A

Research Report
ON
A Study of Distribution Channels in Case of
Hindustan Uniliver ltd.
Submitted by:
ADITI PAL
1569570001
IN THE PARTIAL FULFILLMENT FOR THE AWARD OF THE
DEGREE OF THE

MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

(2016-17)

SHRI RAM GROUP OF COLLEGES,

MUZAFFARNAGAR
(Affiliated to APJ Abdul Kalam Technical University,
Lucknow)
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

First of all I would like to thank my project guide. Mr. PANKAJ Sir Faculty member of Shri Ram

Group of Colleges. Who gave me the choice to choose the project work from the fill of my

choice, the support he gave me throughout my study is worth mentionable.

I am also thankful to my gratitude to my loving parents, and my friends and well-

wishers, who were the source of warm impetus and inspiration, behind the academic sense.

ADITI PAL
 DECLARATION

We are the student of MBA. This research report on distribution channel is our original work.

There is no other report regarding this topic by any other and this type of same project are not

going to be submitted in any other university.

ADITI PAL
 PREFACE

There are number forces that make marketing endlessly changing activity. The constantly activity

sociological, psychological and political environment may represent the uncontrollable marketing

factors. To understanding these factors in better way marketing research is of utmost importance.

This research report has been completed in partial fulfillment of my management program,

MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION (MBA). The objective of my project was A

STUDY OF DISTRIBUTION CHANNELS IN CASE OF HINDUSTAN

UNILIVER LTD.

With such large population and the untapped market of populations loans happens to be very big

opportunity in India. Today it stands as a business growing at the rate of 12-16 percent annually.

Together with banking services, it adds about 10 percent customer to the city.

In spite of all this growth the statistics of the penetration of the loans in the country is average. It

is an indicator that growth potential for the loans sector is immense in India.

ADITI PAL
 1569570001INDEX

Acknowledgement .2

Declaration .3

Preface .4

Introduction 6-10

Objective 11

Scope of the study 12-30

Importance of the study 31-36

Research methodology 37-46

Findings 47-49

Suggestion of the study 50-52

Future plans 53-65

Conclusion 66

Limitations 67

Recommendation 68-71

Bibliography 72
Introduction
INTRODUCTION OF DISTRIBUTION CHANNELS

Whi

le the rural market certainly offers a big attraction to marketers, it would be nave to think that any

company can enter the market without facing any problems and walk away with a sizable share.

Distribution is the most important variable in the marketing plans of most consumer goods

manufacturers, because managing such a massive sales and distribution network is in itself a huge

task.
Distribution channels play a pivotal role in marketing by performing a number of vital

distribution functions. Firms rely mostly on their marketing channels to generate customer

satisfaction and to achieve differentiation over competition. The major area of concern for

companies is to make their products available in the remotest corners of the 6 lakh villages in the

country. This goal is not easy to achieve and the major companies are incurring huge costs to

make their products available in the 3.5 million rural outlets. It is a challenge for any company to

design a distribution model that is cost effective and that meets the growing demand from the

rural market. There are a whole lot of channels involved in the distribution network. FMCG

distribution has the maximum channel partners in the Indian rural market.

The wholesaler is the most important source of information for the retailer. The wholesaler is also

the most important influence on the retailer. This means that the marketer would do well to

motivate the wholesaler to get the retailer in the rural market to stock his companys products,

particularly the newer products. Retailers in interior areas are not visited by agents of distributors.

They go to the nearby town / large feeder village once or twice a month to buy their stock.

Understanding channel behavior has a critical bearing on channel decisions. The ability to

influence the retailer to stock and promote products requires identifying the manner in which the

retailer performs his business. The extending of credit by retailers to customers is a function of

location and product. Raut98 observed that extending credit to consumers is practically non-

existent in towns but is common in interior villages.

The distribution levels identified were Distributors, Super-stockist, Wholesalers, Stockists, and

retailers. Total 11 distributors / super-stockist / stockists, 40 wholesalers, 60 retailers and 100 rural

customers were selected for the research analysis since the remaining were incomplete in many

respects and hence were discarded from the final research. The non-probability

purposive/judgmental sampling technique was used. The researcher chose the sample based on

common trait of interest that would be appropriate for the study. The research study was

conducted with a purpose in mind, the sample was selected to include people who evinced interest

and excluded those who did not suit the purpose.

HUL Model 1: In this model, the wholesaler plays a very crucial role because the distributor can

not reach the places where there is no road connectivity. The wholesaler keeps large assortments

which induce the rural retailers and subsequently, the rural customers get attracted because the

rural traders play a key role in the buying decision of rural customers.

HUL Model 2: In this model, the rural distributor covers the retailers which are located in the

same Taluqua and the retailers which are well connected by roads and telecommunication. Here

retailers get better margin as one channel member (wholesaler) is reduced and lead time is also

less; Shakti dealer gets chance to meet the distributor who has very large assortments.

General information about distributors, wholesalers and retailers

It was found out that there are no distributors and wholesalers in the villages whose population is

less than 2500. However, retailers exist in all villages regardless of the population. Majority of the

distributors (45.45%) and wholesalers (48%) started their businesses during the years 2001

2003, whereas majority of retailers started their businesses during the years 2004 - 2006. There

was no distributor appointed after 2007. Not a single wholesaler was appointed by HUL / Godrej

before the year 2000. However, retailers existed before the year 2000 also. most of the distributors

studied (63.63%), had immovable products between the range of 11 15 annually because they

have to keep wide varieties due to higher sales so more demand is more inventory and more

immovable products also. Likewise, most wholesalers (50%) had them between the ranges of 6

10, but retailers had very few immovable products, i.e. in the range of 0 5 and 6 - 10. The main

reason for immovable products is damage in transit or on the shelf.

