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LG launches soaps, shampoos in India

LG Household & Health Care, a unit of South Korea's LG Electronics, entered India's fiercely competitive personal care market on Wednesday with the launch of its own range of shampoos, soaps and diapers.

LG Household is making its debut in the sector at a time when the market is choc-a-bloc with foreign and domestic beauty products and competition is cut-throat with discounts abounding.

But the company which exports its range to some 50 countries has a three-year domestic sales target of Rs 250 million and says it will focus on the 'niche market'.

"We believe there's a consumer willing to pay a moderate price for a premier quality product," said Scarlet Park, regional sales and marketing manager of LG Household whose 2000 revenues totaled $842 million.

The company faces competition in the personal care sector from multinationals including HindustanLever Ltd, a subsidiary of Unilever Plc, Proctor & Gamble Health and Hygiene India and domestic firms such as Nirma Ltd.

But the firm said it was not daunted by its rivals.

"We're not going to advertise heavily and so we'll save money there. We're coming here not to compete for market share but to focus in a phased manner on the niche market," said Y S Shim, the firm's director of Indian operations.

"As Indian income levels rise, we may look at manufacturing these products locally," Shim added.

The company, wholly owned by its Korean parent, will later introduce utensil cleaners and detergents in the Indian market.

It has retained Madras-based Universal Corporation Ltd to market its products in cities and large towns initially.

"Over three years our target is to have turnover of 250 million rupees from this product line," said Nilesh Hada, director, UCL which distributes foreign branded products in India.

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