Nirma story again? How Ghari, Mamy Poko are giving HUL, P&G a run for their money

Is this the Nirma story all over again? Hindustan Unilever and Procter & Gamble have been fighting pricing and marketing wars in the laundry segment for more than a decade. But now Ghari, still a regional player, has overtaken P&G to be the second-largest detergent company in India, according to a Goldman Sachs report that cites Nielsen data.

Ghari is made by the Kanpur-based RSPL (Rohit Surfactants Pvt Ltd) Group and it’s fast narrowing the gap with HUL that has three brands in the segment — Wheel, Rin and Surf.

In the oral care category, HUL is challenged by Colgate, while Japanese company Unicharm is giving P&G’s Pampers a stiff fi ght in baby diapers with its Mamy Poko brand. Unicharm is now the second-largest diaper maker, overtaking Kimberly Clark’s Huggies, according to the report.

There seems to be some good news for the industry — consumer demand is finally showing signs of recovery with higher volume growth for a few leading categories in January-February 2015.