Hence they do not sell and are dead stock with them. Distributors spent more annually on

immovable products due to their large turnover as they are the suppliers to the wholesalers.

Wholesalers spent lesser as compared to distributors due to fewer turnovers and retailers spent the

least on immovable products. Marketers have introduced the system of taking immovable

products back from distributors recently not because its damaged but unsold and compensated

with another products. This process takes much time so the money remains blocked.

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

 To study the strategy of distribution channels of HUL.
To analyze the rural distribution channels.
To study the future plans of HUL.
Scope of the study

Significance of Channels of Distribution:

The channels of distribution refer to the various link-roads which connect the producer and the

final consumer. Production is meant for distribution. Various are the products; various also are the

ways or link-roads which may be used for the products to reach the ultimate consumers. The paths

by which products may be channelized may be straight, short, direct or long and indirect.

Manufacturers are to depend on and rely on the persons (middle men) who operate between the

producer and the consumer. It is principally on the nature of the product that will determine the

nature of its passage to the consumer.

A middle-man may be adequate for the product to reach the consumer or a number of middle-men

may be required considering the nature of the product and the distance between the producer and

consumer. However, the significance of the channels cannot be overemphasized.

It is common sense to appraise the need of a channel or a number of channels for a product to

meet the consumer. The ultimate object of the marketing mixture all are the means and an end in

themselves, the end is to place the products in the hands of the consumers who are ready to pay

for them.

Middle-men bridge the gap between the producer and the consumer. The channels or routes may

be different but agents must be waiting for the work of conveying the products to the consumers

but for which activity, the whole of the marketing functions result in nothingness.

So, the significance of the channels of distribution is so evident that it leaves very little scope to

impress upon others the significance that the channels do possess.

Factors of Channels of Distribution:

The channels of distribution are the link-roads for the goods to move from the producer to the

consumer. The possible paths or channels through which goods may move are many in number

and varied. But all are not taken recourse to at a time for a particular; nor is it required that the

product will need either one channel or a number of channels.

ADVERTISEMENTS:

It may be that only one channel may be the suitable route for a particular product to reach the

consumer or it may be a number of channels have to be chosen. It all depends upon a number of

factor on the merit of each case.

Principal channels of distribution are: Wholesalers and Retailers.

Wholesalers may be of different types as well retailers may have varied classifications.

The channels of distribution are generally classified into:

ADVERTISEMENTS:

(i) Middlemen and

(ii) Direct selling by manufacturers.

Middlemen may be divided into two main categories:

(i) Function middlemen or mercantile agents and

ADVERTISEMENTS:
(ii) Merchants.

The functional middlemen may be brokers, commission agents, auctioneers, common carriers,

banks, insurance companies etc.

Merchant middlemen are of two types wholesalers and retailers.

In accordance with the prevalent practice, the wholesalers may be divided three types:

(i) Manufacturer wholesalers,

(ii) Retailer Wholesalers,

(iii) Wholesalers proper.

The pure wholesalers may be classified into three categories:

(a) Mill supply wholesalers,

(b) Single line wholesalers,

(c) Complete line wholesalers.

Choice of Channel:

The choice of the suitable channel is difficult. There are certain factors which need be considered.

The factors are:

(i) Product,

(ii) Market,

(iii) Middlemen,

(iv) Company,

(v) Channel decision.

(i) Product:
In case of perishable products, few and controlled levels of distribution are preferable. For durable

and standardized goods, longer and diversified channel may be necessary. For custom made

product direct distribution to consumer or industrial user may be desirable.

For technical product, specialized selling talent is necessary and the channel becomes the shortest.

Systems approach need package deal and shorter channel service. Products of high unit value are

sold directly by travelling sales-force and not through middlemen.

(ii) Market:

A consumer market needs retailers. A big market may have many channels whereas in a small

market, direct selling is more suitable. In a highly concentrate market, direct selling yields better

results but in scattered wide market, many channels are required to operate. Size and average

frequency of customers order also influence the channel decision.

Food products need both wholesalers and retailers. Consumer and dealer analysis are necessary

for various information in the selection of suitable channels of distribution. Desire for credit,

preference for one stop shopping, demand for personal services, amount of time and effort the

customer is willing to spend all are important factors in channel choice.

(iii) Middle-men:

Middle-men are wanted particularly in promotional stage. To sell largest volume of products at

lower unit cost, middlemen are given priority.

(iv) Company:
A big firm needs shorter channel. The companys product mix influences the pattern of channels.

A resourceful company does not rely very much on middlemen. Quantity and quality of marketing

services provided by the company can influence the channel choice directly.

(v) Channel decision:

After a careful analysis, a company may decide whether to attempt extensive, selective or

exclusive distribution or combination of all the three types. Once the company has chosen its

design and level of distribution, it has to select middlemen. Channel reorganization may be

necessary if the experience so demands.

To choose the right channel, it is important to given acquaintance of the parts of the distribution

structure before the actual selection takes place. The channel decision has to be properly

coordinated with other marketing decision.

Introduction

Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) (BSE: 500696) is India's largest fast moving consumer goods

company owned by the European company Unilever. The Anglo-Dutch company Unilever owns a

52% majority stake.

HUL was formed in 1933 as Lever Brothers India Limited and came into being in 1956 as

Hindustan Lever Limited through a merger of Lever Brothers, Hindustan Vanaspati Mfg. Co. Ltd.

and United Traders Ltd. It is headquartered in Mumbai, India and has employee strength of over

15,000 employees and contributes to indirect employment of over 52,000 people. The company
was renamed in June 2007 as Hindustan Unilever Limited.

