INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Competitors are making a pitch to women too
| Representational Photo6 min read Last Updated Sep 12 2024 | 11:24 AM IST
For years, the world's biggest condom maker Reckitt Benckiser
India last year surpassed China to become the world's most populous nation, but still fares poorly on the use of contraceptives
India's government estimates only around 10 per cent of men use condoms and for women, sterilization remains the popular form of
has for decades marginalised female pleasure in the Indian society
But attitudes are changing and Reckitt is shifting marketing gears to take advantage of an upswing in condom use among Indian women - now a
five years earlier, according to latest available government statistics
women consumers, and has new marketing campaigns, Pankaj Duhan, Reckitt's senior vice president of intimate wellness, told Reuters in an
That is why we are relaunching our lubes portfolio," said Duhan
"The women tend to become a little bit more underserved consumer groups." The India condoms market is currently dominated by Mankind Pharma,
its quest to carve out a lucrative slice of the female condom market and rural consumers, primarily with distribution and pricing - two
areas industry watchers believe are key to success - but also in coaxing a still-largely conservative rural population to buy its
marketing -- a recent ad stars a Bollywood actress talking about benefits of condoms and asking women to "go buy your own.""One challenge
Reckitt may face is consistency of messaging," said Devangshu Dutta, head of retail consultancy Third Eyesight, adding the company needs to
figure out if it is targeting condoms for health, family planning, or pleasure as there could be different messaging for each type of
billion, but is forecast to grow at 7.4 per cent compound annual rate between 2024 and 2030, according to Indian consulting firm 6Wresearch
come from rural areas, which is far more price sensitive than urban cities
"Distribution is the big challenge simply because even though most consumer goods companies have made their way to all pincodes in the
executive vice president for Asia Pacific at Monks ad agency, part of S4Capital, said marketing tweaks by the likes of Durex are a welcome
rapidly shifted to reverse the status quo," he said
In the eastern state of Odisha, for example, a small medical store of Sudam Padhan does not prominently display condoms as "people frown
She made an "awkward" decision to buy condoms herself for the first time this year, saying "when I'm asking for a condom over the counter I
am basically putting my health first." Still, in a telling sign of the somewhat taboo nature of the topic, the 31-year-old declined to share
Condoms features former pornstar Sunny Leone in videos, some labelled "EXCLUSIVE UNCENSORED"
Durex earlier this year launched "Explorers Wanted" lubricants campaign in India which featured sensual shots of nude male body
from the medical store in Odisha, doesn't stock Durex "because they are costly and there's no demand for them in rural areas," and says
A pack of 10 Durex condoms starts retailing at around 250 rupees, with some priced above $6, and a similar pack of Manforce starts at
"We are starting at the top (and) planning to get down to the rural areas," Duhan said
"It's a massive undertaking".First Published: Sep 12 2024 | 11:24 AMIST
