Dabur India Ltd. posted a consolidated net profit of ₹464 crore for the quarter ended June, up 5.3 per cent compared to ₹440.3 crore in the corresponding period of the previous fiscal. Consolidated revenue was up 11 per cent to ₹3,130 Crore.

The company said it witnessed an underlying volume growth of 3 per cent in the India FMCG business.

On an earnings call, Mohit Malhotra, Chief Executive Officer, Dabur India, said with the moderation in inflation, there has been an uptick seen in both rural and urban markets, indicating promising signs of recovery in demand. He added that the company saw rural growth bounce back to high single digits after three quarters. “Rural business has witnessed an uptick in volumes across the board. The industry has seen rural volume growth of about 4 per cent. We witnessed a growth of 8 per cent in rural and urban growth of about 10 per cent,” Malhotra said.

Rural-urban gap

He added that factors such as near-normal rains, good Kharif sowing, and MSP hikes are expected to put more money in the hands of rural consumers. “Rural growth will keep inching up, and the gap between rural growth and urban growth for the industry will keep narrowing,” he said. Nearly 45–50 per cent of business for Dabur India comes from rural regions.

On acquisition plans, especially in the D2C space, Malhotra said, “We have money sitting in our balance sheet for acquisition purposes. We are continuously scouting for targets, including D2C, which, if it happens, would be a premium play for strengthening our urban business. If we come across a company that is synergistic to our healthcare, personal care, or skin care play and if it seems financially worthwhile, we will acquire it.”

In response to certain media reports raising concerns about Dabur Honey’s purity, Malhotra stressed that the company stands by the purity of Dabur Honey. “Every single batch of Dabur honey dispatched from our factories complies with all FSSAI parameters. Every batch of honey is tested for around 65 parameters of FSSAI. We export to many countries, and we comply with the regulations of the regulatory bodies of those countries. The Dabur brand stands for quality and trust in consumers’ minds,” he stated on the earnings call.

The homegrown FMCG major said its OTC business reported growth of 24.3 per cent, while its home care business grew by 14.5 per cent in the June quarter. The oral care business grew by 12.7 per cent and the hair care portfolio was up 10 per cent in the first quarter. While the food business grew by 35 per cent, the beverage portfolio was impacted by the unseasonal rains, witnessing a degrowth of 2 per cent.

Dabur’s International Business reported a 20.6 per cent growth in constant currency terms.

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