MOSL: CONSUMER (Ground Reality) | Takeaways from Ground Zero in Central India

​CONSUMER (Ground Reality) | Takeaways from Ground Zero in Central India

• ​We visited a few distribution channel partners in central India to understand the demand milieu, the GST impact, and the strategy execution/product performance of various companies. Admittedly, the sample size was very small, and thus, may just be reflective of the local factors. Nevertheless, we did get a decent idea on the on-the-ground operating environment in the region. Key takeaways:
  
• For Nestle, the gains from new products appear to have tapered off, and there is disappointment in terms of new launch ad/promotion spend, both of which have been below expectations.
  
• Emami’s Kesh King seems to be making a comeback via better communication, while Patanjali’s Kesh Kanti oils have lost some steam. For Kesh Kanti more than 50% of brand sales come from shampoos.
  
• Patanjali’s oral care sales continue to do well and are supplemented by the launch of gel variants. The other category where Patanjali has done very well in central India is face wash and soaps (under Saundarya brand). Patanjali’s food products, particularly noodles and biscuits, are struggling to grow.
  
• For Godrej Consumer, the performance of new launches has been good, with ‘Aer’ doing particularly well even in central India.
  
• Mondelez has started reporting strong growth again in the chocolates segment. Bournvita is also doing well.