After abortive bids to launch an anti-corruption mass movement and a political party, yoga guru Baba Ramdev is now eyeing India's booming fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) market, slated to grow to over $1 trillion by 2020.
Baba Ramdev's Patanjali Ayurveda, which till now was marketing its line of over 800 products only through its own exclusive chain, has decided to compete directly with FMCG majors in the open market from March 1.
The firm claims its products will be on an average 30 per cent cheaper than competitive products in the market and claims a turnover of nearly Rs 400 crore from personal care products.
By opening up distribution channels, the firm is hoping to take the turnover to Rs 2,000 crore this year, Baba Ramdev, the man behind Patanjali Ayurveda told
“Today everybody is talking about India becoming a world super power but this will not be possible without becoming an economic superpower. There is a role for ‘Swadeshi',” Baba Ramdev said.
At present, it sells its body care, healthcare, home care and digestive products through a network of 3,000 ‘Patanjali Chikitsalaya' & ‘Patanjali Arogya Kendra' outlets.
“From March 1, we are launching sale through open market also in Delhi, Haryana, Punjab and Chandigarh and from March 10 in States such as Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Assam, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh,” Baba Ramdev said.
He explained that since raw material was sourced directly from farmers, overhead costs were low and hence, they were able to price their offerings significantly lower than competition.
The firm wants to restrict ad spend to a maximum of 2 per cent of turnover.
The firm has already appointed 20,000 distributors. It also plans to open exclusive ‘Swadeshi Stores' on a franchise model.
The plan is to open one lakh stores in one year. It also aims to expand the number of Patanjali Chikitsalayas & Patanjali Arogya Kendras to 5,000.