India may be Amway hub for exports

Direct selling firm Amway India is exploring the possibility of making India a manufacturing hub for exports to the region, a company official said on Friday.

Amway India, a 100 per cent subsidiary of Alticor Inc of the United States, also posted its highest turnover during 2003-04 (Sept 03-Aug 04) of Rs 636 crore (Rs 6.36 billion), since entering India in 1998, Stephen Beddoe, director, marketing and distributor relations, Amway India, said.

"The parent Alticor is looking at making India a hub for exports," he said. Amway India, the country's leading fast moving consumer goods firm in the direct selling channel, locally produces 80 per cent of the goods sold here through five contract manufacturers.

The company has invested over $4 million in the manufacturing facilities to "achieve international benchmarking levels of manufacturing, engineering and quality control," he said.

The turnover of Rs 636 crore during its last financial year was an increase of over 10 per cent from the previous year's Rs 579 crore (Rs 5.79 billion).

The parent Alticor Inc's turnover touched $6.2 billion last year, an increase of $1.3 billion over 2003, the largest dollar increase year-to-year in the company's history, Beddoe said.

Amway India also launched a dietary supplement 'Nutrilite Natural B', taking the total number of products in nutrition and wellness category to 12. The company has over 55 products in India in the four categories of personal care, home care, nutrition and wellness and cosmetics.