ACKNOWLEDGMENT
The successful completion of this project is not just owed to one but it bears an imprint
of the efforts of many people, actively involved with the project.
This project was prepared for Hindustan Unilever (HUL). My sincere thanks to
Mr. Tanay Mishra, ASM, for giving me this opportunity to work with HUL. I would
also like to thank Mr.Amit Thapa,AE, under whose guidance I completed my training.
I also extend my gratitude to Mr. Atul Santosh Pandey,TSI, for his cooperation and
guidance.
I would also like to express my gratitude towards people from the industry who equally
contributed in the accomplishment of my project.
My overriding debt continues to my family and friends who continuously provided me
time, support, inspiration and friendly environment needed to prepare this report.
INDEX
OBJECTIVES
•
To understand the skin category of Hindustan Unilever Limited.
•
To study various brands of HUL in skin category.
•
To study the competitive brands in the market of skin category.
•
To find the market share of the HUL brands and its competitive brands.
•
To determine the key areas of strength and weakness for HUL brands.
•
To develop a promotion plan for brand communication of the HUL skin category
products.
INTRODUCTION
COMPANY PROFILE
Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) is India's largest fast moving consumer goods
company, with leadership in Home & Personal Care Products and Foods & Beverages.
HUL's brands, spread across 20 distinct consumer categories, touch the lives of two out
of three Indians. They endow the company with a scale of combined volumes of about 4
million tonnes and sales of nearly Rs.13,718 crores. The mission that inspires HUL's over
15,000 employees is to "add vitality to life". With 35 Power Brands, HUL meets
everyday needs for nutrition, hygiene, and personal care with brands that help people feel
good, look good and get more out of life. It is a mission HUL shares with its parent
company, Unilever, which holds 51.55% of the equity. The rest of the shareholding is distributed
among 360,675 individual shareholders and financial institutions. A Fortune
500 transnational, Unilever sells Foods and Home and Personal Care brands in about 100
countries worldwide .
HUL is also one of the country's largest exporters; it has been recognised as a Golden
Super Star Trading House by the Government of India .
Over time HUL has developed into a viable & competitive sourcing base for Unilever
world wide in Home and Personal Care & Foods & Beverages category of products. HUL
is also a global marketing arm for select licensed Unilever brands and also works on
building categories with core country advantage such as branded basmati rice.
HUL's brands - like Lifebuoy, Lux, Surf Excel, Rin, Wheel, Fair & Lovely, Pond's,
Sunsilk, Clinic, Pepsodent, Close-up, Lakme, Brooke Bond, Kissan, Knorr-Annapurna,
Kwality Wall's – are household names across the country and span many categories -
soaps, detergents, personal products, tea, coffee, branded staples, ice cream and culinary
products. They are manufactured over 40 factories across India. The operations involve
over 2,000 suppliers and associates. HUL's distribution network, comprising about 4,000
redistribution stockists, covering 6.3 million retail outlets reaching the entire urban
population, and about 250 million rural consumers. HUL believes that an organisation's worth is also
in the service it renders to the
community. HUL is focusing on health & hygiene education, women empowerment, and
water management. It is also involved in education and rehabilitation of special or
underprivileged children, care for the destitute and HIV-positive, and rural development.
HUL has also responded in case of national calamities / adversities and contributes
through various welfare measures, most recent being the village built by HUL in
earthquake affected Gujarat, and relief & rehabilitation after the Tsunami caused
devastation in South India.
In 2001, the company embarked on an ambitious programme, Shakti. Through Shakti,
HUL is creating micro-enterprise opportunities for rural women, thereby improving their
livelihood and the standard of living in rural communities. Shakti also includes health and
hygiene education through the Shakti Vani Programme, and creating access to relevant
information through the iShakti community portal. The program now covers 15 states in
India and has over 45,000 women entrepreneurs in its fold, reaching out to 100,000 plus villages and
directly reaching to 150 million rural consumers. By the end of 2010, Shakti aims to have 100,000
Shakti entrepreneurs covering 500,000 villages, touching the lives of over 600 million people.
HUL is also running a rural health programme – Lifebuoy Swasthya Chetana. The
programme endeavours to induce adoption of hygienic practices among rural Indians and
aims to bring down the incidence of diarrhoea. It has already touched 84.6 million people
in approximately 43890 villages of 8 states. The vision is to make a billion Indians feel
safe and secure.
