BENGALURU: With the aim of strengthening its personal wash category business, FMCG company Wipro Consumer Care and Lighting, a part of the Azim Premji-led Wipro Enterprises, has made its 15th acquisition by acquiring brands JO, Doy and Bacter Shield from VVF (India) Limited. These three brands together recorded Rs 210 crore revenue in FY23.
The company, which crossed Rs 10,000 crore sales in FY23, wants to double revenues of these three brands in the next three years. This is the company's third acquisition within the last one year. About 51% of its revenues come from international business.
"Our acquisitions have grown well. We have been profitable and we continue to explore new opportunities and are confident of acquiring new brands and growing them rapidly," said Neeraj Khatri, Chief Executive-Wipro Consumer Care & Lighting-India.
The company has invested over $1 billion in acquisitions so far. While JO soap is the key brand with significant play in the north, east and west markets, Doy operates in the premium segment with differentiated positioning and Bacter Shield has an antibacterial range of soap and handwash.
Khatri said JO will give them an entry into the sub-popular soap segment, which is 25% of the toilet soap category by volume. He added that there is a lot of head room to grow these brands. The company's home grown brand Santoor is the second largest brand in India after Lifebuoy, and it is No 3 in the handwash space.
Santoor alone clocked Rs 2,650 crore revenues last year and the company grew 17.7% in India last year. "While the Chandrika brand has grown six times since we acquired it in 2003, Yardley has grown over 15 times since we acquired it some 12 years ago," said Khatri.
Wipro operates five manufacturing facilities across the country, and it also plans to invest in its facility in Maharashtra. As far as the hand wash segment is concerned, Khatri said it peaked during Covid and now has better penetration than pre-Covid levels.
According to Market Research firm IMARC Group, the bath soap market size in India reached $3,063.9 million in 2023 and it expects the market to reach $4,994.7 million by 2032. Key players in the market include Hindustan Unilever, ITC and Johnson & Johnson, among others.
Apart from personal wash brands and lighting, the company last year forayed into the food business with the acquisition of Nirapara. In April this year, it acquired Brahmins, a brand from Kerala. The company also plans to launch its own brand in the snacks segment and the brand will focus on the southern market.