INTRODUCTION

The birth of Rubberised Coir Industry is quite amusing and interesting. Prior to the
year 1960 people hardly had any idea of this novel and high utility product. In those
days the world famous car manufacturers, M/s. Volks Wagon of Germany, were using
horse hair as cushion filling material for their car seats. As their production increased
from 100 cars per day to 300, there was dearth of this raw material. This necessitated
a suitable alternative product for rubberisation and which would suit to their
specifications. Of various alternatives tried like sisal fibre, jute fibre, the coir fibre
was decidedly found to be the best. This was the beginning of Rubberised Coir
Industry .In early 60’s two renowned manufacturers M/s. Dr. Fehrer and Dr.Otto
Angliether (DOA) were competing with each other to supply modern machines to
manufacture Rubberised Coir products. The design and the material of construction
was so excellent that we find some of their plants are still working well over a period
of four decades. The Indian Rubberised Coir Industry is nearly four decades old. It
was in 1964 that M/s. Bharat Motors of Chennai established its manufacturing unit.
Many other units came up during sixties itself. In the global market the important use
of rubberised coir had been in the automobile industry. In Europe, most of the loyal
users had been producers of more expensive cars –Mercedes and BMW in the
erstwhile Federal Republic of Germany, Volvo in Sweden etc.Fiat which got most of
its supplies from a plant at Gradec in Solvenia in Yugoslavia andVolkswagen had
been consistent users of coir. The major plant established by Fiat in the erstwhile
USSR also used rubberised coir in Japan, Datsun was a consistent user of rubberized
coir. Ikeda Bussan, Mistubushi and Honda also were using rubberised coir. Another
potential area for rubberised coir is for seating in other vehicles like trucks, buses,
railway and sub-way coaches. It has the potential for replacing polyurethane foam in
inner spring mattresses. For upholstery purposes also world consumption of
rubberised coir could be improved if marketed properly. The use of rubberised coir as
means of stabilising seashore lines canal and river bank was reported gradually
developing in some of the western countries like Netherlands, Germanyetc. There
exists a very large and diverse market for bedding and upholstery in Europe and the
United States and if efforts could be made to popularize rubberised coir it would be
possible to get a significant share of the market, the main competitor being
polyurethane foam.
 OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY:

 To know about the present status of the Rubberized Coir mattress Industry.

 To identify the problems faced by the industry.

 To know the future prospect of growth of this industry

 To identify the strategy needed for the development of the sector for improving

marketing, production capacity etc.

 To develop tactical as well as strategic focus with sustainable competitive

advantage.
 MARKETING RESEARCH

Marketing research is the function which links the consumer, customer, and public to
the marketer through information- information used to identify and define marketing
opportunities and problems; generate,refine and evaluate marketing performance; and
improve understanding of marketing as a process.

Market research specifies the information required to address these issues; design the
method for collecting information; manage and implements the data collection
process; analyses the results; and communicate the findings and their interpretations.

COIR BOARD
The Coir Board is an autonomous statutory body established by an Act of the
Parliament under the Coir Industry Act, 1953 (45 of 1953) for the overall
development of the Coir Industry. The Board consists of a Chairman and 30 members
representing various interests like growers of coconut, producers of husks and coir
yarn, manufacturers of coir products, dealers in coir, coir yarn, coir products, three
members of the Parliament; two from LokQ Sabha and one from the Rajya Sabha,
representatives of Governments of principal coconut growing States etc.

The Headquarters of the Board is located at Cochin. There are three Regional
Offices one each at Bangalore, Visakhapatnam and Pollachi for promoting the
development of the coir industry primarily in the brown fibre sector. The Central Coir
Research Institute (CCRI) at Alleppey, Kerala and the Central Institute of Coir
Technology (CCIT), Bangalore are engaged in research and development. The Coir
Board has established 33 showrooms and Sales Depots in important cities in the
country for promoting sale and consumption of coir products in the domestic markets.
COIR INDUSTRY
STRUCTURE OF THE INDUSTRY
 Indian coir industry is an important cottage industry contributing significantly to
the economy of the major coconut growing States and Union Territories, i.e., Kerala,
Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Goa, Orissa, Assam, Andaman
& Nicobar, Lakshadweep, Pondicherry, etc. About 5.5 lakh persons get employment,
mostly part time, in this industry. The exports from this industry are around Rs.70
crores. The coconut production in India is estimated at 9283 million numbers in 1989-
90. Coconut husk is the basic raw material for coir products. Around 50 per cent of
the available coir husk is used to produce coir products. Hence, there is scope for
growth of coir industry.
 During the Seventh Plan, while the production of white fibre' has remained
stagnant, the production of brown fibre' has registered more than 55 per cent
increase. The production of white fibre and brown fibre was 1,24,900 tonnes and
67,600 tonnes in 1989-90 against the respective level of 1,24,800 tonnes and 39,600
tonnes in 1984-85. During this period, the export of coir yam and other products has
increased from Rs.26 crores to Rs.33.32 crores. The production of coir fibre in 1991-
92 is anticipated to be 2.20 lakh tonnes against the target of 2.26 lakh tonnes. Exports
are anticipated to be of the order of Rs.66.16 crores.

