Bisleri

Bisleri is a brand of bottled water in India. Bisleri has 60% market share in packaged drinking
water in India.[1]

It is available in 8 pack sizes: 250ml cups, 250ml bottles, 500ml, 1 litre, 1.5 litre, 2 litre, 5 litre,
and 20 litre. Its operations run throughout the subcontinent of India and is one of the leading
bottled water supplying companies in India. As of 2007, Bisleri has 8 plants & 11 franchisees all
over India.

Composition

The composition of Bisleri Water in milligrams per litre (mg/l):

 160-TDS
 7.2-ph factor
 13.6-Calcium
 22-Chlorides
 58-Bicarbonate
 7.8-Magnesium
 2-Nitrate
 19.3-Sulphates
 66.1-Hardness

[edit] History

Bisleri was originally an Italian company created by Felice Bisleri, who first brought the idea of
selling bottled water in India. Bisleri then was introduced in Mumbai in glass bottles in two
varieties – bubbly & still in 1965. Parle bought over Bisleri (India) Ltd. in 1969 and started
bottling water in glass bottles under the brand name ‘Bisleri’. Later Parle switched over to PVC
non-returnable bottles & finally advanced to PET containers. In 1995 Ramesh J. Chauhan started
expanding Bisleri operations. In 2003 Bisleri announced its venture to Europe.

The brand name Bisleri is so popular in India that it is used as generic name for bottled water.
ABOUT THE COMPANY:
Mineral Water under the name 'Bisleri' was first introduced in Mumbai in glass bottles in two
varieties - bubbly & still in 1965 by Bisleri Ltd., a company of Italian origin. This company was
started by Signor Felice Bisleri who first brought the idea of selling bottled water in India.

Parle bought over Bisleri (India) Ltd. In 1969 & started bottling Mineral water in glass bottles
under the brand name 'Bisleri'. Later Parle switched over to PVC non-returnable bottles & finally
advanced to PET containers.

Since 1995 Mr. Ramesh J. Chauhan has started expanding Bisleri operations substantially and
the turn over has multiplied more than 20 times over a period of 10 years and the average growth
rate has been around 40% over this period. Presently we have 8 plants & 11 franchisees all over
India. We have our presence covering the entire span of India. In our future ventures we look to
put up four more plants in 06-07. We command a 60% market share of the organized market.
Overwhelming popularity of 'Bisleri' & the fact that we pioneered bottled water in India, has
made us synonymous to Mineral water & a household name. When you think of bottled water,
you think Bisleri.

We at Bisleri value our customers & therefore have developed 8 unique pack sizes to suit the
need of every individual. We are present in 250ml cups, 250ml bottles, 500ml, 1L, 1.5L, 2L
which are the non-returnable packs & 5L, 20L which are the returnable packs. Till date the
Indian consumer has been offered Bisleri water, however in our effort to bring to you something
refreshingly new, we have introduced Bisleri Natural Mountain Water - water brought to you
from the foothills of the mountains situated in Himachal Pradesh. Hence our product range now
comprises of two variants : Bisleri with added minerals & Bisleri Mountain Water.

It is our commitment to offer every Indian pure & clean drinking water. Bisleri Water is put
through multiple stages of purification, ozonised & finally packed for consumption. . Rigorous
R&D & stringent quality controls has made us a market leader in the bottled water segment.
Strict hygiene conditions are maintained in all plants.

In our endeavour to maintain strict quality controls each unit purchases performs & caps only
from approved vendors. We produce our own bottles in-house. We have recently procured the
latest world class state of the art machineries that puts us at par with International standards. This
has not only helped us improve packaging quality but has also reduced raw material wastage &
doubled production capacity. You can be rest assured that you are drinking safe & pure water
when you consume Bisleri. Bisleri is free of impurities & 100% safe. Enjoy the Sweet taste of
Purity !

Genesis
The name that epitomizes mineral water today was first introduced in Mumbai in the early 60's.
In 1965 Signor Felice Bisleri an Italian by origin, came up with the idea of selling bottled water
in India. His company Bisleri Ltd. offered mineral water in two variants - bubbly and still.
In 1969 Parle bought over Bisleri (India) Ltd. and started bottling Mineral water in glass bottles
under the brand name 'Bisleri'. In due course Parle switched over to PVC non-returnable bottles
and finally advanced to PET containers.

