selling via

a ISRs (Interim Sales Representative) who in Pune rural are responsible for 6 ISR

towns which involves direct selling from depot to stockist.

Other than that the main stream distribution in the rural takes place as mentioned before

via a super distributor to a stockist and then to the retailer .A stockist basically would be

handling towns and villages depending on the size and the population of the place. Here

the working of PSR becomes pivotal. PSR or Pilot Sales Representative works as a

intermediate between the Super distributer and stockist and also facilitates stockist in

pushing stocks to the retailers. Also, he has the work of handling the problems that

surface in amidst stockist and the retailer.


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Concepts of Primary, Secondary, Tertiary and Off take:

For effective distribution it is of primary importance that a process is properly delegated and

the targets are effectively set. Primary of a stock means having the stock made available for

forwarding and secondary of a stock means reaching it to the next level (till it reaches the

retailer/wholesaler).In a month there will be primary targets as well as secondary targets.

When primary is accomplished i.e. stock is there in the warehouse, it has to be sent to the

stockists or the super distributor to accomplish the secondary targets. The last and final target

for a company is the tertiary target that is when the product reaches the consumer. It is when

the complete process is complete it is said that the off take is reached

Factory/Plant

CFA/

Warehouse

Super

Distributor

Stockist

Retailer/

Whole seller

Primary for the Company

Secondary for the

Company

Secondary of the PSR

ConsumersTertiary for the

company

Primary of a PSR


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COVERAGE AND REACHING OUT

Coverage, many a times is indirect, meaning the retailers approach the wholesalers for the

product. The rural villages in India are extremely scattered and many a times they are as

small as 25 -50 houses. It is not feasible to reach each and every retail store. It is when the

distribution cannot afford to reach the shop or the distribution is through wholesaler, the

indirect sale comes into picture.

The above is a snapshot of a very small villages road side shop near Theur Patha

(approximately 50- 100 houses) on our way to Urli Kanchan town. It was very small shop

and did not have any SKU which was priced more than Rs. 10.It was definitely not feasible

for a company to set up its distribution to reach to a place like this. But still it had Parachute

sachets available. Hence we concluded that Parachute has a market presence even in remote

villages.


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2K Program

However, Marico had launched a 2K in 2008-09 year in an effort to cover all villages

which have population more than that of 2000. A study done at that time revealed that

even such small villages with such small population base were brand conscious. A small

visit in that year in a small village of Junnar with a population less than that of 2000

which had only 2 shops , but amazingly saw only branded items in the shop. Hence

decision of tapping these villages was taken and for administrative purposes it was

decided that an effort to be made to tap each and every village with the population of

more than that of 2000. A managerial level project was thus launched.

Maharashtra is a state where the rural consumer is well aware and brand conscious, so target

set for Maharashtra for rural marketing reach is a village with population more than

2000.However this target depends on market conditions of that state and feasibility .For

example for states like Bihar the target is villages more than population of 5000. In the data

above, it can be seen that 17% (population of 2000-10000) of the villages account to 50 % of

rural population and 60% of rural wealth. Hence the companies decision of tapping these

markets are perfectly justified.


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The above information was given by ASM , Mr Mahindra Shinde. He also categorised the

Indian Rural markets in to three primary categories depending on the prevailing conditions in

the market according to which different marketing channel strategies can be formulated

Good Percapita income

Well aware consumer and Media Bright State

Strong Reach and More Awareness

Rural Markets Type1

(Maharashtra,Punjab)

Includes Tier 3 towns

Blend of Rural and aspirational crowd

Awareness there but still developing state

Rural Markets Type 2

(Andra Pradesh,Gujrat)

Micro Economic Condition badBasic needs not fulfilled

Affordibility of product a very big concern

Rural MarketsType 3

(Bihar, Madhya Pradesh)


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PSR (Pilot Sales Representative) and his Roles

Our training involved working with the PSR and we understood in depth the roles and

responsibilities of PSR. He is the super distributor business driver. His schedule of working

involved a PJP (permanent journey plan). A PSR has the responsibility of 5-6 towns. A PSR

duty is to cover approximately 40 outlets in a day according to his pre-planned schedule of

PJP.

