CHENNAI : In a striking reversal of trend, rural consumption of personal care items, though still larger, has grown slower than that of cities over the past five years, according to National Sample Survey (NSS) figures for 2009 (washing soaps/sodas were put at Rs 17,000 crore, but have been left out of this reckoning because no separate figure for detergents was available). Practically all households now use bath soap (Rs 12,000 crore). Hair oil and shampoo (Rs 8,200 crore) and toothbrushes and toothpastes (Rs 6,800 crore), too, will soon find themselves in this category.
Cities grew more? A boy checks out FMCG items at a shopping mall in Kolkata. (file photo)
Correspondingly, for all these items strategy will shift from part-foot-in-the-door aimed at increasing penetration to strategies exclusively aimed at getting people to increase use and move up the value or price chain. Read more
Source : thehindubusinessline.com
