Grooming for all genres

WAHL sells through modern, traditional and online avenues to reach out to its customers. They further intend to expand their portfolio and reach. Gunjan Piplani get the details from Rohit Sood,Managing Director, WAHL India.

Gunjan Piplani (GP): Kindly elaborate about the brand WAHL in India and globally.

Rohit Sood (RS): WAHL is the global leader in manufacturing and marketing of clippers & trimmers since 1919. Having invented the first Vibrator Clipper for the World, the Company has been consistently marketing quality grooming products and is the current market leader across various markets globally. Manufacturing in its own six plants spread across five continents, WAHL products are sold to 180 countries and through 16 subsidiaries across the world. In India, WAHL India is a 100 per cent subsidiary of WAHL Clipper Corporation, USA.

GP: What is the product range being offered by WAHL in India?

RS: Currently we are marketing clippers & trimmers in professional barber & beauty, consumer grooming & pet Industry in India.

GP: What ground work did you do to launch the brand in India? Kindly elaborate about your consumer/market insight process.

RS: We at WAHL studied the market for close to two years before entering India. We saw the immense scope and growth our brand can have in the consumer sphere and accordingly we studied the competition products already available. We went direct to small and big retailers and discussed the category, its current sales, growth etc. with the owners / buyers and then made our product portfolio for India offering. Besides we also did price sensitivity tests and figured out the price points at which we should have our products to make it buyable by our end consumer.

GP: Are WAHL products produced in India or sourced? If produced then where is the manufacturing unit and if not then where are they sourced from?

RS: Currently we Import all WAHL products from our own factories in Sterling, USA, Hungry, Germany & China. All WAHL Products are engineered and manufactured at our own plants and no third party sourcing is done for the same.

GP: How are you promoting your brand in India? What are the marketing strategies adopted by you?

RS: We are promoting our brand in India through the traditional ATL route with BTL backing it up to make the customer touch and feel the brand. Additionally, digital marketing and education route are being explored to educate our end consumer about the superior technology products we bring to them, its usage, life cycle and above all friendly on the pocket prices. Our marketing strategies are focussed at being a catalyst for the growth of the Personal Grooming category in India.

GP: What are your expansion plans in India? Kindly elaborate.

RS: We are currently sold through 1200+ retail outlets in India (both modern and traditional trade), more than 4000+ direct salons and 200+ pet shops across the country. We intend at building on our distribution and reaching tier 2 and 3 cities within this year. Additionally, we have lined up our styling range (dryers, hair straightening irons, curlers etc.) for launch in India later this year which will help us reach more number of outlets.

GP: How are you retailing your products in India? Do you plan to expand in this sphere? If yes, then how?

RS: As explained, we sell through traditional and modern trade outlets besides typical beauty stores, pharmacy chains and electronic stores. We also sell through the online space as well. Yes, indeed, we plan to scale up the growth for the company through continuous expansion into each channel of our selling.