Driven by growth of its household brands — Santoor and Yardley — Wipro Consumer Care and Lighting posted a 20 per cent year-on- year rise in its revenues during the second quarter of the
current fiscal.
Yardley, which the company acquired in 2009, rose 56 per cent annually, while its homegrown brand Santoor rose 26 per cent during the same period.
“We have proved that an ‘old’ brand can be changed to a ‘young’ brand as seen in the case of Yardley,” Mr Vineet Agrawal, President, WCCL, told Business Line. Three main reasons for Yardley’s growth, he said, were improved quality of advertising, increased distribution and focus on younger generation that helped change the brand image.
The company recorded revenues of Rs 800 crore for the quarter.
Net profit stood at Rs 88.2 crore for the quarter, an increase of six per cent over same period last year.
The company is betting big on its deo segment that now contributes about 55 per cent to the India household business comprising brands such as Yardley, Santoor and Chandrika. During the last quarter, the company acquired Aramusk brand from VVF Ltd.
LIGHTING BUSINESS
Mr Agrawal is upbeat about the company’s lighting business. LED sales in the last five months, he says, have equalled the sales of the entire last year. The segment is, thus, expected to grow 100 per cent this year. Operating margins for the division stood at 11 per cent during the quarter.