 During the Seventh Plan period, encouragement was given for expansion of the
home market through publicity and advertisement, product diversification, adoption
of new technology, research and development, training for artisans, including women
and social welfare measures for coir workers, most of whom are SC/ST and women.

 The Eighth Plan programmes for coir industry aim at increased utilisation of
coconut husk for production of coir fibre, growth of the domestic market,
strengthening of research and development to find out new uses for coir fibre
especially in the areas of geo-fibre, fire retar-dant, cement and gypsum polymer
development, acquisition of new technology like PVC-tufted coir products,
encouragement to cooperativisa-tion and pro vision of social welfare, civic amenities
and medical facilities to the coir workers. Emphasis would be laid on mechanisation
in a phased manner without affecting employment to make Indian coir products
competitive in the export market. The production of brown coir fibre would be
encouraged by providing seed capital assistance. Modernisation of coir units has been
envisaged by providing incentives for installation of modern equipments to make coir
industry more competitive in the export market.

 Special training programmes have been formulated for women artisans. Improved
modern treadle ratts would be provided to teamed women artisans to increase
employment and earnings. Medical facilities, creche for children of coir workers,
model coir villages for SC/ST coir workers and social welfare schemes would be
implemented during the Eighth Plan period.
 Emphasis has been laid on developing devices/equipment/ machinery through
R&D to reduce drudgery and to improve productivity of coir workers. Development
of improved variety of ratts and looms would help in improving the production of coir
yarn spinning, coir mats, etc. In order to boost exports, the scheme of cooperative
publicity programmes in the export markets which was started in the Seventh Plan
would be continued.

 The indicative target of production for coir fibre has been set at 2.77 lakh tonnes
for the Eighth Plan. Export target is Rs. 100 crores. The schemes to be implemented
during the Eighth Plan would aim at increasing the share of full-time employment in
this sector from the present level.

OPPORTUNITIES AND PROSPECTS

While purchases of domestic users, particularly the upholstery and mattress makers,
have slackened during the latter part of the 1990s, domestic demand is expected to
improve as new product applications have been developed. Coir is not only used for
mattress and stuffing purposes but is now processed into a host of various industrial
products.

INDUSTRY PROBLEMS:
 Zoning problem which leads to competition in sourcing husks
 Lack of drying/machine facility
 High freight cost
 Lack of high density baling press for the export market
 Fabricators of decorticating machines have no standard as to capacity

RUBBERISED COIR: A gift of nature

Rubberised coir, made of natural latex and coir fibre is a 100% natural product, which
enhances comfort and support. Blended with anti-oxidants, rubberized coir is
comfortable because they are designed to offer perfect support and they allow air
circulation. Since rubberized coir is available in various thickness, it can be used for
multiple applications.
Coco latex makes certain it uses natural raw materials in keeping with its essence of
going green. All the same, adopting careful methods, which encourages maximum
recycling with minimal waste.
Production process
In its entirety, it is carried out using modern machines. These are closely controlled
with a variety of modern in-house facilities, supervised and handled by our team of
highly skilled personal.
 Latex Compounding: A process that starts with procuring the very best in nature
rubber latex and ends with processing at our modern concentration plant to ensure
purity.
Curling: First, the coconut fibre is cured in a hot chamber for the natural curl and
bounce. They are then opened using customized machines to give them a natural
spring structure.
Rubberising: The curled fibre is formed in to sheets, which are sprayed with natural
rubber latex to form resilient fleeces.
Hot press and Vulcanization: When these fleeces are vulcanized and machine-cut to
specified dimensions they give a firm, long-lasting and non-absorbent form that
allows air circulation and provides natural comfort.

WHY RUBBERISED COIR ?

