The Hindu Business Line : Birla Cellulose mops up lion’s share of wet wipes market

Chennai, April 22 The disposable wet wipes market, fairly niche and nascent in India, has grown from Rs 8 crore to Rs 10 crore. Birla Cellulose, which has launched three brands in this category for various purposes over the last couple of years, accounts for Rs 4 crore of the market.

Speaking to Business Line, Mr Vijay Kaul, Chief Marketing Officer, Birla Cellulose, said the company will concentrate on growing this category. “We are not looking at any numbers at present, the task is to create awareness,” he says. As he puts it, Indians hate to dispose of anything, and this is the big challenge to address.

In the US and Europe, 6 and 10 per cent of the income is used on disposable products. In India, it’s probably 0.0001 per cent, he said. Worldwide, wet wipes are a $6-billion category, but in India, it’s a nascent category, and a lifestyle item at that, not an essential one, so it will take a while before there comes an inflection point, he says.

The company recently launched Puretta babycare wipes, which are made from natural and biodegradable material, in three variants. They are priced between Rs 90 and 130 per pack. The company’s other brands are Handy hand sanitising wipes, Kara skincare wipes and Prim homecare wipes.

While the company has launched its products India-wide, it will take its cues from the Mumbai and Delhi markets, Mr Kaul said. Brand- and awareness-building will be done through magazines, at the point of purchase, malls, and in advertisements in theatres. The company will hike substantially its marketing spends this year to create awareness and build its brands. He said the marketing campaign would focus on creating more visibility and having consumers experience the benefits of the product.

Mr Kaul said Birla Cellulose is poised to do well in this new category of wet wipes as other players cannot match costs. Some of them are imported and even local players, if any, will have to buy the raw material from Birla Cellulose, he explained.

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