Lever Brothers started its actual operations in India in the summer of 1888, when crates full of

Sunlight soap bars, embossed with the words "Made in England by Lever Brothers" were shipped

to the Kolkata harbor and it began an era of marketing branded Fast Moving Consumer Goods

(FMCG). Hindustan Unilever's distribution covers over 1 million retail outlets across India

directly and its products are available in over 6.3 million outlets in the country, nearly 80% of all

retail outlets in India. The company claims that two out of three Indians use its many home and

personal care products, food and beverages.

Products of HUL

Network of HUL

7,500 distributors serve

4,000 Redistribution stockiest

35 C&FAs in the country

40 manufacturing plants - 2 million square miles territory

6.3 million retail outlets

About 250 million rural consumers

Distribution Network

Project Streamline
 HUL initiated a Streamline initiative in 1997- cater to the needs of the inaccessible market

Focuses on extending distribution to villages with less than 2000 people

Project Shakti

In 2001, with partnership of self help group of rural women & covers 5000 villages in 52 districts

in different states.

SHAKTI targets small villages with the population of less than 2000.

Providing health & hygiene education through shaktivani program.

Now SHAKTI has been extended 80,000 villages in 15 states with 45,000 women entrepreneurs

& generating Rs.700-1000 per month to each woman

Lifebuoy swasthaya chetna

Life boy swasthaya chetna (LBSC) is a rural health& hygiene initiative which was started in

2002.

LBSC was initiative in media dark villages in (UP, MP, Bihar, Orissa) with the objective of

spreading awareness about the washing hands with the soup.

Being India's leading personal wash health brand Lifebuoy saw a role for itself in propagating the
massage of hygiene & health in village

LBSC is multi-phased activity which works towards effecting behavior change amongst the rural

population it touches.

It target children as they are the harbingers of change in society and mothers since they are the

custodians of health.

The first interaction with students is then replicated with the women and finally the rest of the

community.
Framework for Marketing
Channel Strategy in Rural
India
Solutions
Solutions
 Potentially low chance of legal recourse if
partner contracts are violated
Both Sara Lee and Proctor & Gamble
entered into joint ventures with local Indian
companies to more effectively distribute
their products.
 Local Non-Profit Organizations
Information and picture sourced from MART internal presentation - 2005
Cons
Low visibility into end customer sales and product reception
Facts about Uttar Pradesh:

Population of 200 Million people

Half the size of California

Annual per-capita GDP of $294 USD per year

Most residents do not have access to grid electricity

IMPORTANCE OF THE STUDY
To earn the love and respectof India, by making a realdifference to every Indian.

HUL leads global research in Oral, Skin and Laundry

To Reach:

Small, scattered settlements and poor

infrastructure make distribution difficult

Over 500,000 villages not reached directly

by HUL

To Communicate:

Low literacy hampers effectiveness of print

media

Poor media-reach: 500 million Indians lack

TV and radio

To Influence:

Low category penetration, consumption,

brand awareness

Per capita consumption in Unilever

categories is 33% of urban levels

Three Shakti initiatives

Shakti entrepreneur; currently ~ 44000 women

cover 1,25,000 villages

Shakti Vani: one-to-many communication for

category growth

iShakti: customized interaction with remote

consumers

Impact on community

Business and social impact can go together

Partnerships with diverse stakeholders

HLL distribution system is the best amongst FMCG companies.

At present, HLL's products, manufactured across the country, are distributed through a network of

about 7,000 redistribution stockists covering about one million retail outlets. Extending

availability Data on rural consumer buying behaviour indicates that the rural retailer influences

35% of purchase occasions.

Therefore, sheer product availability can determine brand choice, volumes and market share.

HLL used the principle of project stream line .The principle of Project Streamline is to leverage

our scale and organizational synergy to increase reach in rural markets.

The pivot of Streamline is the Rural Distributor (RD), who has15-20 rural sub-stockiest attached
to him. Each of these sub-stockiest is located in a rural market. The sub-stockiest then performs

the role of driving distribution.

Project Streamline was conceptualized to significantly enhance control on the rural supply chain

through a network of rural sub-stockiest, who are based in these very villages.

As part of the project, higher quality servicing, in terms of frequency, credit and full-line

availability, would be provided to rural trade. Thereby, giving us a substantial competitive edge

over the next decade

The role performed by the Redistribution Stockiest has also undergone changes over the years.

Financing stocks, providing manpower, providing service to retailers, implementing promotional

activities, extending indirect coverage, reporting sales and stock data, screening for transit

damages are some of the functions performed by the RS today.

The RS was required to provide the distribution units to the company salesman. The RS financed

his stocks and provided warehousing facilities to store them. The RS also undertook demand
stimulation activities on behalf of the company.

The RS would be able to provide customer service only if he was serviced well. This knowledge

led to the establishment of the "Company Depots" system. This system helped in transshipment,

bulk breaking, and as a stock point to minimize stock-outs at the RS level.

In the recent past, a significant change has been the replacement of the Company Depot by a

system of third party Carrying and Forwarding Agents (C&FAs). The C&FAs act as buffer stock-

points to ensure that stock-outs did not take place.

The C&FA system has also resulted in cost savings in terms of direct transportation and reduced

time lag in delivery. The most important benefit has been improved customer service to the RS.

Certain C&FAs were selected across the country to act as mother depots. Each of them has a

minimum number of JIT depots attached for stock

requirements. All brands and packs required for the set of markets which the MD and JITs service
in a given area are sent to the mother depot by all manufacturing units. The JITs draw their

requirements from the MD on a weekly or bi-weekly basis.

