From baby diapers to malted food drinks to cold-pressed cooking oils, Dabur is furiously plugging the gaps in its portfolio by expanding eight power brands into adjacent categories. Can the 'ghar ghar Dabur' gambit pay off?
Mohit Malhotra, CEO, Dabur
April 2020, Ghaziabad, UP
Suddenly, the ugly elephant in the room became visible. “I don't sell bread. I don’t have biscuits. I don’t make edible oil. I don’t even sell salt and atta…” Mohit Malhotra felt miserable. A month into the national lockdown triggered by Covid-19, life had come to a screeching halt for everybody, including the chief executive officer of Dabur who happened to be at the corporate headquarters in Kaushambi, Uttar Pradesh, on a blustery Friday.
Businesses had paused, shops were shuttered, and only essential goods and services were allowed. Essentially, the business of essentials meant a silver lining for every FMCG player. ITC started pushing its food portfolio on a war footing; Britannia got busy with an aggressive blueprint for breads, biscuits and other edibles; Marico and HUL too got into the act.