Banking on the efficiency count

Godrej Appliances launched their 6 star refrigerator which claims to be the most efficient on terms of power consumption. Kamal Nandi, Exe. VP, Sales & Marketing, Godrej Appliances, shared the industry’s insight and Godrej’s plans with Ankur Gaurav from Retailer.

Ankur Gaurav: How is the new refrigerator rated as 6 stars?

Kamal Nandi : As of now the government rates the best products as 5 star based on their energy

efficiency. This rating is checked every year and the standards are modified and power consumption

yardstick is decreased by 20 per cent each year. At present, any refrigerator which consumes 254 Watts

or less is rated as 5 star. Our product consumes 204 Watts, so it will remain a 5 star till 2013. And in

the following year eventually it will become a 6 star refrigerator.

AG: With this launch, what are your targets?

KN: We enjoy a healthy market share of 18 per cent in the refrigerator category and with this launch

we are sure of enhancing it by at least four per cent.

AG: Have you imported any equipment of technology for this product?

KN: No. This is a proper “made in India” product. Most of the companies import compressors from

outside but we do not import anything from outside India. Even the technology is our own.

AG: What is your strength in terms of distribution network?

KN: We have over 20,000 distributors and retailers across India. This includes tier-2 and tier-3 cities

as well. That’s the advantage of being an Indian company; we have a very good penetration in the

market. Apart from that we are very much involved in the modern retail format as well, like Croma and

other such stores.

AG: Are you planning to venture into retail as well?

KN: Yes, are planning to open exclusive Godrej outlets. How, When and Where is still being planned

and I cannot comment on that. It will include the franchise models as well.

AG: How much do you spend on R&D?

KN: R&D is a very important for our growth and we spend significantly on that. On year to year

basis, we spend at around five per cent of our total revenue on research and development, and are

committed to increase our portfolio by launching path breaking products like this.

AG: How is your export market doing?

KN: We are not very much into exports. Our exports are just two to three per cent of the total

produce. And we cater to the countries with similar lifestyle and consumer behaviour like Sri Lanka.

AG: How has the industry performed in this extended summer and with what rate have you grown?

KN: The industry has performed average with around 10 to 12 per cent growth rate. Reasons are

inflation and slowing down economy which deterred the consumption pattern. If you talk about Godrej,

we have done fairly well this summer with a growth rate of around 25 per cent in the last six months.

Product Launch