Mens fairness cream

Products[edit]
The company is well known in India for its fairness cream products for men. [1]
In 2008 the company announced that it intended to offer baby care products. [2]
The company's health products unit offers tonics for colds and coughs as well
as nutraceuticals.[3]
The company forayed into men's deodrant market by launching HE brand of deodrants.
Hrithik Roshan was appointed as brand ambassador for HE brand.

Subsidiaries[edit]
The company has the following subsidiaries:[5]

Emami Paper Mills Limited

Emami Chisel Art

CRI Limited

South City Projects (Kolkata) Ltd

Advanced Medicare & Research Institute Ltd (AMRI)

Frank Ross Limited

Emami Realty Limited

Emami Retail Pvt Limited (Starmark)

Emami Biotech Limited

Emami Cement Ltd

AMRI Hospitals

History[edit]
The inception of Emami Group took place in the mid 1970s when two childhood friends, R S
Agarwal and R S Goenka, left their management jobs with the Birla Group to set up Kemco
Chemicals, an Ayurvedic medicine and cosmetic manufacturing unit in Kolkata in 1974. At
that time the Indian FMCG market was still dominated by multinationals.
The company was established with modest capital of Rs. 20,000 and started manufacturing
cosmetic products as well as Ayurvedic medicines under the brand name of Emami from a
small factory in Kolkata, targeting sales at the Indian middle class.
In the early days the founders personally sold their cosmetics from shop to shop, using
hand-pulled rickshaws. They soon established recurring consumer demand, and gradually

hired additional staff. A chain of distributors was established and the sale of Emami products
spread from West Bengal to rest of Eastern India and gradually to other states. Emami
Talcum, Emami Vanishing Cream and Emami Cold Cream sold well. The company's
marketing techniques were to sell dreams of beauty to Indian women using radio and TV
advertising.
In 1978, Agarwal acquired Himani Ltd, a privately owned cosmetics company with a factory
in Kolkata. The business of Himani was almost 100 years old, although it had only been
incorporated in 1949 company; it had a good brand equity in Eastern India, but was in
financial trouble. Agarwal and Goenka managed to restore it to profit, at considerable risk
considering the small capital base of their own company at the time; this later proved to be
the turning point for their business.
Agarwal decided to produce health care items and toiletries based on Ayurvedic preparation
in the Himani factory. Ten years after commencement of the company, it launched Boroplus
Antiseptic Cream under the Himani umbrella in 1984. This became a flagship brand and was
extended to other products such as Boroplus Prickly Heat Powder. Emami brands started
selling in all states of North, East and West India. Today Boroplus is not only the largest
selling antiseptic cream in India but also in Russia, Ukraine, and Nepal.
In the 1983 Bollywood film Agar Tum Na Hote, one of the earliest brand placement
campaigns was achieved with lead actorRajesh Khanna playing the managing director of
Emami.
In the 1990s, Emami launches another flagship brand under the Himani Umbrella, Navratna
Cool Oil, and expanded production by opening its second factory, at Pondicherry.
The introduction of new brands continued and the company extended its distribution network
to South India, with Navratna spearheading the process. In 1995, the partnership firm Kemco
Chemicals was converted into a Public Limited Company under the name Emami Ltd. In
1998, Himani Ltd was merged into Emami Ltd.
In 2000, with a view to concentrate on its core FMCG business, Emami's investment
undertaking was demerged by issuing shares in Pan Emami Cosmed Ltd to shareholders of
Emami. In 2003 a new factory unit was set up at Amingaon, Guwahati. A public issue of
5 million equity shares at Rs. 70 followed in 2005. The issue was oversubscribed by 36
times. The share price later rose to Rs. 210.
In 2005 Emami launched Fair and Handsome, the first fairness cream for men.
In 2006 the company decided to introduce a Health Care Division and a number of new
brands of Ayurvedic OTC medicines.

