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“Transportation a big challenge to bottled water industry”
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Monday, 05 May, 2014, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
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fiogf49gjkf0d  Bisleri is a leading brand in the organised bottled water market of India with a 60 per cent share. The company is growing at 26 per cent year after year. In a tete-a-tete with Abhitash Singh, Ramesh Chauhan, MD, Bisleri International Pvt. Ltd, shares details on the company’s market presence, growth, regulations, challenges and more. Excerpts:
Throw some light on the present scenario of bottled water market in India.
Majority of bottled water sector in India is unorganised. Only three companies fall under organised - Bisleri, Aquafina and Kinley. We are the market leaders with 60 per cent share in the organised sector. We are making a profit of 26 per cent year after year and leading in the bottled water market.
At what rate is the bottled water market in India growing?
In the unorganised sector there is no tab on the growth. But in the organised sector it depends upon the competition. Presently we are leading and growing by 26 per cent.
What is the importance of Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) for bottled water? Do Indian bottled water companies follow BIS standards in the right way?
Bureau of Indian Standards is very important for the bottled water sector and the organised sector has to follow BIS standards in the right way. It is mandatory. But the local unorganised brands do not follow it at all.
In comparison to bottled water companies from abroad, where does India stand?
India market is not pro. But since the inception of Bisleri, people have become more health-conscious and they are now moving towards purified water. The consumers are becoming more aware and educated day by day. So position-wise India will compete with foreign bottled water companies in the days to come.
Does bottled water have higher growth potential than other beverages?
Yes, definitely bottled water has higher growth potential than other beverages. Because it is a basic need.
What type of competition does bottled water face from water purifier?
There is no big competition between bottled water and water purifier. Both cater to different needs. Water purifier is in home segment whereas bottled water caters to the larger audience and it goes to home, corporates and on-the-go customers. Water purifier is costly but bottled water is purified from the producer end.
How is Bisleri performing in the market, and what kind of growth is your company looking at in the near future?
Bisleri’s performance is better than all other organised sector. We are leaders in the market by growing at 26 per cent. We will continue to keep the trends going. The growth for the company will be very positive because we have a lot of potential to tap the unorganised bottled water market.
Bisleri was the first to introduce bottled water in India. Since then, a number of players (both organised and unorganised) have entered the fray. Does it affect the growth of your company?
It’s true that number of players have emerged in bottled water both in organised and unorganised markets. But that doesn't affect the growth of our company. Because, we have good strength, maximum number of packs than other companies. No other brand can give the quality, which we are providing to customers. We always set an example and change the trends in the market with our innovations. So, according to me, there is no effect on the growth of our company.
Throw light on your retail and vendors’ strategy. What ideas and tactics do you use to keep your vendors happy?
The two things which I know keep them happy are good relationship and servicing.
Does Bisleri have any expansion plans?
Expansion plans are always on the cards.
What type of marketing strategy has the company adopted to promote Bisleri and compete with other players?
Since we are the best in the bottled water market we follow a very simple marketing strategy. We use double ozonisation, which is not used by other trusted brands. Apart from that we don't use chloronisation. Minerals are added to the Bisleri bottled water, which is rare in other brands and also in unorganised bottled water sector. We also go through stringent 6-step purification process, which is our unique selling point.
Is there any plan to collaborate with international companies to grow in the international market?
We are already leading in the bottled water market with 26 per cent profit year after year. Whereas companies like PepsiCo, Coca-Cola and Aquafina are registering lesser growth than us. So there is no plan to collaborate with international companies.
What are the major challenges before the industry?
The major challenges that the industry is facing are of transportation and infrastructure. Roads are not good in most parts of the country and bottled water is a bulky product. Thus we lose during the process of transportation. Regulators should frame good regulations they should not put a burden on us. Regulations, which have been set by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), are very stringent. To set up friendly regulations for industries, regulators should frame regulations by consulting the industry people. Even the industry in order to prosper should look after the country, not only few individuals. In this way both the company and country will grow.
Let us know about your plants in India and abroad.
Earlier, we were having our production plant only in India. This year, in the month of March, we have set up a new production plant in Bangladesh.
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