When we visited Saswad , a town with a population of approximately 50,000 people. The

towns coverage was done in 5 beats( 40 retail outlets make one beat). The 5 beats in Saswad

is divided into two local routes and three van routes. The local routes are the routes that are

directly covered by the stockist (probably in the main town)and the van routes require

extensive coverage because of the reason that they are more geographically scattered

Working of PSR and the basic selling skill required:

The working of be summarised in the abbreviation PCNOSAF

P-Planning and Preparation

Planning for a PSR is of two types, Primary and Secondary.

Primary plan- Super Distributor Stockist

Secondary Plan Stockist to retailer

The PSR has to daily update his plan sheet and work according to his coverage sheet that is

provided to him.


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PDA Provision:

Also for effective planning a PDA (mobile phone with Marico App) is been provided to PSR,

he has to update it regularly. It is provided to assist him with various details for effective

planning at the micro level. It has host of information like channel details, product details,

scheme details. Also he can track the stockists performance using the details.

C-Calling may begin with greeting and approaching the retailer, This point has been

emphasized because of the importance of relation management with the retailer. In our

project we saw excellent relations maintained among PSR, stockist and the retailer , a special

case that we saw was in a town called Shikrapur which was marred by distribution problems.

But only because of the relations maintained with Marico, the retailers didnt keep stock of

any other company except Parachute, in spite of unavailability.

N-Availability N visibility check: Checking whether the stock is present in the shop and if

not making a note of it. Visibility check is done where a PSR convinces a shop keeper to

keep the products properly in the assigned shelf such that it is properly visible to the

customers. He may also advise the shop keeper to keep the products ahead in the shop so that

there may be an impulse buying decision of the product which is critical in FMCG market

.Also if there is dust settling on the product then it is the responsibility of the PSR to makenotice the problem and in some cases clean it himself. We witnessed a typical case when we

asked a shopkeeper why the products of Parachute brand are kept so much in the back shelf.

To which he rebut that Parachute hair oil has such a great brand recall that they need not be

kept in the front shelf and customers who buy Parachute oil are brand loyalists.

O-Order taking- Once the availability of the product is ascertained, then the foci of

interaction shifts to order taking. The order taking can start with unavailable items or through

a NPLS item(New Product Launching scheme). In the present scenario Parachute advanced

body lotion is a new product which the company wants to focus on.The PSR has to push in

brands according to his target sheet and at the same time convince the saleability of the

product. For example if PSR manages to explain the health benefits of the karadi Oil -Saffola

Brand to the retailer, then possibly the retailer will accept to keep the stock and manage to

pass on the same explanation to customer.

Solving Problem: It is very critical duty of a PSR in which he solves varied problems from

rate issues to L&D(Leakage and Damage) problems.


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When we visited a small village called Koregaon Bhima near Shikrapur, there were

distribution where in the wholesaler was making his stock available through a different

distributor town ( Alandi, neighbouring town). So to handle these kinds of problems requires

effective negotiation skills which a PSR has to be inculcate in himself. The PSR in this case

had to go to the root of the problem and inform it to the TSE. Handling problems like these

requires time and effort.

Acknowledgement: Cross checking if the order is proper, check whether it is complete and

when it is ascertained repeating the Order

FeedBack : All the feedback has to be sent to the TSE and in some cases the Super

Distributor so that the problems brought forward and solved.


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Schemes promoting rural growth: PRAGATI & BANDHAN

Pragati and Bandhan Schemes are the business

motivating scheme for the wholesalers at the rural level.

In Marico terms, it is a WMP(Wholesaler Millennium

Point Scheme), Bandhan is a scheme for a local

wholesaler in a stockist town whereas Pragati is a

scheme for a wholesaler in a van town . It is a privileged

wholesaler program where every litre of oil purchased by

the wholesaler earns him points. For example selling a

litre of Parachute rigid will earn him one point, selling a

litre of jasmine will earn him 2 points and selling

ayurvedic Oil will earn him 4 points. The company has

strategically devised the pointing scheme, these points can be then redeemed at the end of the

year or at the time of redemption for a free gift. For example 5000 points will earn him a

television Set or a Gold Chain under the Marico Pragati Program.


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OFFERS AND SCHEMES FOR DRIVING GROWTH:

Offers and schemes can be categorised in to TO and CO i.e. trade offer and consumer offer.

The above sheet declares various offers as support and illustrates the various offers to the

stockists as well as consumers. It is basically incentivizing the key persons involved in

the transaction and pushing the product into the market. The sheet also contains coverageplan in blocks. Typically block report is to be send throughout the month.

