The premiumisation strategy of Detergent brands will drive the Indian Detergent Market: Bonafide Research

The commitment to consumer satisfaction has coerced the detergent brands to develop premium products. 

“Laundry is the real never-ending story""- the famous absurd quote explains the importance of the most inevitable household chore and the main inclusive substance- Detergents. Moreover, they are also called Deter-agents in FMCG culture which shows that they are a basic necessity.

Unlike other Detergent markets around the globe, the Indian detergent market has a different story. From the overseas entrance to the acquisition of market by indigenous brands, the detergent market has always seen a substantial growth. Furthermore, the Indian consumer behaviour has always astonished the global brands during promotion of their products. All these have coerced the brands to reach the consumer satisfaction levels by developing different detergent products.

The Indian detergent market doesn't see different range of products but some of them like Detergent bars/cake, Detergent powder and liquid detergent. This may be due to the higher market share in rural India as people there are less quality conscious. Due to this reason only, Indigenous brands like Ghari and Nirma are making huge in these sectors due to their low pricing strategy. Moreover, the detergent cakes are largely preferred by rural people as they wash their clothes by hands. The liquid detergents are said to be arrived in 2013 with Surf Excel as the only brand but less awareness has led the category to grow at a nascent stage. 

As per the report entitled """"India Detergent Market Outlook, 2027-28"""" published by Bonafide Research, the Detergent market of India is expected to register a CAGR of around 9%. """"The Indian Detergent market seems to grow at a healthy pace as the detergents have become a daily necessity especially in India, where laundry is an important household chore. The bar detergents seem to vanish from urban markets but will grow its share in rural as people there prefer it more. The liquid detergents seem to grow slowly but are expected to grow healthy due to global trends in urban areas. As the market is penetrated by few products, brands need to develop new ones to reach the consumer satisfaction levels. The premiumisation strategy will let the brands win the market."""" says Deepak Tiwari, Market Analyst at Bonafide research.

In order to represent themselves as unique in the market, the brands have adopted the strategy of premiumisation. This has led the brands to target their consumers to shift their old detergents with the new premium ones. Moreover, surveys showed that most of the Indians dry clean their expensive and wash-sensitive clothes to the near laundry shops. This empathy was felt by the Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) and it came with a new detergent brand named 'Love and Care'. The love and care was specially designed for the sensitive fabrics such as silk, chiffon, brocades, etc. Moreover, brands are also developing liquid detergents and are encouraging their customers to switch towards them. Other drivers of premiumisation are the washing machines. Gone are the days when people used to save yearly savings to buy electronics such as washing machines. Now, they are easily available with affordable instalments. Washing machines proved to be at forefront on the shifting verge of premiumisation. Moreover, high market penetration and product awareness will surge the demand for premium products such as matic and liquid detergents. One of the most face problems in India is the hard water but higher concentration of active substances in premium detergents will help to soften the water quickly and will give good washing action.

With the swaying era of technological advancements, new detergent products are developed continually to pin the verge of premiumisation. Products such as detergent pods, detergent tablets (filled with concentrated liquid detergent) are some of the examples. Recently, Xeros Ltd. developed water-less washing machine named Xeros XOrbs which uses reusable nylon polymer beads to wash the clothes. The brand is also developing compatible detergents for it. All these efforts and advancements will let the detergent market of India to reach another level of premiumisation.