Rubbersied Coir has a number of advantages over Conventional foam rubber and
synthetic polythylene foam. A few of them are highlighted here.
1. Rubberised coir mattresses provide greater body support. It is highly recommended
by orthopedists , for people prone to backaches and for those who wish to prevent it.
It provides support to the vertebral column and hence it is better for the body in the
long term.
2. Rubberised coir is a porous material thereby maintaining a uniform temparature
3. Coir is a hygroscopic material and hence is absorbs moisture from the air. Thus it
will always retain 8 to 10% moisture
4. It is odourless, germ-resistant and hygienic.
5. Can be cut to desired shape, size and contour. It can be cut to required length and
the thickness of 4mm to 100mm or more. The sheets can also be joined as per the
requirement
6.The mattress does not disintegrate like rubber foam or is not uncomfortable like
polyurethane foam and hence it is preferred.
7.Ther are no adverse impacts on the environment and no harmful chemicals are used
in making of a rubberized coir mattress. The factory does not emit any pollutants and
rubberized coir mattresses are eco friendly.
8.This is Natural product and helps small farmers around the country to sell their
produce.
TECHNICAL
Quality and Physical property test
The physical property of the mattress core and the hardness is essential to be checked
as this ensure the quality and the life time of the mattress.
Hardness

STUDY OF RETAILERS

Retailers of rubberized coir and other types of mattresses were surveyed in 7

cities, viz. Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Cochin, Hyderabad, Mumbai and
Bhubaneshwar.About 30 from each city were surveyed. ***

1.RUBBERIZED COIR MATTRESS

In terms of sales volume and sales value, Bhubaneshwar Retailers reported maximum
sales for Rubberized coir (RC) mattress at 82% and 80% respectively. Here, RC was
used mainly by upper class segment. Margins were relatively low at 9% (compared
to a maximum of 30% in other cities), and average amount spent was in the middle of
the range at Rs. 3616.Kurl On and Sleepwell were the two most popular brands here.

Hyderabad reported even higher sales revenue at 83% of all mattress sales, but
volume wise only 39%. Margins were in mid range at 19%, with almost similar
profile of consumers buying, but average amount spent was the highest at Rs.
4886,justifying the high sales revenue. The same two brands topped here too.

Bangalore came next with 58% of sales by both volume and value, with a relatively
modest margin of 11% but with second highest average amount spent at Rs.4308.

Cochin had a middle order turnover of RC with both volume and value at 49% and
53%. It had a relatively low margin at 10%, with second lowest cost at Rs 1984 next
only to Chennai. The fact that cost is higher than Chennai may be due to higher
rentals and wage costs at Cochin. But supply proximity has helped in higher turnover
than at Chennai.

Chennai and Mumbai retailers report a fairly low sales both volume and value wise at
around 37%. But Chennai had a 30% margin and Mumbai 15%. This was because
Chennai had a cost advantage of Rs.1884, with Mumbai at Rs.2173, while the
average amount spent was almost the same.

BRAND EFFECT:
Delhi registered the lowest penetration with sales at 13% to 14% with many “brands”.
The fact that RC is most suited for Delhi, which is hot climate, but registered low
presence is explained by the absence of clear brands. Many brands in effect means no
brand. Absence of Brand clearly leads to low sales.

*** Exact No. of retailers surveyed :

Cochin-35
Bangalore-30
Chennai-30
Delhi-30
Hyderabad-27
Mumbai-26
Bhubaneswar-23

2. COTTON MATTRESS

Bhubaneswar recorded the highest with 48% and 56% in terms of sales volume and
value and it was mainly used by lower and middle class with the dominant “brand”
being DURGA. Margin was almost midway at 25%.Average amount spent was the
lowest at Rs.680,confirming the law of demand.

Next, in the line is Chennai with volume and sales being almost the same at 42% and
41% respectively which was mainly used by middle and upper classes. Margin was as
low as 18%.Average amount spent was second highest at Rs.1364.The retailers
reported dominant brands as being Kurl on and Duroflex. Since they do not
manufacture cotton mattress, it implies that either the retailers have a low sensitivity
to brands themselves, or that they fool the customers by falsely branding unbranded
products.

Cochin enjoys a volume and sales at 38% and 33% respectively. Margin was quite
low at 10% .Average amount spent, which is a reflector of price was the highest in
Cochin at Rs.1569.The retailers reported many names for brand with no single name
being dominant.

Hyderabad reported about 34% sales but had an inexplicable 58% margin, against
18% for Chennai. Hyderabad reported “NO BRAND” while Chennai reported Kurl
on and Duroflex. Average amount spent was between 12-14000

Bangalore sold 30% of its mattress as cotton mattresses realizing 30% of value, and
16% margin. As in Hyderabad, in Bangalore also they were sold without brand,
Average price was Rs, 1200.
Mumbai sold about 18% and Delhi 6%,with a margin of 10-12%.They also reported
brands such as Kurl on, Sleepwell and Shakti. While Mumbai reported Rs.1071 as
average amount spent, Delhi reported Rs.1166.