 Research

Methodology
 INTRODUCTION

Research can be carried-out using various methods and techniques which are collectively called

as research methods. Research methods are the tools and techniques for analyzing and collecting

data so that meaningful outcomes can be extracted from the problem being studied. Research

methodology can be defined as the scientific procedure to solve various problems related to

research.

It has a wider scope than research methods, as in addition to the methods and techniques,

the researcher designs different problem. Therefore, it is concerned with the application of

research methods as per the requirement.

Research plays a vital role in management decision making by analyzing the situation

systematically and finding new ways to support the operations. For example, a company may

conduct research to know the consumer review about certain products.

A primarily intended for students of social science in Indian universities, but the content in this

book can be useful for anyone looking to understand and develop a research strategy. Research in

any discipline involves understanding the basic principels and concepts used in research and also

understanding the existing practices that are prevalent when it comes to gathering and analyzing.
A collection of methods and methodologies that researchers apply systematically to

produce scientifically based knowledge about the social world.

Methodology & methods, two terms are often treated as synonyms. Methodology is broader

and envelops methods. It is understanding the social-organizational context, philosophical

assumptions, ethical principles and political issues of the enterprise of researchers who use

methods.

Methods are set of specific techniques for selecting cases,

measuring and observing aspects of social life, gathering and refining data, analyzing data

and reporting on results.

Research must be systematic and follow a series of steps and a rigid standard protocol.

These rules are broadly similar but may vary slightly between the different fields of

science.

Alternative to Research

Authority

Tradition

Common sense

Media myths

Personal experience
Research Methodology

The study of conducting research is Research Methodology.

Research: The word research is composed of two syllables Re and Search.

Re is the prefix meaning Again or over again or a new and Search is the

latter meaning to examine closely and carefully or to test and try.

Together they form, a careful, systematic, patient study and investigation in some

field of knowledge undertaken to establish principles / policies.

Research can also be defined as

1. Search for knowledge

2. Systematic and scientific search for getting relevant answers on any taken up

specific topic.

3. Scientific enquiry into a subject.

4. Research is a movement from the unknown to the known.

5. It is the voyage of discovery

Acc to Bulmer,

Research is primarily committed to establishing systematic, reliable and valid

knowledge about the social world.

Acc. To Clifford Woody,

Research comprises of

Defining and redefining problems.

 Formulating hypothesis (basic idea)

Collecting

Organizing

Evaluating data

Making decisions

Suggesting solutions

Reaching conclusions

Finally, carefully testing the conclusions

To determine whether they fit the formulated Hypothesis.

1. Controlled:The research problem should not be affected or influenced by external

factors (i.e. variables other than the participating facts).

2. Rigorous: The procedures followed to find answers to questions should be relevant,

appropriate & justified. But the degree of rigiour may vary from one problem to another

problem.

3. Systematic:The investigation should follow a certain logical sequence (Not in a

haphazard manner)

4. Valid & Verifiable: The findings should be valid & can be verified by you or

others at any time.

5. Empirical: The conclusions drawn should be based on hard evidence, gathered from

real life experiences or observations.

6. Critical: The process of investigation must be foolproof and free from drawbacks.

The process adapted and the procedures used must be able to withstand any critical

scrutiny.

The statement of the objective of the Research problem is of basic importance

because,

(i) It determines the data which are to be collected

(ii) Characteristics of the relevant data

(iii) Choice of techniques to be used in these explorations

(iv) Frame a Final report

Step II

Extensive Literature Survey:

A brief summary of the problem should be written down.

Make extensive literature survey

Sources of survey can be, journals, bio-graphics, Govt. reports, books, conference

proceedings etc.

Based on the nature of the problem.

Earlier study if any which is similar to the study in hand should be carefully

studied.

A good library will be a great help to the researcher at this stage.

 It indicates the type of data required for the study.

Type of methods of data analysis done.

How to develop working Hypothesis?

1) Discuss with collogues / experts, about the problems, its origin, its objectives and

solutions.

2) Examination of data/ records if available.

3) Review similar studies / similar problems.

4) To secure greater insight into the practical aspects of the problem conduct

personnel investigation or field interviews.

Type of Research Design : 4 types

1) Sampling Research Design : Deal with selection of relevant items

2) Observational Research Design: Deals with the observations (field

observations) that is to be made.

3) Statistical Research design: Deals with the information on the data collected &

analyzed.

4) Operational Research Design: How the above three are carried out.

Determining sample Design:

All the items considered in any field of inquiry constitute a universe or

population. Study of the entire population without leaving out a single item is

known as Census Study

 This type of census study is practically not possible.

So we select few items from the entire population for our study purpose. The items

so selected constitute what is technically called sample.

The way of selecting such a sample is known as the Sample Design.

These samples can be either probability samples or non probability samples.

Probability: Each item in the population has on equal chance of being selected

for the study.

1) Simple random sampling

2) Systematic random sampling

3) Stratified random sampling

4) Cluster / area random sampling.

1) Execution of the Project: (Putting a plan)

Important step in Research study.

See that the project is executed in a systematic manner and in time.

E.g.) If the survey done in a project is via Questionnaire the answers can be

machine coded / processed

If interview were conducted, make sure that the interviewers are well trained

to keep the survey as much as realistic as possible.

Analysis of Data :
 After the data are collected the researcher turns to the task of analyzing the data

the analysis of data require closely related operations, like coding, Editing &

Tabulation.

The wide data collected should be condensed into small manageable groups,

for easy analysis.

Coding: The collected data are transformed into symbols that may be

tabulated or counted.

Editing: Unwanted & irrelevant data will be removed.

Tabulation: Technical procedure where the data are put in the form of tables.
 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Research Descriptive
Type
Type of Data Secondary

Descriptive Research:

Survey or fact finding enquires of different kinds. It describes the actual

prevailing state of affairs, existing at present.