Expansion
Under the leadership and vision of Mr. Ramesh J. Chauhan, Bisleri has undergone significant
expansion in their operations. The company has witnessed an exponential growth with their
turnover multiplying more than twenty times in a short span of 10 years. The average growth rate
over this period has been around 40% with Bisleri enjoying more than 60% of the market share
in the organized mineral water segment.
Currently Bisleri has 11 franchisees and 8 plants across India, with plans of setting up 4 new
plants on the anvil. The overwhelming popularity of 'Bisleri' and the fact that we were the
pioneers of the bottled water industry in India has made us synonymous to Mineral water and a
household name. So naturally 'When you think of bottled water, you think Bisleri'.

Rigorous Research and Development and stringent quality controls have made us market leaders
in the bottled water segment. Bisleri has always been committed to offering every Indian pure
and clean drinking water. Hence Bisleri water is put through multiple stages of purification,
ozonisation and is hygienically packed for final consumption.

To maintain strict quality controls in every unit, we not only purchase caps from approved
vendors, we also manufacture our own bottles, in-house. To be at par with International
standards, we have recently procured the latest state-of-the-art machinery which has not only
helped us improve packaging quality but has also reduced raw material wastage and doubled
production capacity.

You can rest assured that you are drinking safe and pure water when you consume Bisleri.
Bisleri is free of impurities and is 100% safe. Enjoy the sweet taste of Purity!

Bisleri Today

The Indian consumer today enjoys the sweet and pure taste of Bisleri mineral water. However in
an effort to offer something special to our loyal consumers we have recently introduced Bisleri
Natural Mountain Water - water brought to you from the foothills of the mountains situated in
Himachal Pradesh. This newly launched offering has widened our product range to two variants:
Bisleri with added minerals and Bisleri Mountain Water.
OUR VISION
Our vision is to be the dominant player in the branded water business where the second player is
less than 20% of our business.

OUR MISSION
We are in the business to serve the customer. He is the most important person. He is the only one
who pays. He deserves the best quality and presentation at a worth of the price. We must have
world class quality, at the lowest production & distribution cost. This will make us an unbeatable
leader, and will have satisfied loyal customers.

OUR VALUES

Integrity, Leadership, Teamwork, Co-operation, Quality, Passion, Openness & Transparency.

Ramesh Chauhan
Chairman
Bisleri International Pvt. Ltd.

Bisleri Cares!

Water - also called the elixir of life, makes up 70% of our bodies and is consequently most
essential for our existence. Although we can survive for weeks without food, it only takes a
few days before lack of water in our body becomes fatal. Our bodies lose about 250 ml of
water everyday. Therefore, it is important to keep in mind that water needs to be constantly
replaced. Doctors recommend drinking at least 8 to 15 glasses of water everyday.

..
Origin of bottled water

In the 18th century, water supply was not safe so consumption of bottled natural mineral
water was a privilege of the highest in society, captains of industry, politicians, royalty and so
on since it was so expensive. By the mid nineteenth century, as businesses transformed
considerably and consumption increased, global production climbed to several hundred
million bottles.

The first plastic bottle was launched in 1968 by Vittel. This bottled water was aimed at more
general public consumption. Bottled water was introduced for the first time in Mumbai, India
in the early 60’s by Signor Felice Bisleri.

In 1969 Parle bought over Bisleri (India) Ltd. and started bottling Mineral water in glass
bottles under the brand name 'Bisleri'.

In the mid 1980’s, another revolution in the bottled water industry moved the market forward
with PET (Polyethylene terephtalate), a new recyclable plastic material that became the
packaging benchmark worldwide. This new lighter, stronger material improved packaging
practicality to meet the evolving consumer needs.   In due course Parle Bisleri also advanced
to PET returnable and non returnable containers.

