With a strong turnover of Rs. 4,000 crore in the 2015-16 fiscal, Mankind Pharma has managed to hold an strong market position so far. The brand aims to bring more products to the wellness category in the years to come. But, tight lipped over this year’s expected turnover.
“For now, it’s too early to make any definitive statement,” said Dr. Sanjay Koul, Director, Mankind Pharma, in an exclusive interaction with WI Bureau. Here is what the brand plans about its wellness products.
What are the key factors enhancing the growth of your brand in the Indian wellness space?
We are determined to offer products of the highest quality and prices that are suitable for buyers with different spending capacities, along with a dedicated team to make sure both these goals are achieved, is what boosts the growth of our brand in the field of Indian wellness.
What are the major challenges of being a potential player in this segment? How did you overcome the challenges with other existing market challenges like competitors, availability of resources and revenue generation?
Considering that a large number of products for acne treatment were available for many years and this is a field where it’s hard to earn customers’ trust, we managed to overcome these obstacles by boosting the product quality. It has recently been shifted from our pharmaceutical division to OTC. The credit to the trust we have built over the years, goes to our veteran doctors, specialized in the respective fields.
What factors made you a potential competitor in the Indian wellness industry?
Apart from the great quality, affordability and accessibility to our product, we have also chosen Shruti Hassan, who is a youth icon, as the face of our brand.
Which all market has been covered by your brand in India? Which other areas your targeting next and why?
Our product has been launched PAN-India, with the exception of Kerala, where it will be launched by 2016 end.
What are your future plans regarding the growth and expansion of your brand? Do you have plans to touch tier II and III cities in the future?
Acnestar is not only available in Metro cities, but you can also find it in tier II and III cities as well. Since the product is available for masses, our next step ahead is to create awareness regarding treatment of most common problems among teens i.e Acne through aggressive on ground, digital as well as ATL activities. We have always believed in serving people the finest of quality of goods and services with prices that are affordable to everyone.
Have you established your presence in overseas market? If not, any plan to enter in near future?
Acnestar, as a brand, is not yet present in the overseas market, but we will launch it in the years to come. As a company, however, Mankind Pharma operates in 11 overseas destinations across Asia, Africa, South-East Asia and the Gulf countries.
What about online presence? Have you entered in the e-tailing format as well, what are your targets and expectations with eCommerce?
The evolution in digital marketing has the competency to reach millions of potential customers and has also bridged the gap between suppliers and consumers. We have already marked our presence in online digital marketing, be it through Social Media Optimisation like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, G+ or Pinterest, Search Engine Optimisation, Mobile apps and so on. You name the platform and we are there.