If Hindustan Unilever straddles the Indian corporate world, it is because of being single-
minded in identifying itself with Indian aspirations and needs in every walk of life.
HISTORY
1888Sunlight soap introduced in India.
1895Lifebuoy soap launched; Lever Brothers appoints agents in Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata,
and Karachi.
1902Pears soap introduced in India.
1903Brooke Bond Red Label tea launched.
1905Lux flakes introduced.
1913Vim scouring powder introduced.
1914Vinolia soap launched in India.
1918Vanaspati introduced by Dutch margarine manufacturers like Van den Berghs, Jurgens,
Verschure Creameries, and Hartogs.
1922Rinso soap powder introduced.
1924Gibbs dental preparations launched.
1925Lever Brothers gets full control of North West Soap Company.
1926Hartogs registers Dalda Trademark.
1930Unilever is formed on January 1 through merger of Lever Brothers and Margarine Unie.
1931Hindustan Vanaspati Manufacturing Company registered on November 27; Sewri
factory site bought.
1932Vanaspati manufacture starts at Sewri.
1933Application made for setting up soap factory next to the Vanaspati factory at Sewri;
Lever Brothers India Limited incorporated on October 17.
1934Soap manufacture begins at Sewri factory in October; North West Soap Company's
Garden Reach Factory, Kolkata rented and expanded to produce Lever brands.
1935United Traders incorporated on May 11 to market Personal Products.
1937Mr. Prakash Tandon, one of the first Indian covenanted managers, joins HVM.
1939Garden Reach Factory purchased outright; concentration on building up Dalda
Vanaspati as a brand.
1941Agencies in Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata and Karachi taken over; company acquires own
sales force.
1942Unilever takes firm decision to "train Indians to take over junior and senior
management positions instead of Europeans".
1943Personal Products manufacture begins in India at Garden Reach Factory.
1944Reorganisation of the three companies with common management but separate
marketing operations.
1947Pond's Cold Cream launched.
1951Mr. Prakash Tandon becomes first Indian Director. Shamnagar, Tiruchy, and Ghaziabad
Vanaspati factories bought.
195565% of managers are Indians.
1956Three companies merge to form Hindustan Unilever Limited, with 10% Indian equity
participation.
1957Unilever Special Committee approves research activity by Hindustan Unilever.
1958Research Unit starts functioning at Mumbai Factory.
1959Surf launched.
1961Mr. Prakash Tandon takes over as the first Indian Chairman; 191 of the 205 managers
are Indians.
1962Formal Exports Department starts.
1963Head Office building at Backbay Reclamation, Mumbai, opened.
1964Etah dairy set up, Anik ghee launched; Animal feeds plant at Ghaziabad; Sunsilk
shampoo launched.
1965Signal toothpaste launched; Indian shareholding increases to 14%.
1966
Lever's baby food, more new foods introduced; Nickel catalyst production begins;
Indian shareholding increases to 15%. Statutory price control on Vanaspati; Taj Mahal
tea launched.
1967Hindustan Unilever Research Centre, opens in Mumbai.
1968Mr. V. G. Rajadhyaksha takes over as Chairman from Mr. Prakash Tandon; Fine
Chemicals Unit commissioned at Andheri; informal price control on soap begins.
1969Rin bar launched; Fine Chemicals Unit starts production; Bru coffee launched
1971Mr. V. G. Rajadhyaksha presents plan for diversification into chemicals to Unilever
Special Committee - plan approved; Clinic shampoo launched.
1973Mr. T. Thomas takes over as Chairman from Mr. V. G. Rajadhyaksha.
1974Pilot plant for industrial chemicals at Taloja; informal price control on soaps
withdrawn; Liril marketed.
1975
Ten-year modernisation plan for soaps and detergent plants; Jammu project work begins; statutory price control
on Vanaspati and baby foods withdrawn; Close-up toothpaste launched.
1976Construction work of Haldia chemicals complex begins; Taloja chemicals unit begins
functioning.
1977Jammu synthetic Detergents plant inaugurated; Indian shareholding increases to
18.57%.
1978Indian shareholding increases to 34%; Fair & Lovely skin cream launched.