Among the brands created by the company, annual sales of Navratna are at Rs. 3 billion
followed by Boroplus at Rs. 2.50 billion and Fairness at Rs. 1 billion. Sona Chandi
Chyawanprash, Menthoplus and Fast Relief also among the top brands in their respective
categories.
In 2006, J B Marketing & Finance Ltd., the erstwhile marketing company of the Emami Group
merged with Emami Ltd. and the total turnover of Emami including sales in domestic and
export market stood at Rs 5.16 billion at the end of the fiscal year 2006-07.
Emami Limited acquired a major stake in Zandu Pharmaceuticals Works Ltd, a century-old
household name in India, for Rs 7 billion. Emami added some of Zandu's prominent brands
like Zandu Balm, Zandu Chyawanprash, Zandu Kesri Jeevan, Zandu Pancharishta,
Sudarshan and Nityam Churna to its own range.
Within three decades, the company has grown to Rs. 10 billion Emami Ltd under the Rs.
30 billion Emami Group.
Emami is still led by Agarwal and Goenka, with the help of second generation directors from
their two families and professional staff. The group recently moved to a new corporate office
"Emami Tower" in Kolkata.

Controversies[edit]
Fair and Handsome[edit]
In 2007, the company attracted controversy with an advertisement for its skin
whitening cream for men, Fair and Handsome. Emami and the star of the
campaign, Shahrukh Khan, were accused of perpetuating racism.[1]
In July 2013, WOW a Chennai based NGO launched a campaign against Emami asking
them to remove the Fair and Handsome advertisement starring Khan, saying that it is
discriminating against people on the basis of skin color.[6][7] The campaign has been
supported by celebrities like Nandita Das[8] Tannishta Chatterjee. More than 22,000 people
have signed an online petition launched by them. [9]

Hospital fire[edit]
On 9 December 2011, Kolkata police arrested Agarwal and Goenka, founders of Emami and
directors of AMRI Hospitals, for negligently causing death to 91 people as a result of a fire at
AMRI Hospitals on the same day. It is recorded as the largest hospital tragedy in India,
caused due to storing toxic and inflammable materials in the basement of the hospital, w

glass-and-granite headquarters of Kolkata-based FMCG company Emami off the Eastern

Metropolitan Bypass is 'artful' once you are inside. Here's where SH Raza, FN Souza, Manjit
Bawa, Ganesh Pyne, Jamini Roy, MF Husain brush shoulders with each other on the walls,
especially on the eighth floor where the top managers have their offices overlooking the vast
expanses of green and wetlands on the far-eastern flank of the city.
From here, the Emami management has fought every challenge thrown its way; it's where ideas
germinate too, like for example launching a whitening cream exclusively for men when there was
not a single player in the field. Fair and Handsome not only had the first mover advantage when it
was launched nationally in 2005, but it also opened up the fray and saw the entry of big players
like Garnier and Nivea. Emami now wants to focus on several of its top brands across categories
and grow each: Boroplus, Navratna, Fair and Handsome, Zandu Balm and MenthoPlus.
According to Harsh Agarwal, director and son of Emami chairman and founder RS Agarwal,
though both Boroplus and Navratna are growing at a healthy rate, they have a lot more potential.
"We are fine-tuning our distribution network, laying greater emphasis on advertising and looking
for new markets for exports and exiting from those that aren't reaping rewards," says Agarwal.
For example, the brand of cool hair oil that Emami is selling has low penetration, about 15-20
percent, and hence there is a scope to grow. "We have to increase consumption since per capita
consumption of our oil is much less. We have to increase penetration and we have a strategy in
place to bring in variants. One of the things we are doing is to generate trials by launching Rs. 1
sachets," he explains.
The Navratna Oil is a Rs. 600 crore brand and in three years, Emami expects it to become a Rs.
1,000 crore one. In fact, the variant, Navratna Cool Talc that it launched five years ago, is already
a Rs. 100 crore plus sub-brand, 'and extensions are one way of growing it,' says Agarwal.
Navratna Cool Talc recorded an 80 percent growth in FY13. The brand expects to touch a
minimum of 25 percent year-on-year growth despite the talcum powder segment in India having
hit a near saturation point, he adds. Navratna Cool Talc has a market share of 18 percent in the
Rs. 430 crore cool talc sub-segment of talcum powder. "There is potential in launching variants
but we won't launch too many because we don't want to dilute the equity of the mother brands,"
he adds. In FY13, flagship Emami Ltd's turnover was Rs. 1,700 crore, and down the years the

