Unilever's Project Shakti

Paper Summary:

The paper looks at Unilever's Hindustan Lever Limited (HLL) brand's new distribution network throughout several Indian states, known as Project Shakti. The paper explains that Shakti relies on an informal distribution network modeled after a micro-finance enterprise structure. The paper analyzes the project's competitive issues, including its consumer marketing, product/service innovation, marketing strategy and target markets. The paper concludes with a recommendation of how to expand the Shakti project.

Outline:
Abstract
Competitive Issues
Conclusion and Recommendations

From the Paper:

"Unilever is one of the world's most recognized consumer product goods (CPG) companies with operations in every major region of the globe. In India, Unilever operates primarily under the Hindustan Lever Limited (HLL) brand and is India's largest CPG manufacturer and specifically within the Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) segment of the industry with revenues of $2.43b in India. While successful in the India market, HLL and its parent corporation are not content because competitive pressures from both local and international brands are forcing HLL to squeeze margins while lowering prices. Unless HLL is able to further penetrate its existing markets in India as well as enter and expand new ones throughout the country, these ever shrinking margins will lead to a lack of profitability and negative revenues. In order to enter new markets within greater India and to reach the rural consumer which is a largely untapped market in India, HLL is developing a sort of grass roots sales and marketing (S&M) distribution network throughout several Indian states known as Project Shakti."

Sample of Sources Used:

• MacMillan, Ian, Alexander van Putten and Rita Gunther McGrath.
• "Global Gamesmanship." Harvard Business Review, May, (2003): p.62.
• Michman, Ronald D., Edward M. Mazze, and Alan J. Greco. Lifestyle Marketing: Reaching the New American Consumer. Westport, CT: Praeger, 2003.
• Rangan, Kasturi and Rohithari Rajan. Unilever in India: Hindustan Lever's Project Shakti--Markeing FMCG to the Rural Consumer. Harvard Business School, 9-505-056.

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