Otherwise known as ex post facts means existing position of facts / issues.

Here the variable influencing the research has no control or the researcher has

no control over the variables.

Eg: Frequency of shopping, customer preference etc.

 FINDINGS

The results are evaluated vis--vis the objectives have been justified with the support of data.

Therefore the objectives of the study are highlighted once again before the discussion of the

results. This study has one main objective and nine sub objectives comprising of
To study the Rural Marketing Strategies of selected H.U.L. products and its influence on buying

behaviour of the selected rural respondents from rural market in Gujarat State. Rural marketing

strategies are comprises of various thoughtful planning and activities and the bunch of all those

are known as strategies. Mainly in marketing, 4Ps are considered as marketing mix. The

combination of various Ps namely Product, Price, Place and Promotion are being implemented

effectively to get success in to market. In the rural areas there are 4As as like 4Ps, namely

Availability, Awareness, Affordability and Acceptability. So all the company needs to consider

the 4As and design their strategies accordingly to get more success specifically in rural market.
In the other sub objective an attempt has been made to identify, the factors which plays an

important role while making buying decision towards selected H.U.L. products, and It can be

concluded from the collected data of selected rural respondents that, majority of respondents give

first priority to the good quality of products and almost similar importance has been given to the

low price of the products, so rural respondents are looking for good quality of products in low

price. With this they do give importance to the some of the factors like easily availability of the

products, discounted price and in some products fragrance and colour variations in the products.

While there are such factors which are being least considered by the selected rural respondents

those are brand loyalty, brand ambassador, advertisement and seasonal effect associated with the

selected H.U.L. products, while making purchase decision. So it clearly indicates that the product
strategy form the H.U.L. is being well accepted and people are using H.U.L. products because of

above mentioned reasons.

The effectiveness of the marketing strategy can also be measured by the satisfaction level of rural

consumers. So the same has been analysed with the help of collected data and it can be said that

the majority of the rural respondents are quite satisfy with the products and overall product

attributes. The other important aspect of marketing strategy is the price of the product, the

collected data says that, rural consumers are more price savvy compare to brand name and

quality of the product. They give first preference to the price of the product and with this they are

looking for good quality of product. So customer prefers the H.U.L. products because of in some

cases it is low price and good quality product. The other important factor of marketing strategy is

promotion of the products. Specifically in the case of selected H.U.L. products in selected rural

areas of Gujarat state, rural respondents are price conscious and so in rural areas, the most

preferred promotional activity for the selected H.U.L. brands is price discounts on MRP of the

product. Rural respondents prefer to purchase the branded products but with this they give equal

importance to the price of the products, so they are looking for price discount. While very few

rural respondents prefers the extra quantity in the same price as a part of promotional activity.

The last but not least, the important factor of the rural marketing strategies is availability of the

product at the regular buying places of rural consumers. The collected data says that, in case of

selected H.U.L. products, in majority of selected product the availability is almost 95%. As par

the collected data, the lowest availability among selected H.U.L. product is tea and its

availability is also 77%. It means that the selected H.U.L. products have satisfactory presence in

the selected rural areas of Gujarat state. So, overall it can be said that, the rural marketing

strategies being implemented by the H.U.L. for selected products and in the selected rural areas

are quite satisfactory, their strategy helps them to achieve the results like good awareness level of
H.U.L. products, good acceptance level of selected H.U.L. products by customers, satisfy

customers, makes the products available at majority of places, respondents are happy with the

pricing of the product and they are also happy with the promotional activity being offer by the

H.U.L. , for the selected products in selected rural areas of Gujarat State.
SUGGESTIONS OF THE STUDY:
The suggestions from the study are as mention below: As per collected data it can be said that,

95% of rural respondents are using television as their main source of information. So H.U.L.

should focus more on television advertisement. As per the collected data, table 5.14 of cross

tabulation, it can be said that, almost 65% of rural respondents are saying that, they faced

problem of product differentiation between branded products and spurious product. So company

should consider this point while framing strategy related to products and try to 244 give some

unique identification with high level of awareness to the products, which makes them different

from other brands and easy to recognize. It is clearly seen that from table 5.15, advertisement

helps to enhance the product knowledge. So to increases the product awareness, company

should focus more on advertisement. As far as the rural consumers are concern, company should

think about regional language advertisement, which may lead to more awareness with deep reach

in to the rural areas. As per collected data, it can be said that out of five H.U.L. selected

products categories, except tea other four categories namely; toilet soap, detergent soap, tooth

paste and hair shampoo are being used almost 95% by rural respondents in selected areas of

Gujarat state. While in case of tea about 75% of rural respondents have used it. So company

should more emphasis on increasing awareness and acceptance level of selected H.U.L. tea in

selected rural areas of Gujarat state. As per collected data and shown in table (annexure-1),

almost 70% of rural respondents are giving reference to medium size product, while making

purchase decision, specifically in selected rural areas of Gujarat state. So company should try to

focus on designing the products in medium size packaging, which may fulfill the rural

requirements and helps the company to increase their market share. It has been observed
thorough collected data that, there is an increment in the family income of the rural respondents.