1979Sodium Tripolyphospate plant at Haldia commissioned.
1980Dr. A. S. Ganguly takes over as Chairman from Mr. T. Thomas; Unilever shareholding
in the company comes down to 51%.
1982Government allows 51% Unilever shareholding.
1984Foods, Animal Feeds businesses transferred to Lipton.
1986Agri-products unit at Hyderabad starts functioning - first range of hybrid seeds comes
out; Khamgaon Soaps unit and Yavatmal Personal Products unit start production.
1988Launch of Lipton Taaza tea.
1990Mr. S. M. Datta takes over as Chairman from Dr. A. S. Ganguly.
1991Surf Ultra detergent launched.
1992HUL recognised by Government of India as Star Trading House in Exports.
1993
HUL's largest competitor, Tata Oil Mills Company (TOMCO), merges with the company with effect from April 1,
1993, the biggest such in Indian industry till that time. Merger ultimately accomplished in December 1994;
Launch of Vim bar; Kissan acquired from the UB Group.
1994
HUL forms Unilever Nepal Limited, HUL and US-based Kimberley-Clark Corporation
form 50:50 joint venture - Kimberley-Clark Lever Ltd. - to market Huggies diapers and
Kotex feminine care products. Factory set up at Pune in 1995; HUL acquires Kwality
and Milkfood 100% brandnames and distribution assets. HUL introduces Wall's.
1995
HUL and Indian cosmetics major, Lakme Ltd., form 50:50 joint venture – Lakme Lever
Ltd.; HUL enters branded staples business with salt; HUL recognised as Super Star
Trading House.
1996
Mr. K. B. Dadiseth takes over as Chairman from Mr. S. M. Datta; Merger of Group company, Brooke Bond Lipton
India Limited, with HUL, with effect from January 1; HUL introduces branded atta; Surf Excel launched.
1997Unilever sets up International Research Laboratory in Bangalore; new Regional
Innovation Centres also come up.
1998Group company, Pond's India Ltd., merges with HUL with effect from January 1, 1998.
HUL acquires Lakme brand, factories and Lakme Ltd.'s 50% equity in Lakme Lever Ltd.
2000
Mr. M. S. Banga takes over as Chairman from Mr. K. B. Dadiseth, who joins the
Unilever Board; HUL acquires 74% stake in Modern Food Industries Ltd., the first
public sector company to be disinvested by the Government of India.
2002HUL enters Ayurvedic health & beauty centre category with the Ayush range and
Ayush Therapy Centres.
2003Launch of Hindustan Lever Network; acquisition of the Amalgam Group
2005Launch of "Pureit" water purifiers
DISTRIBUTION NETWORK
Hindustan Unilever's distribution network is recognised as one of its key strengths. Its
focus is not only to enable easy access to their brands, but also to touch consumers with a
three-way convergence of -
•
product availability,
•
brand communication,
•
and higher levels of brand experience.
HUL's products, manufactured across the country, are distributed through a network of
about 7,000 redistribution stockists covering about one million retail outlets. The
distribution network directly covers the entire urban population.
The general trade comprises grocery stores, chemists, wholesale, kiosks and general
stores. Hindustan Unilever services each with a tailor-made mix of services. The
emphasis is equally on using stores for direct contact with consumers, as much as is
possible through in-store facilitators.
The distribution network in general trade is as follows:-
FACTORY-JUST IN TIME DEPOT-JUST IN TIME DEPOT-MARKET
( CHANNEL WISE )- CONSUMER
The products that are manufactured are first brought to the JIT (Just In Time) Depot from
the factory. Then these products are delivered to the Redistribution Stockiest according to
the order placed by them, this is done through Permanent Despatch Plan.Then this stock
is send to either retailers or wholesalers, according to the channel followed by them.
From there it reaches to the consumers.
At the supermarkets
Self-service stores and supermarkets are fast emerging in metros and large towns. To
service modern retailing outlets in the metros, HUL has set up a full-scale sales
organisation, exclusively for this channel. The business system delivers excellent
customer service, while driving growth for the company and the store. At the same time,
innovative marketing initiatives are taken to provide consumers with experience of our
brands at the store itself, through product tests and in-store sampling.
