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INTRODUCTION High priestess of sacred Indian temple meets English army officer who's unwittingly strayed into holy ground. They fall in love. Her orthodox father vows vengeance... That's the story of Lakm, a 19th century opera written by Frenchman Leo Delibes, from which Simone Tata borrowed the name Lakm (French for Lakshmi, the name of the priestess).

The current size of the Indian cosmetic market is approximately US$ 600 million. Of this, the fastest growing segment is color cosmetics, accounting for around US$ 60 million of the market. Industry sources estimate a rapid growth rate of 20 percent per annum across different segments of the cosmetics industry reflecting an increasing demand for all kinds of beauty and personal care product. Growth has come mainly from the low and medium-priced categories that account for 90 percent of the cosmetics market in terms of volume. Even with a 20 percent average growth rate, the per capita consumption of cosmetics is very low in India. Current per capita expenditure on cosmetics is approximately US$ 0.68 cents as compared to US$ 36.65 in other Asian countries. However, with changing lifestyles, higher disposable incomes, increasing advertising, penetration of satellite television, awareness of the western world and growing importance of beauty pageants, there have been significant changes and use of cosmetics is on the rise. Lakme, a brand originally introduced by the Tata group of India, now bought over by Hindustan Unilever (HUL) of the Unilever group, Tips & Toes, another domestic player, and Revlon dominate the US$ 60 million color cosmetics market. Multinationals, Revlon of the U.S. and L'Oreal's Maybelline has a dominant share of the small premium lipsticks and nail enamels market. Mass-market products account for a major share, while the premium segment accounts only for a mere 9 per cent in lipsticks and 5 per cent in nail enamels. Lipsticks account for

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nearly a third of the market at US$ 21 million, while the market for nail enamels is estimated at around US$ 23 million. The color cosmetics segment is very competitive and has a high penetration level of 80 percent. The skin care market in India is estimated at US$ 180 million. Within the last decade, this segment has seen many consumers slowly shift from the mass to the premium end of the market. The penetration rate is high in the skin-care segment as compared to color cosmetics. In the skin-care segment, price and volume played an equal role in value growth. Moisturizing lotions, fairness creams and face cleansers are the popular categories in the skin-care segment and account for approximately 60 percent of the skin-care segment. The major players in this segments are Lakme, Ponds, Fair & Lovely of the HUL group with a 50 percent market share, followed by players such as J.L. Morison that markets the Nivea range of products in India, Godrej and Revlon. Penetration levels of international cosmetics brands in India are still low. Foreign brands currently constitute only 20 percent of the market. A major reason for low penetration of international brands can be attributed to high pricing. These companies initially gained sales on their international brand image, however, repeat purchases were not forthcoming and to retain their sales growth, several foreign companies reformulated price strategies to tap the large Indian middle class. Urban women in the middle and upper income groups in the age range of 23-50 is the target group for international brands, as this group looks for better products and is willing to pay a premium for international quality products. Industry estimates suggest that there are close to 10 million such women in India.

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COMPANY PROFILE

Half a century ago, as India took her steps into freedom, Lakme, India's first beauty brand was born. At a time when the beauty industry in India was at a nascent stage, Lakme tapped into what would grow to be amongst the leading, high consumer interest segments in the Indian Industry - that of skincare and cosmetic products. Armed with a potent

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combination of foresight, research and constant innovation, Lakme has grown to be the market leader in the cosmetics industry. Lakme today has grown to have a wide variety of products and services that cover all facets of beauty care, and arm the consumer with products to pamper herself from head to toe. These include products for the lips, nails, eyes, face and skin, and services like the Lakme Beauty Salons.

Lakm history:

In 1995, Lakm Ltd (a Tata Group company) and HLL formed a 50:50 venture Lakm Lever that would market and distribute Lakm's products. In 1998, Lakm sold its brands (and the 50 per cent it owned in the JV) to HLL, renamed itself Trent and entered a different business (retail). Only, the years between 1995 and 2000 saw HLL wrestling with several issues with a bearing on Lakm's future. A brand that has over 5 decades talked of beauty is none other than Lakm. Launched in 1952, it offered a range of cosmetics with nail polishes & lipsticks from the early 80s. Lakm also understands the importance of maintaining and accentuating a womens natural beauty, for this it has introduced a range of skincare products from 1987. These ranges have been constantly innovated to bring specialized beauty care and complete the range for the definitive women.