Bisleri for India

Safe drinking water shortage around the world particularly the third world countries
contributes to the fact that the bottled water industry in India is growing at the rate of 40 %
every year. Even though it accounts for only 5 percent of the total beverage market in India,
branded bottled water is the fastest growing industry in the beverage sector. This also
insinuates that there is increasing health awareness towards the importance of safe drinking
water in the minds of the average Indian.
Bisleri, since its inception has become a name synonymous with safe drinking water and
meets the requirement of the average Indian through its model distribution system in the far
reaches of the country.

Bisleri has been awarded the Reader’s Digest ‘Most Trusted Brand’ twice. Because of this
reliability, it would be fair to say that the price that we would pay for a bottle of Bisleri is the
price paid for assurance of health since 90% of diseases in India are water borne.
Importantly, Bisleri bottled water, though priced same as other bottled water brands in India,
contains added minerals which are lost from our bodies when we sweat and need to be
replenished regularly, thereby increasing its health benefits tremendously.

All our / Bisleri plants follow a stringent process for purification of the raw ground water
wherein 157 tests are carried out to assure the end consumer of the safety of bottled water.

Out of every 1000 litres of source water taken from the ground to be processed at the Bisleri
plants, 956 litres is given back as safe drinking water to the population of the nation. The
remaining quantity is mainly lost to evaporation. Several industries like paper, steel and sugar
have a more damaging global footprint and waste huge quantities of ground water during their
processes to make the final products.

In India, Bisleri has given birth to PET recycling industry of sorts by creating value for
recycled plastic bottles. Unlike plastic bags and sachets, the litter that could have been caused
by used bottles has been curbed because rag pickers find it worthwhile to collect these bottles.
All bottles after crushing and re-processing have good economic value and are used as raw
material in various industries other than food (pillow & mattress filling, etc). Reliance buys
huge quantities of PET every year and plastic is no longer as extensively exported to the US
as was before.   

A study carried out by Indian Institute of Packaging (IIP) for the Health Ministry of India
says that Polyethylene Terephtalate or PET is inert and does not undergo any leaching of
colour or chemical into the contents of the bottle ( till six months of multiple use)  or
migration as is a common concern of several anti- plastic environmentalists.

The Bisleri trust called the Jayanti Lal Chauhan Trust (JCERT) works extensively in the areas
of ground water augmentation and rain water harvesting in several states of India and has till
date completed 35 projects of check dam construction, mostly in the state of Gujarat, and has
succeeded in conserving 10 thousand million litres of rain water through these check dams
and talavs. This water would have been lost to the sea but for these dams and talavs every
year.
The Trust also aids several non – government organizations of high credibility which work in
the areas of water conservation, especially in rural India.

Like the erstwhile brands of Parle which took the country by storm – Thumsup, Limca,
 Maaza & Goldspot, Parle Bisleri also continues to stand for supreme quality and highest
reliability and keeps its promise of nothing but the best to every Indian.

The most critical aspect of our bottling process that sets us apart from the rest of the industry is
the fact that our bottles remain untouched right through the rinsing, filling, capping and labeling
operations.

Filling:
Bottles are fed by an air conveyor from the blowing unit directly into the in-feed of the RFC. Our
RFC equipment is neck run and it boasts of a monoblock unit, which means that every bottle is
held by the neck automatically while being inverted, rinsed and sprayed with ozonated water at 2
Bar pressure. After draining, the bottles are re-inverted and transferred to the filler. At the filler
these bottles are straightened up and gradually lifted to the filling valves which open only when a
bottle is placed under them. Filling is then done systematically through gravity.

Capping:
After the filling process the bottles are then transferred to the capping section. Here ozonated-
water rinsed caps are screwed on the bottle with uniform torque. Since our water is ozonated all
product contact parts are of 316L grade stainless steel and the rubber parts are of EPDM. (All
components are water lubricated above the table top.)

Labelling:
From the capping section the bottles are directly sent to the labeling section. All Bisleri bottles
are labeled on a hot melt reel feed BOPP labeling machine. This machine allows each individual
bottles to be spaced out and fed to the labeling station where precisely cut labels with a strip of
hot melt glue at the leading and trailing edge, get rolled around the bottle. These labels are fed
into the machine in a roll form too.

Quality Check:
From here on, the bottles go through an online check where qualified personnel inspect each
bottle for any leaks or breakages. They are then packed into sturdy cartons which are dispatched
to the market by our fleet of trucks.