This is termed as Modern Trade. It has got different distribution network and work
differently. It is fast gaining pace as more and more people are turning to malls for
shopping. Today shoppers don’t just want to buy their daily groceries but they also want a
shopping experience. They want to spend time in air conditioned store, no more they are
ready to sweat for spending money. These big box retailers provide them a platform
where they can roam around, pick, compare and choose their products. These stores
provide them a whole new experience of shopping without shedding any drop of sweat.
DISTIBUTION NETWORK
PRODUCT PROFILE
FACTORY
JUST IN TIME DEPOT
CUSTOMER SERVICE PROVIDER
BIG BOX RETAILER
CONSUMER
PRODUCT PROFILE
Hindustan Unilever is biggest company in the FMCG (Fast Moving Consumer Goods)
sector. Its products are divided into various categories. These are given as follows:
•
Home and Personal Care: under this it is further divided into two parts:
1. Dets: all the detergents and dishwashers are covered in this. For example,
Vim, Rin, Surf Exel.
2. Personal Products: this comprises of all the products related to personal
care. these are as follows:
- Oral: toothpaste and toothbrush ( Pepsodent, Close Up)
- Skin: soaps, talcum powder, fairness cream, body lotion, winter
cream ( Pears, Vaseline, Fair & Lovely, Ponds’)
- Hair: Shampoos ( Sunsilk, Clinic All Clear)
SKIN CATEGORY
PEARS
Introduced in India in 1902, Pears soap has no equal. It is gentle enough, even for baby's
skin.
Pears is manufactured like any other soap, but unlike in conventional soaps, the glycerine
is retained within the soap. That is the cause if its unique transparency. After
manufacturing, the soap is mellowed under controlled conditions over weeks. At the end
of this maturing process, it is individually polished and packed in cartons.
Today Pears is available in three variants - the traditional amber variant, a green variant
for oil control and a blue variant for germ protection.
PEARS AMBER
125 GM
PEARS AMBER
75 GM
PEARS AMBER
45 GM
PEARS OIL CONTROL
75 GM
PEARS GERMSHILD
75 GM
FAIR & LOVELY
A woman's passion for beauty is universal and catering to this strong need is Fair & Lovely. Based on
a revolutionary breakthrough in skin lightening technology, Fair & Lovely was launched in 1978.
The Hindustan Lever Research Centre (it is among the largest research establishments in
India's private sector, including pharmaceutical companies, with facilities in Mumbai and
Bangalore) deployed technology, based on pioneering research in the science of skin
lightening to develop Fair & Lovely. The formulation is patented. Its formulation acts
safely and gently with the natural renewal process of the skin, making complexion fairer
over a period of six weeks.
Fair & Lovely is formulated with optimum levels of UV sunscreens and Niacinamide that
is known to control dispersion of melanin in the skin. It is a patented and proprietary
formulation, which has been in the market for 25 years. Niacinamide (Vitamin B3) is a
water-soluble vitamin and is widely distributed in cereals, fruits and vegetables - and its
use in cosmetic formulations has been known for various end benefits. The UV
components of the formulation are scientifically chosen and used at optimum levels to
provide wide spectrum protection against UV rays of the sun. Specifically, this patented
formulation offers a high UVA protection, which is more relevant to Asian skin than plain
SPF protection creams sold in the West. All the active ingredients in the Fair & Lovely
formulation function synergistically to lighten skin colour through a process that is
natural, reversible and totally safe
FAIR & LOVELY MULTI VITAMIN
80 GM
FAIR & LOVELY MULTI VITAMIN
50 GM
FAIR & LOVELY MULTI VITAMIN
25GM
FAIR & LOVELY MULTI VITAMIN
9 GM
FAIR & LOVELY AYURVEDIK
50 GM
FAIR & LOVELY AYURVEDIK
25 GM
FAIR & LOVELY AYURVEDIK
9 GM
FAIR & LOVELY MENZ ACTIVE
50 GM
FAIR & LOVELY MENZ ACTIVE
25 GM
FAIR & LOVELY SUN BLOCK
50 GM
FAIR & LOVELY SUN BLOCK
25 GM
FAIR & LOVELY SKIN CLEARITY
50 GM
FAIR & LOVELY SKIN CLEARITY
25 GM
FAIR & LOVELY SKIN CLEARITY
9 GM