For example as per the above coverage plan 60% of the secondary for PSR would be

probably completed by 10th of that particular month, PSR may reaches 100% of his

secondary target by 20th of that month and final 125 % till the month end which has to be

done by 25th

Trade Offer:

Schemes made for the wholesaler and retailer is known as Trade offer. These are done to

motivate the whole seller to sell more stock of a particular SKU. For example a retailer is

made available of a `scheme of 18 + 1 on 175 ml Parachute bottle. I.e. for every 18

bottles he purchases he gets an bottle free. This acts as a growth driver for him and he

seeks the opportunity to sell more of those in order to make profits. This is done primary

to push the sales and can be categorised as a below the line activity. In addition a

wholesaler has to be given CD( Cash Discounts)


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Consumer Offer:

Offer that the customer gets over the counter are consumer offers. These offers are

printed on the bottles and may be advertised on television. These offer increase the brand

awareness and have an effect on the buying decision. A bottle offering 20 % extra or a

scheme where you get a Santoor soap free for a Parachute bottle you buy are examples of

the consumer offers`

The figure is an example of consumer offer. During our project

we got to know that Ayurvedic Hair oil( image in the combo

offer) was a huge success in the rural markets, owing to the

influence of rural people on Ayurvedic products. The company

has effectively segmented and distributed this product in rural

markets


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VISIBILITY:

Visibility is one of the most essential elements when it comes to spreading brand awareness.

With respect to rural marketing, the focus of Marico on visibility is little disorganised. When

you compare the rural markets with its urban markets, it is not possible to get the same

quality standards in rural markets. However, the company takes special effort in

merchandising as well as making the products exclusively visible at the outlets. Visibility is

of two types i.e paid and unpaid.

Unpaid visibility: The Company does not allot an extra budget for this activity but in spite of

that this form of spreading brand awareness is very effective. This form involves basic

merchandising which the shopkeeper/ wholesaler is made to endorse in his store. The

visibility of the product is also enhanced when the shopkeeper is persuaded to keep the

product in important place.

In our project we saw, Marico PSRs advocating the shopkeepers to keep the product in a

dominant position. We saw him persuading the shopkeepers to keep the products clean and

tidy by removing the filth and dirt himself or advising the shopkeeper to do so. Also we saw

the PSR advising the shopkeeper to keep the products that are hidden in heap of the stock to

be kept in visible position

A shelf space in a shop at Koregaon Bhima vil lage near Shikrapur Town, Pune Distri ct

There is a certain pattern that is followed while you place the stock in the shop which has to

be monitored by the PSR. Firstly the branding has to be made clearly visible when the

product is kept in the shelf and then the pattern of placing the stock should be same in each


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and every shop. For example, small 20 ml bottles should be kept in the front in the shelf,

whereas 175ml bottles should be kept back in the shelf.

Paid Visibility: Unpaid visibility can only be advocated but cannot be enforced, hence need

for paid visibility arises. The Company has a budget allocated to this kind of visibility. The

company takes special effort to make an exclusive space available for a particular product. It

could be a newly launched product or product which company wants to focus its advertising

on.

We were introduced to certain types of paid visibility by the Area Sales Manager, Pune, Mr

Mahindra Shinde ,when we enquired about the different types of paid Visibility for Marico

that are used in the markets.

1. Category Domination Windows:A category domination Window means that a shelf which is kept in a more dominant

position over the rivals in the same category .In normal Marico parlance, these are

called catdoms. The products of Marico in that particular category are placed

exclusively in a separate shelf at POS (Point Of Sale). The primary reason for using

catdoms is that exclusivity of the product is maintained and dominant display of the

product acts as a brand promoter. The buying decision also can be influenced because

of the Marico products dominance over rivals in that category.


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2. Brand Identical window: A mentioned in unpaid visibility Marico tries to maintainsimilar pattern in which the products are placed a particular shop. In the bid to

maintain the same styling norm, it provides the shopkeeper with brand identical

windows and even pays the shopkeeper to maintain the window according to the norm

mentioned.

3. Shelf Display: Shelves are exclusively provided for a particular product, a midsize ora small size shelf can be provided depending on the size of the shop. The shops are

monitored to keep only Marico products in the provided shelf.

4. POP Posters: Point of purchase posters is a very important branding tool. It isimportant to make a very strong brand recall and to induce the customer in to buying.

