Dabur, That Already Sells Products In 120+ Countries, Is Looking To Gain Foothold In Southeast Asia

India's fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) industry is expected to grow at a CAGR of 14.9 per cent to reach $220 billion by 2025 from $110 billion in 2020. This expansion by Dabur India Ltd., comes even as the company is facing stiff competition from its rivals, both domestic and foreign companies

Written by: Sankunni K

Published: February 14, 2023, 12:23 PM IST

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https://www.india.com/business/dabur-that-already-sells-products-in-120-countries-is-looking-to-gain-foothold-in-southeast-asia-5896879/ Copy

Dabur, That Already Sells Products In 120+ Countries, Is Looking To Gain Foothold In Southeast Asia

New Delhi: Homegrown consumer goods major Dabur India Ltd., is looking forward to making acquisitions at home and in Southeast Asia, said the company’s Chief Executive Officer Mohit Malhotra in an interview with Bloomberg.

“Southeast Asia is where we are not present, our competitors are all present in Southeast Asia,” Malhotra said. “The immediate environment is very volatile with currencies playing havoc, I think once this settles down, then we might look at some inorganic opportunity.”

Last year, Dabur purchased 51 per cent stake in Badshah Masala Private Ltd., for Rs 588 crore, making an entry into India’s branded spices and seasoning market.

During the interview, Malhotra asserted that “There are a lot of opportunities… The valuations as relative to what they were in the past have become more reasonable now.” However, he declined to name any brands or firms on his radar.

India’s fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) industry is expected to grow at a CAGR of 14.9 per cent to reach $220 billion by 2025 from $110 billion in 2020. This expansion by Dabur India Ltd., comes even as the company is facing stiff competition from its rivals, both domestic and foreign companies such as Hindustan Unilever Ltd., Tata Consumer Products, ITC, Adani Wilmar et cetera.

Dabur, which already sells products in more than 120 countries, is looking forward to expanding into Southeast Asia even as its domestic sales are struggling with the elevated inflation that has eaten into the spending power of Indians, especially those in the rural economy. Dabur’s net income fell 5.4 per cent in the quarter ended December 2022.

“The business environment in India continues to be pretty challenging,” Malhotra told Bloomberg. “The next quarter is also going to be pretty tough, so we don’t see inflation actually getting tame — but next year going forward things will become a little better.”

While Reserve Bank of India Governor Shaktikanta Das said last week that demand in rural India was showing signs of improvement, Malhotra said inflation — above the central bank’s target of 6 per cent for much of the past year — continues to be “pinching the business big time.”