It indicate that it may lead to more purchasing power so company should understand the

requirement of the rural respondents and make products according to their requirements to get

quick acceptance of the product in the rural area of Gujarat state. Rural respondents give more

preference to the price of the product compare to the brand name and quality of the product. So

companies should frame their pricing strategy accordingly to attract the majority of rural

consumer towards the product. As per the data collected and with reference to designed

hypothesis, it can be said that, rural respondents satisfaction level is indirectly associated with

price of the products. As per data collection, rural respondents shows very low brand loyalty

towards selected H.U.L. products. So if rural respondents get an option of low price with 245

good quality product, they may switchover the brand. So F.M.C.G. manufacturer / Agencies need

to consider this point while framing rural marketing strategy and try to frame such promotional

activity which leads them to make at least repetitive costumer and slowly move them towards the

aim of brand loyal costumer. There is no doubt that high price products, have high customer

involvement and lead towards the high product satisfaction with brand loyalty. But here H.U.L.

being F.M.C.G. company, it should be ensured that customers have repetitive purchase which

may turn them in loyal customers and to ensure the loyalty, the blending of 4ps should be

devised considering the specific needs, wants, perceived performance and various products

attributes for the rural consumers. As per collected data, Annexure -1 Table-3, majority 93% of

the rural respondents give first preference to the price of the products and subsequently they

give importance to quality of products, quantity of products, awareness of products, and

availability of products. They give less importance to credit facility and opinions by friends and

family. As per the collected data and Annexure -1, Table- 4, total 61.6% of selected rural
respondents have mobile phone connectivity, 50% of respondents owned two wheeler and 32%

of respondents have land ownership. It means that majority of selected rural respondents have

good standard of living and purchasing power. So company should understand the needs of rural

consumers and accordingly product should be design to get high level of acceptance. It has been

found that majority of rural respondents that is 25.1% are graduates, and 24.1% of rural

respondents have qualification up secondary school. Only 10% of rural respondents have not

been to school that means 90% of rural respondents are literate and so company should design

their marketing mix strategies by considering this factor. From the collected data table-5.1, it can

be said that 40.1% of rural respondents were found monthly salaried or work on monthly wages

system. It means that, they have fix monthly income and budget allocation for F.M.C.G.

products. So company should design the product accordingly, which best fitted in to the budget

allocation of the rural respondents and fulfill their expectation towards the products.
FUTURE PLANS
SERVING MANY INDIAS

01

India - A land of growing opportunities

The Indian economy is the bright spot in the global

landscape, said the International Monetary Fund in a recent

statement and added that India is now one of the fastestgrowing

emerging market economies with a growth rate that is

set to accelerate further.

Rating agency Fitch has forecast that Indias gross domestic

product will grow at 8.3 per cent in 2016-17, up from a projected

8 per cent in the current fiscal. And there is much more to come

as many of the promised reforms become a reality. A recent

issue of The Economist noted this about India: Within a

generation, it will become the planets most populous nation. It

could be one of the worlds three largest economies. There is

no reason why the most populous nation should not dream of

being the largest economy in the world.

These changes come just as India is seeking an accelerator to

meet the rising aspirations of a new generation. This is a

generation that has seen incomes and aspirations rise. Whenthe next round of reforms begin to

kick in and rural India starts

benefitting more from the India growth story, change will be

nothing short of transformational.

Homogeneity in Diversity

India is indeed a land of diversity. We are 1.22 billion people

across 29 states and seven union territories with 1,652 spoken

languages, 86 different scripts and over six major religions. The

per capita income within different states range from `17,000 to

` 1.5 lakh. This diversity is further augmented by ethnicity,

beliefs, traditions and consumer preferences.

As is typical of a diverse nation like India, the rapid pace of

change presents as many challenges as opportunities. One out

of four undernourished people in the world live in India. Around97 million Indians do not have

access to an improved source of

drinking water and shockingly, there are more households in

India with a mobile phone than a toilet.

The statistics are alarming and call for immediate action from

the government, companies and communities. Each must play

their role in being a part of the solution to these challenges as

we continue to focus on driving growth.

Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) a part of

the India growth story

HUL has participated in Indias growth agenda over the years

with the firm belief that what is good for India is good for HUL.

Our journey in India started over 100 years ago with the arrival
of a few crates of Sunlight at the Kolkata harbour. Today, nineout of 10 Indian households use our

products. Our brands are

manufactured in over 30 factories and are made available in

over seven million retail outlets across India of which, almost

three million are reached through our distributor partners and

the Shakti network.

Over 18,000 people work in our offices and factories. Thousands

more work along with us as our suppliers, distributors,

stockists and there are other stakeholders who are associated

with our company through the length and breadth of our

operations.

HULs growth and evolution has reflected the needs and

development of India. We have always embraced the priorities

of the country with zeal and enthusiasm. This drove us to take

the lead at critical junctures when the country needed the

support of businesses to contribute to the national cause, be it

our pioneering initiatives towards integrated rural

development, our manufacturing investments in backward

areas, import substitution to save precious foreign exchange or

our renowned leadership and skills development programmes.

Our success has come from the firm belief that our brands and

operations must touch and positively impact every single Indian

across the socio-economic gradient.

At HUL, we have a simple model to ensure that we leverage the

full opportunity that India presents by serving the many Indiaswithin the country. This is essential

for the long term growth of

the Company and more importantly, it also fulfills our

commitment to contribute to Indias growth and development

in an inclusive and sustainable manner.

Serving many Indias

We believe that serving many Indias essentially requires

having a portfolio of brands that reach out to a wide section,

ensuring that everyone has access to our brands rich or poor.

Through our operations, we create a virtuous circle which

benefits every geography of India, and we build talent both in

terms of leadership as well as skills across the value chain of

our operations.

Serving diverse consumers

As the market leader in the FMCG segment in India, we have a

portfolio of products that address the needs of every Indian

consumer be it the affluent consumers or the ones at the

bottom-of-the-pyramid.

Take the laundry segment for example on one hand, we have

Wheel for those who are entering the consumption cycle, we

have Rin for the aspiring middle class and then we have an

entire range of Surf Excel for our higher income consumers,

including those who are upgrading to using washing machines.