These posters are also provided in different sizes

The entire above are paid brand merchandizing, for example the company spends Rs

450/ month for a Catdom.There may be a merchandizing team also to make effective

the above visual displays. A sales promoter (SP) is responsible for promoting this

kind of activity in Marico.

FORECASTING AND PREDICTIONS:


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Earlier in the report we elaborated that Maharashtras rural market comes in the category

where consumer is brand conscious owing to considerate media influence. But we cannot

conclude that a certain kind of behaviour will be similar throughout the state, different

regions behave differently. Price dominated buying is a major factor when it comes to rural

markets probably that is why sachets sell in such large quantities in the rural markets. This

behaviour is different in different regions and they depend on varied factors from consumer

status to habitual consumptions.

There are various ways that it can be predicted, but there is no guarantee that prediction will

turn in to reality. Quoting an example from Marico, it had expected Saffola Arise rise to be a

commercial success taking in to account growing health consciousness among people. Marico

was trying hard to position Saffola Arise as a niche product and also had released a

commercial highlighting the benefits of Arise. They had segmented the brand as every day

rice but the fact remains that Indian consumers were not ready to pay a premium for rice as it

is still considered an essential commodity. Company now thinks that selling premium rise is

certainly not the way for profitability and hence has decided to exit from this that market. On

the other hand Safflola Masala Oats was unexpectedly a huge success more than company

had anticipated.

Marico builds its own month on month internal database about its sales .The data is compiled

from TMR reports that are sent in the end of every month, TMR stands for Town Market

Report. TMR helps understand the consumption pattern and preferences of a particular

locality. Hence TMR for each and every town is submitted which includes the secondary

targets that the company has achieved (as mentioned earlier, secondary targets is met when

the stocks reach wholesaler / retailer). This secondary sales data is tracked and a trend is

established, accordingly next targets are set and the process continues. For a seasoned brand

4-5 years of previous data is adequate to set predictions. However the problem arises when

we try to predict about a new product. For example Marico recently launched Tender

Coconut Oil recently, and it does not have any previous data to track, in this case Marico may

use Jasmine Hair Oil as a yardstick to forecast the acceptance of this new product in the

market. Also existing competition and market size of the available market has to be tracked

before launching a new product

For getting the data about existing competition, market growth etc. company relies on market

research data from companies like AC Nielson. After acquiring the data various factors are


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considered before launching a new product and then the possibilities of success are

extrapolated. This factors will also include, dominance of market leader, the growth of the

market in which the company wants to foray in, consumption pattern in that particular

category, available space in that market etc. All this information is then scrutinised and then

only the decision of launching a new product can be taken. Once that is done, the testing is

done in select cities or towns and slowly if it is a success the product is launched elsewhere.


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Recommendations

As far as we have observed about the company and its products during our one week slip

project, we just want to share our suggestion with you.

Following are the recommendations are given below:

The company should focus on aggressive advertisement for its brands like bodylotion, hair and care, and Jasmine.

The company can enter into soap industry as it is already present in personal careindustry. Last year they had entered into this industry by launching soap with a name

Manjal which was liked by people but it failed to capture the market because of

weak advertisement and promotional strategy.

The company is also present in edible oil segment with a product name Saffola gold,but company is charging premium price. The company can also come with low price

product so that they can give competition to its market leader Gemini which is a

product of Cargill.

As far as the distribution in rural is concerned

It should use its distribution strength in India to boost up other brands. Forexample, recently acquired Paras brands(Set Wet , Zatak) should be pushed more

effectively because rural consumer is adapting more sooner than ever, and it is

possible that he acclimatises to this new line of products and that forms an

consumption habit.

Focus more on building effective relations with channel partners(CFA, SuperDistributer or stockist) in involving them in strategic decisions and also them

happy by promoting Mariconian Spirit, be more every day, and other initiatives of

motivating them.

Finally cost benefit analysis can be done at a micro level for distribution purposes.This because setting 2000 population as a target can be a loophole in the system if

the consumption there is not profitable. Vice versa if the population is less than

2000 but proximity is less, than it may perhaps be possible to reach the markets

We witnessed some typical cases where there were cross distribution betweenstockists of one town in to other in the already set up networks. Also we heard of

cases of stock designated for the urban markets entering rural markets, because of


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the proximity and the factor of minuscule rate difference. Company has to take

care about these distribution discrepancies.


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DISTRIBUTION NETWORK DESIGN FOR MARICO IN RURAL MARKETS

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