Bisleri with Added Minerals:

This product is bottled drinking water at its best. Bisleri with added minerals has a TDS count
(total dissolved solids count) of approximately 100. It contains minerals such as magnesium
sulphate and potassium bicarbonate which are essential minerals for healthy living. They not
only maintain the pH balance of the body but also help in keeping you fit and energetic at all
times.

Bisleri with added minerals is also put through multiple stages of purification to ensure the
elimination of all forms of bacteria. This makes the water you drink completely safe to consume.
Bisleri with added minerals is available in 250ml cups, 250ml bottles, 500ml bottles, 1 litre
bottles, 1.5 litre bottles, 2 litre bottles and 5 and 20 litre cans.

SWOT ANALYSIS
STRENGTHS
• Old and famous brand name

• Better packaging

• Effective distribution network

• Famous as pure & safe among consumer

• Good product mix

• Frequent quality checking

• Better management

• Give regular follow up to distributor

• Indian image

• Better sales force

• Sponsoring various cultural program

• Good intcentives to dealer

WEAKNESS
one liter packs which accounted for 50% of the company’s turnover has come down to 30 %.
The two-liter packs, which have practically disappeared from the shelves, have come down from
20 % to 5 %. The growth has come from the 500 ml and the five-liter category, which account
for 15 per cent and 36 per cent of turnover respectively.
Earlier, Bisleri was selling at a premium of Rs.12 for the same size. But beginning last year, it
has been selling its one- liter bottles at Rs.15 each. Aqua Minerals attributes the Price slashing to
retailer margins being on the higher side earlier.
The competitive Rs.15 price tag has been working well for the brand.
In what could be a masterstroke, Aqua Minerals is testing out the possibility of mass marketing
20-litre Bisleri bottles for an MRP of Rs.40. That works out to Rs.2 a liter. If the logistics,
manufacturing and distribution do fall in place, it could change the face of the purified water
market for keeps.

OPPORTUNITIES
So far, bisleri has not used the franchising route very aggressively unlike Parle Agro’s Bailley
which has grown very fast using this route. He has around six franchisees in Mumbai, Delhi,
Chennai, Bangalore, Goa and Rajasthan. “We shunned this route so far because in most areas
where we had no presence, it was imperative that we did it ourselves. Now for further expansion
we can afford to use the franchisee route.”

THREATS
Bisleri will be taking the packs back and refilling them. But the packs cannot be sterilized since
the material used is PET and cannot withstand high temperature. So how can he ensure purity?”

Strategy to counter threats and others?

We subject the bottles to chlorine washes, hot water washes and ozone washes before we refill
the bottles.
The company is betting on the home segment. The reason being that filters and water purifiers
also need to be cleaned periodically and still do not guarantee absolutely clean water. In order to
service this segment, the five liter packs are being pushed through the route of fat dealers
(wholesale dealers) who are retailers as well as stockiest and serve as supply points from where
customers can pick up the required quota. In future, consumers will be able to call the fat dealer
and place orders for home delivery of the five-liter pack. The company has so far appointed 180
such dealers. This is a high turnover, low-margin retailer who does not keep a store but serves a
similar purpose with other items such as rice or wheat.

CONCLUSION
Bisleri have developed 8 unique pack sizes to suit the need of every individual. It is also present
in 250ml cups, 250ml bottles, 500ml, 1L, 1.5L, 2L which are the non-returnable packs & 5L,
20L which are the returnable packs.

The soft target

Selling bottled water requires constantly expanding the market. The company should also target
the market for soft drinks. All the soft drinks addresses three issues: fun, thirst and refreshment
followed by status to some degree. The thirst and the status value of the mineral water are well
accepted. There is very little the mineral water brands can do to add the fun element around the
product. Again here, it becomes important for the company to have a good distribution network.
It should be understood that if the mineral water is easily available everywhere then it can be
said with confidence that it would be able to replace the soft drinks as thirst quencher. If we try
and look at the reasons that why consumers buy soft drinks as thirst quenchers: we would find
the answer as that either water is not available or if it is available then safety is not assured.
Therefore, backed by a good distribution network mineral water industry can grow at a rapid
rate.
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