Will the Indian herbal toothpaste marketers survive against multinational FMCG companies

Abstract

Numerous researches compare the multinational enterprises to domestic firms on several dimensions such as performance, efficiency and marketing practices. However, there is dearth of research focused on how the domestic and multinationals firms competes each other in the marketing context. In the current scenario, there is an emergence of nationalism, spiritual entrepreneurs entering FMCG business position through the herbal-based traditional Indian Ayurvedic concepts. Though local firms are generally considered as weak players in front of multinational giants, the present positioning as being Indian origin and herbal-based products gathers quick acceptance from the consumers poses a major threat to multinationals enterprises. This study employed a case analysis method that explores the marketing practices of both Indian and multinational FMCG companies in the toothpaste market. The main objective of the research is to compare the STP and marketing mix strategies that MNCs and Indian herbal product FMCGs with toothpaste in their product portfolio. The study reveals that multinationals FMCG companies countering Indian herbal toothpaste marketers with their own version. The study also reveals that Indian toothpaste marketer's first mover advantage may not last long. The strong distribution network of MNCs is placing them in advantageous position is another key observation.