Key Strategic Drivers

The Company has identified the  following key strategic drivers for achieving its objectives:

Grow the Core

India: Marico has achieved dominant market leadership in the coconut oil, value-added hair oil and super premium refined edible oil categories over the years driven by innovation, superior product proposition, brand building and distribution strength. As these categories continue to offer significant headroom for growth, the Company will aggressively drive conversion from unbranded to branded as well as penetration at the bottom of the pyramid backed by judicious pricing, and  sustained investment behind innovation and brand building.

International: Marico has been successful in building scalable businesses in Bangladesh (organic) and Vietnam (acquired in 2011), capable of consistently delivering double-digit constant currency growth over the medium term. In Bangladesh, the Company will continue to diversify beyond Coconut Oil on the back of its scale, brand equity and distribution strength. In Vietnam as well, the Company forayed into female grooming this year to broaden its offerings beyond male grooming and ethnic foods.

Premiumise the Play

With rising incomes and the expansion of the middle class and high-income segments, consumers in India have exhibited a growing inclination to premium and functional offerings that suit their lifestyles and address unmet modern needs and aspirations. As this trend reshapes future consumption, the Company has been driving premiumisation across its portfolios, which has been further aided by the emergence of the channels of modern trade and e-commerce.

Build New Engines of Growth

Marico has identified Premium Hair Care, Healthy Foods, Male Grooming and Premium Skin Care as potential new engines of growth. With a visible step-up in product launches, a healthy innovation pipeline in the next 12-18 months and the ‘core’ delivering stable growth, these categories could provide significant boost to Marico’s growth in the medium to long-term. In the International business, the Company aims to build scalable businesses in South Asia, Africa, Middle East and Myanmar.

Commitment to Sustainability

With the objective of building to last, sustainability is at the heart of Marico’s overall strategy. We believe social, environmental and economic values are interlinked, and we are in an ecosystem comprising shareholders, consumers, associates, employees, government, environment and society. Our stated purpose is to 'Make a Difference' by ensuring that our existence creates a positive impact on all our stakeholders. Thus, we have focussed on aligning our sustainability goals in line with our business strategy and purpose. The five areas of focus are: Responsible Resource Consumption, Climate  Change, Sustainable Supply Chain, Product Responsibility and Community Development. CSR initiatives are also integral to our sustainability efforts.

Key Enablers

Marico has identified the following as key enablers for executing this strategy and will strive to develop top quartile capability, processes and execution excellence in these areas:

Innovation

Innovation is a key catalyst for growth in the fast paced and dynamic business environment that we operate in today. Marico has ramped up its new product development efforts by refining and streamlining its processes and is making concerted attempts towards offering unique consumer propositions. In order to render the process more agile, the approval matrix for introduction of new variants or extensions of existing product lines has been simplified. Only big ticket ideas or proposals of entry into new categories require the sanction of the Innovation Council (headed by the MD & CEO). Each new product idea is led from inception to launch by a dedicated cross functional team to ensure robust planning and execution. The Company encourages experimentation and calculated risk-taking to increase the probability of success of radical/pioneering ideas to get quantum results.

Go-To-Market Transformation

The Company’s Go-To-Market (GTM) strategy will be focused on improving the width and depth of its distribution through best-in-class infrastructure and win-win relationships with channel partners. Strategic initiatives in sales and supply chain, aided by technology, are aimed at improving efficiencies in selling and GTM. The Company is renewing its efforts toward improved in-store execution and enhancing its presence in salons, pharmacy chains, cosmetics outlets, standalone open format outlets and specialty food outlets. In rural, the Company aims to strengthen its infrastructure and expand direct reach, which we believe will prove to be a source of competitive advantage for organised players in the long run. Aggressive investments have enabled the Company to capitalise on the robust growth in the modern trade and e-commerce channels and have also led to the share of business from these channels to be significantly higher than the sectoral average. We aim to manage the product mix to drive higher profitability in these channels while staying ahead of the curve in resourcing and capability development.

Digital, Analytics and Automation

Marico has increased its focus on digital initiatives to improve consumer engagement, drive sales through e-commerce and build data analytics capabilities for faster and efficient decision-making across the value chain. In sales and distribution, the Company is leveraging digital technologies that enable automation to improve resource allocation and enhance sales productivity. Marico has also deployed Robotic Process Automation (RPA) across various functions such as Finance, Procurement and Human Resources to improve efficiency and accuracy.

Talent & Culture

Marico is committed to creating a compelling experience for its members (employees) by promoting a culture of challenge, enrichment, fulfilment and empowerment. Fostering an inclusive workplace, career mobility options, investment in training, employee wellness initiatives and a transparent performance management system are some of the key tenets that stem from the belief that its people are a key source of competitive advantage for the Company.

Cost Management

Value generation through cost optimisation is ingrained in the cultural DNA of Marico. A definitive structure to the whole process was established with the conceptualisation of the Marico Value Enhancement (MarVal) Program. Instituted in the year FY13, MarVal encompasses generating new ideas as well as managing project execution through established program management practices. Benefits derived from the same are ploughed back into initiatives which can fund future growth, thereby creating a sustainable platform to drive efficiency.