3. FOAM MATTRESSES
For Foam mattress, Delhi reported the maximum sales, both volume wise and value
wise at 45%,followed by Chennai and cochin at 39% and 36%.Average margins
ranged from 10% to 27%,with Hyderabad having the latter(big margin).in Bangalore
and Chennai, MM foam was most popular followed by Sleepwell, whereas in
Hyderabad, Mumbai and Bhubaneswar Kurl on was the leading brand with Sleepwell
being the next in Mumbai and Bhubaneswar and MM foam being the next in
Hyderabad.In cochin,Coir on was the leading brank, followed by Kurl On.

There is considerable variation in average expenditures on Foam Mattresses in

various cities. It was high, varying between Rs.5,400 and Rs.7,200 in Bhubaneswar,
Hyderabad and Bangalore whereas it was relatively low, varying between Rs.2,000
and Rs.2,700 in Chennai, Delhi, Cochin and Mumbai. While the high price in
Hyderabad was explained by the highest margin at 27%, the high price for Bangalore
and Bhubaneswar is not fully explainable.

4. COIR MATTRESSES
While no retailer of the Foam and RC mattresses stocked Coir Mattresses in
Bangalore and Bhubaneswar, retailers in other cities seem to have sold between 13
and 55% by volume/value. Even here, retailers have reported brands like Kurl On,
Sleepwell, Duroflex and Restolex. The prices have varied from Rs.2000 to Rs.3400.

5. SPRING MATTRESSES
These occupied the minimum fraction (6%) in Bhubaneswar and maximum (36%) in
Chennai. One reason: price, which was highest in Bhubaneswar (at Rs.10,318) and
lowest in Chennai (Rs.2,250). But in Bangalore too the price was high at Rs.9583,
but the share was also high at 18%, probably due to high income from IT sector.
Springwell was the leading brand in 3 cities, Bangalore, Chennai and Cochin; Kurl
on was the dominant brand in Mumbai and Bhubaneshwar; Sealy in Hyderabad.
Delhi had no single brand dominating. Sleepwell and Springtek were also popular in
Mumbai and Bangalore respectively. The purchases were mainly from Upper and
Middle class customers.

6. POPULARITY
Rubberized Coir (RC) mattresses were popular in Bangalore, Bhubaneswar,
Hyderabad, Delhi and cochin (score ranging from 1.2 to 1.5, lower the score more the
popularity); but they were not as popular in Chennai and Mumbai (both humid areas).
Cotton mattresses were most popular in Delhi, followed by Bhubaneswar, but were
least popular in Hyderabad. Foam mattresses were popular in Chennai, Bangalore
and Delhi but were least popular in Hyderabad. Though both Delhi and Hyderabad
are hot cities, and Foam is not appropriate for both the cities because it gives out heat,
Foam was still popular in Delhi. This may mean several possibilities; many homes
using form mattresses also had air conditioning; that many in Delhi were stealing
electricity, etc! However it is to be noted, that the score for RC was lower than for
Foam in Delhi, establishing the superiority of RC in countering heat. Coir mattresses
were very popular in Bhubaneswar, followed by Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai, and
ironically they are least popular in Cochin, the city closest to availability of raw
material. Spring mattresses are popular in Delhi, Cochin and Mumbai whereas they
are not popular in Chennai, and surprisingly they are not quite popular in Bangalore
also, where you would associate a popularity with higher income. We are discounting
Bhubaneswar figure, because though it was ranked most popular (probably in a few
shops, which responded to that question), the overall sales volume or value is quite
low.

7. PERFORMANCE
The performance of retail outlets in terms of various parameters like sales volume,
profitability, return on investment, etc. was ascertained. Most of the units reported
medium performance, except in Mumbai where about 50% reported high
performance and the other 50% medium performance. In Bhubaneswar also about
40% of outlets reported high performance. In terms of marketing efforts, this means
that focus on Mumbai can pay bigger dividends.
In terms of proportion of customers who actually end up buying, Mumbai had 72%,
Hyderabad 67%, Bangalore and Delhi around 53%, Chennai 46%, Bhubaneswar 38%
and Cochin 9%. The Coir Board may pay attention to the low % cities and find out
the reasons for many customers merely ‘window shopping’ in these cities.

8. COMPLAINTS, HANDLING AND CONSUMER SATISFACTION

Bhubaneswar received the largest complaints relating to RC, followed by Cochin (the
same two cities where the actual buyers were the lowest). Chennai and Bangalore
were next, where the complaints on RC were similar in magnitude with other
mattresses. In Delhi RC received less complaints compared to Coir and Foam and
was handled in equal measure, giving appropriate level of satisfaction. In Hyderabad,
RC received about half the number of complaints compared to cotton mattresses and
one fourth overall, and handling was better. In Mumbai RC received much less
complaints compared to Coir, but handling was inadequate.
The cities having maximum complaints also are the same cities where the proportion
of RC sales is maximum. This may imply that customers are sold RC on false
promises and wrong information, and that as a result of this, consumers experience a
high cognitive dissonance (post-purchase regret). This is an important area to be
attended to, as this may be one of the factors which is crucially limiting the scope of
sales of RC.