A brand that has over 5 decades talked of beauty is none other than Lakm. Launched in 1952, it offered a range of cosmetics with nail polishes & lipsticks from the early 80s. Lakm also understands the importance of maintaining and accentuating a womens natural beauty, for this it has introduced a range of skincare products from 1987. These ranges have been constantly innovated to bring specialized beauty care and complete the range for the definitive women.

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Chopra accepts that distribution has been the company's Achilles heel for some time: ''The supply-chain hasn't been as robust as it should have been, but that has been the result of our efforts to reposition and reintroduce the brand.'' The positioning bit, although complex, is clear: Ponds is Lever's primary skincare brand; Lakm, its aspirational colour cosmetics brand, which also has a presence in skincare. The 'aspirational' qualification would mean Lakm would compete at what the company terms the 'upper-mass' (premium) end of the colour cosmetics spectrum (products priced between Rs 85 and Rs 250) where a slew of competitors, ranging from Revlon (through Modi Revlon) to Chambor, are already slugging it out. Says Meghna Modi, 26, Executive Director, Modi Revlon: ''The numbers say it all. According to ORG-MARG's retail audit, we have an 84 per cent share of the premium end of the colour cosmetics market.'' Chopra is quick to rubbish this claim; he says ORG-MARG does not have a representative sample of the 60,000 outlets through which colour cosmetics are sold in India. Still, it is conceivable that Lakm's new-found aspirational strategy could have been brought about by competitors like Revlon and Maybelline, which targeted this segment. Indeed, the company's non-transfer lip-colour range follows in the wake of Maybelline's launch of a similar range, and its new nail-enamel colours come soon after Maybelline and Revlon launched their nail-enamel range. The company's defense is that it takes at least 15 months from the conceptualization to the actual launch of products. And fashion consultants like Meher Castelino believe the brand commands an edge at the high-end: ''By appropriating the fashion platform for itself, Lakm has entrenched itself at the glamour-end.''

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SWOT ANALYSIS of LAKME Strengths: Local brand of specific relevance to India. Strong R&D capability well linked with business. Integrated supply chain and well spread manufacturing units. Ability to deliver Cost Savings. Access to Unilever global technology capability and sharing of

best practices from other Unilever

Weaknesses: Price positioning in some categories allows for low price

competition. Varying quality range in its products. Falling Quality of Lame salons

Opportunities: Brand growth through increased consumption depth and frequency

of usage across all categories. Upgrading consumers through innovation to new levels of quality

and performance. Building brand image by collaborating with top designers in

Lakme Fashion week Threats: Aggressive price competition from local and multinational players. Spurious/counterfeit products in rural areas and small towns.

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Non Existence of brand image in long Run

Everything a girl wants

Lakm has a wide range of products in color cosmetics that bring visible results. To add to this vast repertoire is a range of specialized skin care products for the discerning women. Keeping skin looking healthy and glowing is also a part of looking great. Lakm provide the complete package with the skin care range and the wide range of colors to spice up the look.

Lakme products

Colours

From the spicy shades to the flattering look, Lakme offers a range of products in the face, lips, eyes and nail segment for the beauty aficionados.

Face

Lakm Daily Wear Souffl ,Lakm Perfecting liquid Foundation - Lakm Radiance Compact , Lakm Flawless Matte Complexion Compact

Lips

Lakm Enrich Lipcolor - . Perfecting Definition Lip Pencil - Starshine Lipgloss - Glosses in lustrous shades available in 14 shades.

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Eyes

From dramatic to natural look- a wide range of products are on offer to create the perfect eyes.

1. Lakm Kajal: 2. Lame Insta Eyeliner eyelids 3. Lakme Lakm Shimmer Eye Cube:

Nails

True Wear Nail Enamel -Nail Enamel with Lacquer-like finish. Contains resins and silicone with colour lock technology that gives brilliant long lasting shine

Skin

For radiant skin Lakm is there to pamper your skin with specialized products for the diva in you.

Cleansing

Strawberry Silk Splash Face Wash , Lakm Fundamental Deep Pore Cleansing Milk -

Moisturizing

1. Lakm Fundamental Peach Milk Moisturiser skin.

2. Lakm Fundamental Winter Care Lotion -

Sun Protection

The range comprises of lotions to keep your skin healthy and younger looking.

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Questionnaire Q) Do Lakme provides quality Product?

Quality Yes60%

Q) Are You Brand Loyal to Lakme?

Brand Loyalty

No 30%

Yes 70%

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Q) For what purpose you use Lakme products?

