Leading by listening Godrej

LEADING BY LISTENING

The owner of some of India’s most recognised brands, Godrej Consumer Products Ltd is steadily increasing its presence worldwide. Emma-Jane Batey spoke to COO Rakesh Sinha to find out how this is being achieved.

AS one of the seven core business areas of the multi-billion dollar Godrej Group, Godrej Consumer Products Ltd is the market leader across India’s FMCG companies. Specialising in household products and personal care items, Godrej Consumer Products has branches throughout India and an increasing presence worldwide.

The Godrej Group was founded in 1897 by inventor and commercial visionary Ardeshir Godrej who, along with his brother Pirojsha Godrej, created what was to become one of India’s most recognised and valued brands. The seven main companies within the Godrej Group encompass real estate, industrial engineering, domestic appliances, furniture, security, agri-care and Godrej Consumer Goods’ FMCG activities.

With an annual turnover that exceeds $3.3 billion, Godrej is a name that is present in practically all Indian households in some way. Even though the group is an integral part of Indian culture, it actually achieves more than 25 per cent of its revenue from outside the country, thanks to its increasing presence overseas and sales activities in over 60 countries worldwide.

The COO of Godrej Consumer Products Ltd, Mr Rakesh Sinha, told Industry Europe how being part of the group supports its dayto-day operations, as well as its strategic longterm growth plans. He said, “The Godrej name stands for innovation and quality in India, so we are very proud to be part of such a successful group. We have the strength of the group behind us when it comes to investing in the latest technology, which enables us to maintain our market-leading position domestically and continue to advance our position on a global scale.” Listening to customers

Godrej Consumer Products’ growth rate is largely attributed to the fact that it listens closely to its customers and quickly acts on their changing demands. The company owns some of India’s most valued household and personal care brands, including Good Knight, Cinthol, Expert and Snuggy, and is committed to ensuring that its entire offer stays relevant to its customer base.

Mr Sinha explained, “Staying close to our customers and understanding the trends that are influencing their lives is incredibly important to us and we invest a great deal of time, money and resources in this area. We are continually fine-tuning our offer to guarantee that we are providing the right products at the right price.”

Godrej Consumer Products gains this information through its constant contact with customers and relevant information. From

speaking to customers directly on the shop floor, where Godrej employees ask about how they are getting on with their products and what feedback they have, to talking to general customers in shopping centres and workplaces, the company is happy to listen to any customer’s views. It also invests in syndicated research and data on shopper and consumer habits, both in terms of trend forecasting and real-time data. It then combines all the information to come up with a set of findings that closely reflect the actual mood and demands of its customer base, and puts this to good use in the marketing and R&D departments.

Mr Sinha pointed out, “This information consistently influences our product launches, our upcoming product development, the redesigns of our products and packaging and our advertising campaigns. We want our customers to know that we appreciate their feedback and that we always aim to offer products that perfectly suit their needs right now.”

Ready to grow

With the rising level of young consumers in India having a major impact on the FMCG industry, Godrej Consumer Products is staying one step ahead of the trend but introducing youth-focused products that also meet the mega-trend of consumers of all ages wanting products that offer quality and value. This is seen in various groups demanding products that are either premium quality at a sensible yet higher price, or cheaper price points that still deliver on quality.

The coming years will see Godrej Consumer Products expanding its global activities beyond its current markets in Asia, with the plan to focus on countries that have similar psychology and consumer behaviour as the Indian market – namely Latin America and Africa – where it can utilise the wider network of the Godrej Group for targeted success.

The company also expanded its activities in the UK when in December 2012 its UK subsidiary, Keyline Brands Ltd, acquired the Soft & Gentle brand from Colgate-Palmolive. This is the UK’s fourth largest female deodorant brand and retains strong brand equity with retailers and consumers in the UK.

At the time of the acquisition, Godrej Chairman Adi Godrej said: “The acquisition of Soft & Gentle by Keyline Brands will add profitable scale to our UK business. Over the last few years, Keyline Brands has delivered good performance and grown in double digits in a very tough market environment that is witnessing little to no growth.” n