9. TESTING OF VARIOUS HYPOTHESES

The following questions / statements were put to the retailer and their agreement was
recorded on a 5 point scale. 5 Agree most; 1 agree least:
a. To what extent the retailer interacts with the consumers and various market
forces to identify the types/brands demanded in the market and then locates the
manufacturer/supplier for such categories of products and approach them for
business deal.
Bangalore dealers were most diligent; Delhi, Mumbai and Hyderabad came next;
and Cochin, and Chennai lower and Bhubaneswar, the least. This would mean that
any sales promotion should begin in Bangalore, Delhi, Mumbai or Hyderabad.
b. In every mattress category, consumers are most price sensitive.
By and large every one agreed with this; affirmation was slightly more for
Bangalore, Delhi and Bhubaneswar.
c. Generic / unbranded products have poor quality and hence they spoil the
image of the store.
Cochin, Hyderabad and Mumbai agreed strongly (4); Bangalore agreed least (2).
Agreement with the above Statement, implies two agreements: 1. Generic products
are of poor quality. 2. Poor quality hurt the image of the stores.
The general agreement with this Statement, along with better performance when there
is no brand clutter, explains the motivation for the retailers to sell branded products.
But when products are sold under false brand names, it means that retailers expect
that the effect of (1) is much more than the effect of (2), that tempts them to take the
risk of losing the image. That this indeed happens is testified by the large number of
complaints.
d. Consumers come to the stores with a specific product in mind, only the brand
choice is done here based on the choices available and their budget.
Mostly agreed upon by all the retailers.
e. Dealers approach me to keep their brands in my store. I look at the
saleability of their brand and then make a deal.
Mostly agreed upon by all the retailers.
f. Most often consumers awareness regarding mattresses, brands etc. is next to
nothing.
Almost all city retailers agree, except Bangalore retailers. This implies, that except in
Bangalore, in other retail outlets, there is potential for retailers to exploit the
consumers’ ignorance about brands by selling unbranded products as branded
products.
g. Consumers are particularly brand conscious while purchasing mattresses.
This is related to the previous question, and we got consistent answers.
h. 90% of consumers make their final purchase decision based on retailers’
recommendation.
Almost all agree. All these put together, mean 1. that brands act as a big entry barrier
to the sale of RC, most of which is in the unbranded segment. 2. the retailer is most
important link in the sales chain, and proper incentives should be given to him to sell
more RC. The RC industry faces two tough choices: 1. increase the price, and give
bigger margin to the retailers 2. Decrease the price and increase the penetration in the
market , displacing cotton mattresses, providing greater appeal to consumers directly.
i. “I push those product categories / brands where my margin is more”
Delhi retailers expressed greatest agreement (therefore greater margin sensitivity)
while Bangalore retailers expressed least agreement, while the other cities were in the
middle. Overall there was lukewarm agreement (with a score of 1.5) implying that
everything is not decided by margin or at least they do not want to say so.
j. “Manufacturers are most often least interested to handle the customer
complaints”
Delhi retailers agreed maximum (3.8) while most others were middle of the ground,
and Bangalore retailers again least agreeing.
k. “Manufacturers actively seek out and provide all kinds of support to the
retailers for the better performance of their products/brands in the market”
There was a healthy overall agreement to this (3), with Hyderabad, Bhubaneswar,
Delhi and Cochin strongly agreeing and Mumbai showing maximum circumspection
(2).

10. Peak and off peak season sales:

The retailers reported that each shop sold an average of 222 mattresses per month,
during peak season, but there was wide variation between the averages in different
cities, with their % shown as follows:
Mumbai 44.7; Bhubaneswar 25; Delhi 11.3; Hyderabad 8.3 and the rest of cities
reporting small share. Large share for Bhubaneswar is a surprise.
During off peak season, they sell an average of 148 mattresses per month, with
roughly the same share for different cities. This gives an indication of where to
concentrate marketing and for RC mattresses.

11. What should be done to sell more mattresses?

Retailers have suggested various measures like advertisement, quality improvement,
better service, reasonable price, increasing the awareness and better complaint
handling. Bangalore and Chennai have given highest importance to quality
improvement, and next importance to advertisement. Retailers of other regions have
given maximum importance to advertisement. On the whole, more advertisement
seems to be the imperative.
12. Advice to RC manufacturers to remain competitive:
Advice given mainly is to give stress on advertisement, and next to reasonable price,
warranty, increase in price margin (to them) and giving freebies and prizes.