Q) What do you think about the price level of Lakme products ?

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Q) If not Lakme then which other brand?

Competitors

Revlon 22%

Oriflame 18%

Blue heaven 8%

L'Oreal 39%

Lissome 7%

Others 6%

Q) Do celebrity endorsements in advertisements attract you towards Lakme products ?

Celebrity Endorsement effect

No 17%

Yes 83%

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Q) What inspire you to go for any cosmetic product?

Color/ shades30%

Quality 36%

Packaging 14%

Versatility 14%

Q) What changes you would like to see in the Lakme products?

47%

35%

17%

1%

Expectations

More Product Range More Shades

Better Packaging All the above

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FINDING & ANALYSIS

1. After the data analysis I reached the conclusion that around 50% respondents are use Lakme product for their Facial purpose.

2. 70% respondents said that they are loyal to Lakme product. 3. 60 % respondents said that Lakme provide them quality

products.

4. During analysis 39 % respondents said that LOreal, 22% Revelon, 18% said Oriflame, 8% BlueHeaven, 7% said Lissome,

and 6% said other brands for using except Lakme.

5. Most of the respondents go for quality (36%) in cosmetic products.

6. 65% respondents said that price level of Lakme product is optimum.

7. 83% respondents said that celebrity endorsements in advertisements attract them towards Lakme products.

8. 47% respondents said that Lakme should have to increased their product range.

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RECOMMENDATIONS Promotions beyond fashion week The brand should not lose its focus away from cosmetics. It can

prove to very detrimental. For vast reach unlikely, in the short-term. Some sort of an alliance

or co-branding with the salons that already exist may, perhaps, have been a better strategy.

The general perception is that company-owned salons are expensive. Though Lakme beauty salons are reasonably priced, it has not been communicated well enough.

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CONCLUSION

Since the Null hypothesis is rejected therefore it states that the customers are not satisfied well with the lakme products. This would be the major cause of lose of market share in the country. Another reason is the upcoming of Regional brands in the country that is making lakme loose its sheen. Therefore the company should take in strategic steps and planning to revive its brand image accordingly.

The local cosmetics and toiletries market is valued at approximately RM3 billion or about US$800 million, with a growth rate of 13% annually. It is estimated that there are more than 60,000 types of cosmetic products in the local market. Imported products from Thailand, the United States, France, Singapore and Japan dominate the market.

The local cosmetics and toiletries industry generally involves mixing and formulation processes, using imported ingredients. Many of these companies are contract manufacturers, mainly for products such as shampoo and conditioners, other hair care products, perfumes, and cosmetics.

Advertising and promotion is crucial for cosmetics and toiletries products, in order to create an awareness of new products and build brand loyalty among consumers. Advertisements in TV and the print media such as newspaper and magazines, especially womens magazines, are very common. Samples of toiletries products are distributed to individual households and products in sachet form are attached to magazines. Free gifts are given during promotion periods and are advertised in the local major newspapers and on the web.

According to the industry, the market is saturated with many different types of products, and in the long run, established brands that emphasize quality and service will have the edge.

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Annexure Questionnaire Market Survey For Lakme Products Name : Age : Sex : Address : State/Province: Contact No. :

1. What inspire you to go for Lakme ?

o Colour/Shades o Price o Packaging o Versatility o Others

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2. Are You Brand Loyal to Lakme or you Switch To others too?

o Yes o No

3. Do you Think Lakme provide quality Products to its customers?

o Yes o No

o Can,t Say

4. For Which Purpose you usually use Lakme Products?

o Eyes o Lip Colour

o Face

o Nail Enamel

5. What do you think about the price level Of Lakme products?

o High

o Optimum

o Low

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6. If not Lakme , then which other brand?

o Revlon

o Oriflame

o Blue Heaven

o LOreal

o Lissome

o Others

7. Do the Celebrity Endorsements in the Advertisements attract you towards the product?

o Yes

o No

8. What changes you would like to see in the Lakme products?

o More product range

o More shades

o Better packaging

o All of the above

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BIBLIOGRAPHY Kotler Philip , Keller Lane Kevin marketing , prentice hall of

India , 2005 S.P Gupta , Business Statistics, 14th edition , 2005 Business Statistics , J. K Sharma , edition 2005 Tata Mc graw-Hill Edtion , Business research methods ,

Donald R.Cooper , Pamela S. Schindler. References

www.hindubusinessline.com www.lakmeindia.com www.hll.com www.economictimes.com www.financialexpress.com