In India, the Unilever towers over all other consumer product brands. Procter and Gamble is starting to make some gains having responded to the needs of the Indian mainstream. Its Gillette Guard razor, for example sells about 44 million units a year. At a retail price of just 30 cents per razor. Blades cost 10 cents. This seems low until you note that India’s largest selling brand, according to GCI Magazine, sells at 3-4 cents a blade.
What this means
To play in the mass market in India, you need to design and sell product that meets the needs of the Indian consumer at their wallet size. This does not mean making shoddy product, but rather using the best minds to squeeze costs out of every aspect of manufacturing and materials. We call this approach frugal engineering or frugal design.
