Shift gear: Unilever sheds Pureit to AO Smith to focus on core categories

Men Grooming, The Next Big Thing

• After observing the growth, the men’s grooming brand ‘The Man Company’, Indian FMCG brand Emami for an estimate price of Rs 400 crore. This deal will help Emami to pave its path in the D2C retail space by completing the acquisition of the company from a shareholder.
• The Man Company is currently selling 70% of its products just by its online presence. With this rapid growth, the company was able to generate a revenue of Rs 185 crore in the financial year ending March 2024.
• Emami acquired a 12% stake in The Man Company in June, which in total amounts to about 45% equity in the start-up.
• This merger will definitely help Emami to strengthen its position in the premium grooming market and to compete with brands like Beardo and Ustraa.
• Based in Kolkata, Emami Ltd is one of the largest Indian Multinational Conglomerate selling healthcare and personal care products in more than 60 countries and in India their product portfolio is available in more than 4.5 million retail outlets.

Male Brand Ambassadors Ruling Emami Personal Care

• Emami Ltd taking over The Man Company might not be a complete surprise.
• Way back in 2012, Emami had roped in Gautam Gambhir and Vijendra Singh for endorsement of one of its pain-relieving brands, Fast Relief.
• Emami had also signed Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar as the new brand ambassador for its power brand BoroPlus Ayurvedic antiseptic cream.
• It was founded in the year of 2015 with the motive of creating something different in the male grooming industry of India.
• The brand has shown huge rise in the graph in very less amount of time. The Man Company runs on a slightly different trajectory compared to the other brands in this category.
• The products of The Man Company are made from high quality materials and provide great results.
• The icon of Emami Haircare family, Navaratna Cool has been endorsed by the mega stras from Hindi Movies to the South including Amitabh Bachchan, Salman Khan, Govinda, Varun Dhawan and even the kind of comedy, Kapil Sharma.

Market Possibilities

• The male grooming industry in India which was valued at USD2 billion in 2018 is still largely dominated by likes of Hindustan Unilever Limited and Procter & Gamble. The rapidly growing market currently has about 100 thriving brands in the market, with online start-ups like Beardo, The Man Company working towards expanding into newer categories and outlets.
• The industry was expected to grow at a massive compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 45% by the end of 2021, revealing the enormous potential the category has, as per industry body ASSOCHAM.
• In 2021 along, we saw multiple major investments in the grooming sector. FMCG giant Emami acquired a 12% stake in The Man Company in June, which in total amounts to about 45% equity in the start-up. Another FMCG biggie Marico completed the acquisition of Beardo by acquiring an additional 55% stake in the company.
• Again, British consumer goods firm Reckitt had invested Rs. 45 crores in New-Delhi based Bombay Shaving Company, which recently came in strategic partnership with Lakme; while domestic FMCG player Wipro Consumer Care backs LetsShave and Ustraa.

Editor’s Note