group, with a combined turnover of Rs. 6,000 crore, has grown primarily by being present in
segments which have little competition to begin with.
Why Boroplus Clicked
When Emami launched Boroplus, there was an established brand called Boroline. "It was a
monopoly brand but there were lots of gaps in the market and issues of availability. We decided to
launch Boroplus in an attractive colourful packaging which would attract the youth," he recalls.
Boroplus, which was launched in the '80s, is a Rs. 500 crore brand now. As the skin care
category is growing, Boroplus has seen extensions in lotion and prickly heat powder. "Boroplus
occupies a unique space because no MNC is present in the antiseptic cream category, and lends
a lot to the overall category because it is perceived to be a do-good product," Agarwal points out,
"and we do push it with new campaigns." It was earlier managed by Agarwal and now Priti A
Sureka, director, Emami, heads it.
Emphasis On Promotions
Once Emami finds niche, potential sectors, it also promotes the products aggressively. Almost all
the A-listers of Bollywood, from Amitabh Bachchan and Shah Rukh Khan to Kareena Kapoor
endorse some Emami product or other. In FY13, Emami spent Rs. 279 crore on advertising and
promotions, which is 16.4 percent of the turnover.
"Though our promotional expenses are high - both Amitabh Bachchan and Shah Rukh Khan
endorse Navratna and Kareena, Boroplus - this has helped us to grow the category. If you have
to grow the category, you have to spend but mere association of celebrities doesn't assure you
success. You have to make the product relevant to the customer," says Agarwal. For instance, to
achieve the targeted growth for Navratna Cool Talc, Emami has rolled out a brand new campaign
positioning the brand as Bina Bijili ka Sabse Chhota AC with SRK and Junior NTR for the
southern markets.
The Zandu Acquisition
In 2007-08, Agarwal's father aggressively pursued the Zandu acquisition despite some misgivings
within the Emami family on whether he was spending too much to buy the Ayurveda company. In
the end, he spent Rs. 732 crore to buy Zandu, and Agarwal says it has been the perfect fit. "Our
products are based out of Ayurvedic/natural formulations and Zandu is a strong Ayurveda/natural
herbal brand," says Agarwal.

"Zandu is a popular brand that we have taken a decision to bring all our healthcare, herbal and
natural products under and a foreign consultant is helping us do that," he points out. Emami has
products like Sona Chandi Chyawanprash and Himani Fast Relief, which would once compete
with Zandu Balm, the undisputed leader in the category.
Like all the other Emami power brands including Boroplus, Navratna and Fair and Handsome,
Zandu too will see an aggressive adspend. "We want to promote and consolidate the Zandu
umbrella and make it a national brand," says Agarwal.
Mohan Goenka, director and son of co-chairman RS Goenka, points out that Zandu is the single
largest pain reliever brand in India despite the presence of products like Moov and Iodex. "Zandu
was losing focus before the takeover, but now it has been re-energised," he adds. From sales of
Rs. 140 crore in 2007-08, it has nearly doubled to Rs. 270 crore already by FY13.
The other brand which is growing aggressively is MenthoPlus, especially in the rural market, says
Goenka. It is worth Rs. 98 crore now, but it has a potential to grow as 90 percent of the sales
come from only three states - Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.
The Men's Fairness Cream Gamble
In 2005, Emami entered another uncharted territory. "In 2005, we launched a fairness cream for
men because market studies showed that 30 percent of males were clandestinely buying fairness
creams meant for women. We launched in 2005 and the competition in the form of Lever, Garnier
and L'oreal joined the fray from 2006. The market is growing faster than the female creams but
that's perhaps because of the low base," says Goenka. Fair and Handsome is a Rs. 200 crore
brand now. Emami has 60 percent market share followed by Lever (30 percent) and Garnier (20
percent), according to market estimates. The category got a huge boost when celebrities were
roped in to showcase the product, from SRK for Emami, John Abraham for Garnier and Arjun
Rampal for Nivea.
There's a lot of potential for growth because recent data shows that 22 percent males still use
female fairness creams, says Goenka. The brand touched Rs. 100 crore in the first 3-4 years.
"The entire male grooming sector has opened up and the celebrity endorsements have a lot to do
it. We have spent Rs. 45 crore on Fair and Handsome last fiscal for ads and celebrity
appearances. It's a new category, so investments are required to build the brand," adds Goenka.