Performance of Coir Board Outlets

` There are 33 Coir Board outlets in various cities in India. Over the past 5 years,
all the retail outlets of the Coir Board had a sales target of Rs.12.24 Crores for the 5
year period 2000-01 to 2004-05. They realized only 66.7% of the target. Secondly,
sales have been declining consistently, uniformly and without exception, in all the
outlets, even on nominal terms (i.e. at current prices) (See graphs for individual
outlets).

AGGREGATE

1400

1282 1277
1225 1231
1200
1164

1000 984.83
928.55
SALES AND TARGET

800
762.54
736.09
AGGREGATE TARGET
692.44
AGGREGATE SALE
600

400

200

0
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004
YEAR

Government market is a small, but growing, if erratic market. This is also a captive
monopoly market for the Coir Board, where no special marketing efforts are needed.
On the other hand, private market is the bigger market, and here the share of Coir
Board is declining.

Positive features: Many institutional buyers seem to prefer Coir Board. Some of
these institutional buyers are Engineering Colleges, Textile shops, Departmental
stores, Private society etc. They come because of the confidence they have in Coir
Board, particularly in quality. [However, we heard owners of RC branded products
expressing that Coir Board shops promote inferior quality unbranded products at the
expense of branded products, by receiving kickbacks to sell them. It was not possible
to verify this assertion.]

Lessons:
It appears that since they are enjoying the security of job, the Coir Board employees
by definition cannot perform better. Coir Board show rooms are in the best of
business localities, but are performing much poorer than their private sector
counterparts. For instance all of them are making losses and are requiring subsidies.
Subsidies in turn lead to cost control, cost-side orientation instead of revenue side
approach, and results in bureaucratic controls and rigidity. Market orientation is
totally absent. For instance, major advertisements are done centrally. Pricing
decisions are done centrally.

It would be a good idea for Coir Board to have a programme of phasing out the retail
outlets, and promote Coir and RC products generically, through marketing only.
 QUESTIONNAIRE

Questionnaire for manufacturers of rubberized coir

mattresses:

Dear Sir/Madam,
On behalf of Indian Institute of Management Bangalore, a survey is being
conducted on the mattress industry in seven different states in the country. The study
has been organized by the Coir Board and the Rubberized Coir Manufacturer’s
association. The purpose is to provide direction to the disorganized mattress sector
and ensure their long-term survival. I am entrusted with the survey in this city. Please
spare a few minutes of your valuable time to fill up the questionnaire given below.
The information given by you will be kept confidential and used strictly for above
said purpose. Hope you will feel free to cooperate in this effort. Thank you.

1. In which year was your manufacturing unit set up?

2. How do you rate the quality of the available raw material fibre?
a) Low b)moderate c)good d) very good

3. If low or moderate, how do you ensure quality production? What would be your
suggestion to solve this problem once and for all?
4. What is your source of procurement of fibre?
5. Do you use multiple sources of fibre? If yes, then please mention the
number of sources of procurement of fibre.
6 Number of times of procurement of fibre is done per month in peak
Seasons……. and the number of times in off seasons………
7 Average price of procurement per quintal……….
8 Based on your experience price of fibre varies every
a) few weeks b) few months c) year
9. How do you ensure the procurement of fibre in time to meet your target?
10. The number of employees employed in you firm for production process
…..…. and the number of employees in the secondary associated
processes …………
11. Please indicate the installed capacity of your plant ………% of capacity
utilization ……….. , the average number of mattresses produced per month during
peak seasons ……… and average number of mattresses produced per month during
non – peak seasons ………..
 12. In the current scenario, every one is wondering what is the market size of the
mattress industry and how it is evolving over the years. In order to determine that
assume your average annual production before 5 years as X and fill up the table
below (please give the accurate approximation)