Our approach of developing innovations with consumer price

as the starting point is at the heart of our inclusive innovationstrategy. At HUL, we have

institutionalised a challenge cost

mindset where the target price for consumers drives innovation

in each segment and category. Pureit is a recent example of this

approach. It addresses the main barriers to providing access to

safe drinking water lack of electricity and non-availability of

tap water. More importantly, Pureit provides safe drinking water

at an affordable running cost of just 30 paise per litre.

Simultaneously, the brand has also developed a portfolio of

offerings that address the needs of the higher income

consumers through RO and UV purifier devices.

Reaching diverse markets

We provide access to our wide range of products through one of

the most extensive sales and distribution networks not just in

India but anywhere in the world. This network serves us well in

making our brands available in every single town and most

villages in India. At the same time, it enhances livelihoods of

thousands of small distributors and millions of shopkeepers. In

the last four years, we have more than doubled our distribution

reach. We not only enjoy strong leadership positions across

categories in the traditional trade, but also in the emerging

modern trade channel. Our success in the traditional as well as

in the modern trade is reflective of our efforts to continuously

reinvent ourselves with the changing India.

The advent of technology and penetration of mobile phones has

resulted in a large and increasing number of young consumers

who are well connected. They are the consumers who arecomfortable watching a movie online,

booking a doctor's

appointment over the internet or shopping for their favourite

clothes via their mobile phones. Today, the internet is shaping

not only what people watch, but where people buy.

At HUL, we recognised this shift in consumer preference and

identified the growing e-commerce opportunity ahead of the

curve. Today, we are partnering with several e-retailers and

bringing in global best practices from the Unilever network to

better serve the more affluent consumers shopping through

this channel.

More recently, we have embarked on another major

organisational transformation. In line with our underlying

objective of winning in all parts of our business and across

channels and geographies, we have developed an operating

framework called Winning in Many Indias (WiMi). Under this

framework, we have segmented the market into 14 consumer

clusters that are homogenous and added a fifth branch in

Central India, an underpenetrated but high-potential region.

This model brings us even closer to our local consumers and

provides us a more granular understanding of customers and

competitors. It helps us serve our diverse consumer base in a

more differentiated and relevant way across the country. For

example, there is a higher concentration of consumers of

premium beauty products in West Bengal and of fabric

conditioners in Tamil Nadu. This knowledge allows us todifferentiate our marketing efforts in

each of the regions and

meet the needs of our consumers more effectively.

Our ability to serve our consumers better is driven not only by

how easily they are able to access our products, but equally by

how effectively we are able to engage with them. This has driven

us to explore innovative marketing initiatives to engage with our

consumers in the farthest and remotest corners of our country.

Today, there are more mobile phones than there are television

or radio sets. In fact, India is home to the third largest number

of internet users in the world following China and the United

States of America. At HUL, we were early to recognise this

growing digital trend as a game changer. We are not only

increasing investment in digital media, but are also innovating

to increase our impact in this space. HUL set up the first-of-itskind

media lab in the country in 2013 to drive more effective

brand engagements with consumers across digital devices and

platforms. Our capabilities in the digital space have evolved

further with the launch of HUL Now. HUL Now is a digital

media command centre that helps our brands to have real-time

conversations with consumers and amplify our marketing

campaigns.

Equally, we are using mobile technologies to reach parts of

rural India that are still media dark. In these areas there is lack

of access to traditional media like television but the reach of

mobile phones is ubiquitous. After all, there are over 960million mobile phone subscribers across

India. This gave birth

to a breakthrough idea of integrating one of the oldest

mediums of entertainment, the radio, with the most-used

device today, the mobile phone. By transforming the mobile

phone into a free entertainment device, we are giving our

consumers in deep rural India an on-demand, entertainment

channel The Kan Khajura Tesan (KKT).

Serving diverse communities

Our brands are manufactured in 30 different factories in

remote areas of India. These factories play a major role in

creating ecosystems and enhancing livelihoods in the

communities they operate. For example, we have our biggest

personal care plant in Haridwar and we have seen several

suppliers mushroom in the same area, creating employment

opportunities for the local community.

As a company, we have always responded to the national

agenda of inclusive growth. We were amongst the first to go to

various underdeveloped areas with little or no infrastructure to

support factory operations and in the process helped build

industrial ecosystems in each of these remote regions across

India.

Our wide manufacturing footprint has opened up unique

opportunities to reach out to communities and build on our

larger purpose, which is to make sustainable living

commonplace.

Developing inclusive talent

Our people agenda, like everything else we do, embodies the

spirit of inclusiveness and serving the many Indias both for

skill building and for leadership development.

Building employable talent is key to securing the long-term

socio-economic progress for India. India requires 500 million

skilled workers by 2022, according to an estimate made by the

Planning Commission of India. This is an agenda that has to be

addressed by the government as well as corporate India. We

need to equip the youth with the required skills to enable them

to reap the economic benefits of Indias development.

Across our value chain, from the smallholder farmers to our

suppliers, distributors and even factory workers, we are

endeavouring to develop skills and capabilities of those who

work with us.

We have undertaken a host of programmes in the space of

capability building among factory workers. For example, our

Shopfloor Skill Upgrading Programme, Sparkle, assesses

training needs, skills and the performance of our shopfloor

employees. Stepping into One is another programme thatdevelops technical and leadership skills

among shopfloor

employees, providing them with career advancement

opportunities into supervisory roles. It is initiatives like these

that help to drive our efforts to develop talent in an inclusive and

sustainable manner.

Serving India through sustainability

Fundamental to inclusive growth and serving many Indias is

providing the basic needs of health, hygiene, nutrition and a

clean environment.

