Zydus Wellness, known for brands such as SugarFree and Complan, plans to increase its direct distribution to one million outlets in the coming years. The company also said it is open to “bolt-on acquisitions,” especially in the international markets, to expand its portfolio.
Tarun Arora, CEO, Zydus Wellness, told BusinessLine, “ We have grown our direct reach to over 5.5 lakh outlets. Our aspiration is to grow our direct distribution to about one million outlets in the next few years. In this financial year alone, we will add one lakh additional direct distribution points. “
In response to the unprecedented inflation, the company has adopted various strategies, including increasing prices to 7–8 per cent in this calendar year. “Inflationary pressures have been higher than what was anticipated in the last few months, especially due to recent geo-political factors. We have been focusing on reducing costs, besides looking at the price pack architecture. Inflation affects both demand as well as profitability,” Arora said.
The company ended the March quarter with a growth of about 6 per cent in net sales and concerns around volume growth remain, he added.
After two washed-out summer seasons in the past due to pandemic waves, the early onset of the summer season this year has been helpful for Glucon D and Nycil, which see a significant chunk of business coming from the January-June period.
In the past two years, the company has launched new products in response to evolving consumer needs due to the pandemic. It is now focusing on scaling up some of these launches, such as Everyuth body lotions and the Nutrilite DoodhShakti portfolio.
“ Five of our brands are market leaders, and hence category development remains our top priority. As market leaders, we need to continue to grow the categories through innovations in product development as well as improving access to our products across channels. For instance, we are focusing on growing the distribution of our Nutrilite Doodshakti across the top 40 cities , “Arora explained.
Speaking about the international business, Arora said that the company has been expanding its international footprint to new geographies such as Lebanon, Zimbabwe, Hong Kong, Ethiopia, and Australia during the last financial year.
“We also launched new extensions to Sugar Free such as Sugar Free D’lite Cookies and Sugar Free D’Lite Chocolate Spread in international markets. The international business continues to grow at a high double digit rate. We could look at bolt-on acquisitions to fill gaps in our portfolio, especially in our top international markets , “he added.