2000 2001 2002 2003 2004

13. Average price of production per mattress ……..

14. Average selling price to the distributor / dealer per mattress ………
15. Average purchasing price for the retailer per mattress ………
16. Purchasing price for the end consumer per mattress …………
17. Are there any trade discounts / promotions for your products? If yes, please
give details.
18.Different types of distribution system are observed in the rubberized coir
mattress industry. For your firm, distribution of mattresses is done through
a) Manufacturer – Distributor – Dealer / Retailer – Consumer
b) Manufacturer – Dealer / Retailer – Consumer
c) Company owned outlets
d) Any other (Please specify)
19. How do you decide for a margin for the retailers / middlemen? Do you think,
you give a market driven or higher than market margin to retailers? Do you give any
incentives to retailers?
20. Rubberized coir can be used for manufacturing different types of end products.
Please suggest a few others apart from mattresses that can be a success in the market.
21. The end product (mattress) is distributed in
a) The home state
b) Other states in India
c) Outside India
22. What kind of problems do you come across in exporting your products. Please
give some significant problems and the best solutions to those problems according to
you.
23. How often do you change the machinery that is used in manufacturing?.....
24. The rubberized coir product industry is not technology savvy. However, like
most industries, in this industry also, manufacturers must be updating the technology
involved to come up with better quality and more acceptable innovative products.
Please share your experience in this regard.
 25. During this project, I have frequently come across the complaint of irregular and
irrational tax rates across the country. What is your experience and opinion in this
regard?
26. Now-a-days every manufacturing concern is eager to maintain impeccable
quality standards all around. Therefore, ISO certification, BIS standardization and
many such other quality standards are maintained by the firms. What is your
experience in this regard? Please share a few details.
27. Many companies do supply bare locks of rubberized coir to small time
manufacturers, distributors, retailers etc. for various reasons. What do you think are
the major reasons?
28. These purchasers of bare blocks, add a few fringes and resell the mattresses to
the end consumers. This leads to the creation of unorganized sector, evasion of
margins and taxes and ultimately all manufacturers loose out. Do you agree to this
argument? Give your reasons.
29. Please give the name and details of at least five unorganized / unregistered
players of your area.
30. Do you give any discounts / schemes to the consumers from time to time? Yes,
Please elaborate.
31. What complaints do you most often receive after sale? What is the company
policy of handling complaints?
32. Where do you see the future of rubberized coir industry? What is needed to be
done on individual and group level to improve the condition of this industry and give
it a proper national as well as global recognition?
Questionnaire for retailers of rubberized coir mattresses:

1.Location of the store.

2.What are the different merchandise you keep in your store? Few options are given
below. Divide 100 points among the options based on the volume of each category of
merchandise that you keep. Also divide another 100 points among the categories
based on the volume of each category of merchandise that you sell per annum.
Volume stored Sale volume

a) Cotton mattress
b) Foam mattress
c) Coir mattresses’
d) Rubberized coir mattresses
e) Spring mattresses
f) Any thing else

3. Some product lines in the mattress industry are mentioned below. Please give the
average margin that you derive per product categories. Also mention 2 of the best
selling brands in each category.
MarginBrands
a) Cotton mattress
b) Foam mattresses
c) Coir mattresses
d) Rubberized coir mattresses
e) Spring mattresses
f) Any thing else

4. For our retail market segmentation process, we would like to place your store in
one category. Normally, the performance of stores is measured in terms of Sales
volume, profitability, return on investment etc. Based on any such measure of
performance, where would like to place your store.
a) High performance
b) Medium performance
c) Low performance

5. Please rank the different product lines on the basis of their popularity / sales
volume in the market / your store.
a) Cotton mattress
b) Foam mattresses
c) Coir mattresses
d) Rubberized coir mattresses
e) Spring mattresses
f) Any thing else
6. Normally what types of consumers purchase what type of mattresses? A list is
given below. Please make the choice based on your experience. Also please mention
the average amount of money spent by the consumers on such purchases per store
visit.
Consumer type Amount spent
(Upper / Middle / Lower)
a) Cotton mattress
b) Foam mattresses
c) Coir mattresses
d) Rubberized coir mattresses
e) Spring mattresses
f) Any thing else

7. Say in a typical day, 100 consumers visited your store. How many would actually
purchase?
8. Do consumers complain a lot after purchasing the mattresses? How would you
divide 100 points among the various categories of mattresses so far as the level of
customer complaints are concerned. Also divide 100 points among the same
categories so far as effective handling of complaints and resultant consumer
satisfaction is concerned.
Consumer complaint Complaint handling
Consumer satisfaction

a) Cotton mattress
b) Foam mattresses
c) Coir mattresses
d) Rubberized coir mattresses
e) Spring mattresses
f) Any thing else

9. Some statement are given below. Rate the statements in a 5-point scale based on
your degree of agreement. 1 represents least agreement and 5 represents full
agreement.
a) Normally, I would interact with the consumers and the various market forces to
identify what product types / brands are demanded in the market, then I would locate
the manufacturer / supplier for such categories of products and approach them for
business deal.
b) In every mattress category, consumer are most price sensitive.
c) Generic / unbranded products have poor quality and hence they spoil the image of
the store.
d) Consumers come to my store with a specific product in mind; only the brand
choice is done here based on the choices available and their budget.
e) Dealers/ distributors / manufacturers approach me to keep their products / brands
in my store; I look at the salability of their brands and then make a deal.
f) Most often consumer’s awareness regarding mattresses, brands etc, is next to
nothing
g) Consumers are particularly brand conscious while purchasing mattresses.
h) 90% of the consumers make their final purchase decisions regarding mattresses
based on retailer’s recommendation
i) I push those product categories / brands where my margin is more.
j) Manufacturers are most often least interested to handle the customer complaints.
k) Manufacturers actively seek out and provide all kinds of support to the retailers
for the better performance of their brands in the market.