For a country like India, the low human development index

becomes a barrier for socio-economic progress and denies

millions of people access to a decent standard of living. Today,

approximately 792 million Indians live without improved

sanitation, of which some 597 million continue to defecate in

the open. Over 60 million Indian children are stunted the

highest prevalence in the world. India has the highest number

of child deaths from diarrhoea and pneumonia globally with

609,000 children dying each year before their 5th birthday from

these diseases.

We are convinced that businesses, which work alongside the

government to address these social and environmental

challenges, will thrive in the long term. It is this belief that ledus to launch the ambitious Unilever

Sustainable Living Plan

(USLP) in 2010 which aims to double the size of our business

while decoupling our growth from our environmental impact

and increasing our positive social impact. The USLP lies at the

heart of our business model and is firmly embedded across

every part of the organisation.

As a part of the USLP, we have been driving a behaviour change

model for handwashing with soap to help prevent child mortality

due to diseases like diarrhoea and pneumonia. We have already

helped over 60 million people through our various handwashing

programmes. Last year, we entered into a partnership with

Children Investment Fund Foundation and the Government of

Bihar to promote handwashing behaviour change among

children in Bihar. The main aim of the programme is to help

prevent childhood illness and mortality. We piloted the

programme in two districts of Bihar Begusarai and Khagaria,

reaching out to nearly one million people. We are scaling up this

initiative and over the next three years, we expect to reach out to

an additional 45 million people.

 CONCLUSION
India thrives in its diversity and the only way forward is inclusive growth.

At HUL, our journey of over 100 years is a testament to our commitment to serving the many

Indias. We have a portfolio of brands that cater to the needs and aspirations of every Indian

household, a distribution network that reaches consumers everywhere including in the remotest

rural areas and manufacturing units spread across the country that catalyze economic development

in the regions they operate in. Underpinning these is the overarching purpose of making

sustainable living commonplace. If corporate India has to reap the rewards of the huge India

opportunity, it must also be a part of the solution for the many

challenges that lie ahead of us. As India enters a higher growth trajectory, at HUL, we are ready to

embrace the momentous opportunity that awaits us and reaffirm our commitment to doing well by

doing good.
 LIMITITION
Despite the fact that the questionnaire method is widely used in marketing research it have

several important limitations.

Unwillingness of respondent to provide information.

Questionnaire can be administered to respondent who has considerable

amount of education.
Success and effectiveness mainly depends on the co-operations of the

respondents.
Unintelligent answers or misinterpretation of any question by the

respondents could not be corrected.

Non-response rate is very high.
Cost constraint.
Time consumption.
RECOMMENDATION
Analysis of the BPCL Distribution
Channel
Pros
Consolidates demand into central
retail points
Established and successful
warehousing and logistics network
BPCL is a very trusted brand with
Indian consumers
Cons
Retail store owners not motivated to
sell d.light products
BPCL end customers may not need
d.light products

Recommendations
Incentivize BPCL management and
retail store owners to sell d.light
products
Piggyback off of the BPCL brand to
establish the d.light brand
Educate consumers in Uttar Pradesh
who use kerosene for light about solar
lamps, and drive sales at BPCL retail
stores
Establish d.light distribution centers
in Uttar Pradesh to provide for better
product restocking time
: Todays consumers are very smart, so business should be carried out in an ethical ways. Even

day by day various laws are being enforced for protecting consumers rights. Hence company

should be transparent enough to provide details about various products and special campaigns

should be launch to make consumers aware about how to differentiate spurious products and the

company should legally resort to initiate action against those who are involved in it and strict

legal actions should be enforced. For the betterment and making rural consumer well aware, a

separate department at company level should be created which will take care of the issues and

problems of rural consumers. Company should think about price differentiate strategy for urban

and rural consumer. Rural consumers generally prefer to buy those products, where they can

have credit facilities. Specifically in rural areas people are closely known to each other. So rural

consumers would prefer to purchase the products from where they can avail credit facility. So

company should extend their support specifically for rural shop keepers by providing Credit

facility with reasonable rate of interest to increase the sales of the products in the rural areas. An

attempt should be made to measure the advertisement effectiveness in rural areas. There is no

doubt that, advertisement is meant for creating awareness but subsequently it should also be

ensured that AIDA model is adopted effectively by the rural consumers

. The haat is very basic and local platform promoted by the rural people and for the rural people,

and which has already gain a good acceptance level by rural consumers, so company should

thinks to take the advantage of the same market by making their presence available in to the haat

culture and make the rural people feel that the products are made for them only. As F.M.C.G.
products are low price products and their consumption depends on many factors, so the brand

loyalty associated with it is generally low. Hence company should design their marketing

strategies in such a way, where a rural consumer would like to purchase the product repetitively

due to associated benefit and by the time company get advantage of brand loyalty. 247 Rural

consumers are influenced by local leaders, hence an attempt should be made to involve local

representative, Opinion leader, etc for promotional activity of the products to get easy acceptance

and faith of word of mouth publicity. Continuous Research and Development activities should be

focused upon to understand the changing pattern of test and preferences of the products by the

rural customers and according the products should be developed. F.M.C.G. company may think

for local level, state level, regional level, national level and international level event sponsorship

to increase the awareness of the products. It has been observed that, as far as consumer adoption

process is concerned rural customers feet in category of late majority. They generally do not try

the new products available in the market on experiment bases. So an attempt should be made by

way of formulating effective strategies that rural consumers turn from late majority stage to the

early majority stage and to increase the acceptance level towards modified or new products by

rural consumers.
 BIBLIOGRAPHY

www.hindustanuniliver.com
www.historyofhul.com
Distribution channel of hul from the search of Google
www.hul.co.in
Google search for scope of hul.
Google search for importance of hul.