10. a)How many mattresses would you sell per month during peak seasons and what
would be the average selling price per piece? How many you think, you can sell per
month?
b)How many mattresses would you sell per month during non – peak seasons and
what would be the average selling price per piece? How many you think, you can sell
per month?
11. What do you need to be able to sell the number of mattresses you claim to sell in
the previous question?
12. what would be your advise to the rubberized coir mattress manufacturers to be
able to remain competitive and maintain their survival over the long run?
13. Please give the name and details of at least five unorganized / unregistered players
of your area.
Questionnaire for consumer of rubberized coir mattresses:

1 . Your age a)below 30 b) 30-40 c) 40-60 d)above 60

2 . Sex male / female
3 . Education a)Below Graduation b)Graduation – Post graduation c)professional
4 . Income per annum
a) below 2 lakh b) 2lakh – 5 lakh c)5lakh – 10 lakh d)above 10 lakh
5 .What type of mattress do you use?
a. do not know
b. pure foam
c. spring mattress
d. coir mattress
e. rubberized coir
f. cotton
g. anything else
6. Are you aware of the brand of mattress you are using?
If yes please mention the brand / it is not a branded mattress
7. Please write 5 brands of mattress that you are aware of.
8. Please fill in the blanks below:
I have been using mattress for the last …….Many / years. The first mattress I used
was ……. It was…….(purchased by me/ gifted/ came with the bed) mattress and it
was….(foam/spring/rubberized coir). The mattress was used for …..Years and its
performance was ….(satisfactory/ unsatisfactory). It was…… (Costly/ average price/
rather cheap).The major problem with the mattress is/was
(unshapely / too hot/ too heavy/ not washable/ not as per the size of the bed)
Currently I am using ……..mattress and I have to say it can be ……………….
(suggest improvement)
9. once you realized there is need for a mattress what would you do?
a. go to the nearby shop and purchase it
b. collect information about the cheapest brand
c. talk to some known people who have purchased mattress in the recent past
d. visit a few shops and see for yourself the mattress market
e. wait for sometime to get a good offer and then decide
f. anything else
10. When you go to the soap to purchase a mattress, how would you decide? A few
options are given below. Rate each of the option in a 5 point scale where 1 represents
least agree and 5 represent most agree.
a) I would go for only the well known brands
b) I would decide the amount of money that I want to spend beforehand and any
decision has be within it
c) I would go for the cheapest product available and would not care for the brand
d) It is best to evaluate the available product from holistic point of view
e) The ideal way to select any brand is to decide what you look for in a product,
compare all the available brands on the pre decided criterion and choose the best
f) My mattress should stand out from the rest and hence I would buy that one which
has some unique features.
11. Now a days one cant trust any brand. There is an embedded risk in each purchase.
Some ways are given below to reduce the risk. Divide 100 points among the options
based on the amount of significance you would ascribe to each parameter.
a. Seek as much information as possible before purchase
b. Always be brand loyal
c. Choose that brand which has the best image among the consumers and retailers
d. Go to the most reliable store and purchase based on the recommendation of the
retailers
e. Buy the most reliable brand
f. Buy the brand which has the maximum guarantee/ warranty

12. Some of the major problem faced by the people so far the mattress are concerned
are mentioned below. Rank the problems based on their frequency of occurrence.
a) The mattress loose shape
b) The mattress is too heavy to handle
c) The is too heavy to sleep on during summers
d) The mattress is rather uncomfortable to sleep on
e) The mattress is harmful for health; causes back pain spondelytis
f) The sellers claim its washable; apparently it is not
g) The mattress seems too costly for its quality
h) Retailer and manufacturer do not attend to the complaint
13. Please rate the characteristics of different mattress in a 10 point scale
Weight 1: very heavy 10: very light
Volume 1:very voluminous 10:less voluminous
Price 1:costly 10:cheap
maintenance 1:easy to maintain 10:difficult to maintain
Compression 1:low 10:high
Product weight volume maintenance compression
Coir
Rubberized
coir
Spring
Pure foam
14. According to you, what is the normal time period for replacing one’s mattress?
 BIBLIOGRAPHY
BOOKS: