Good Knight pips Mortein in villages

Godrej Sara Lee's Good Knight has overtaken market leader Mortein in the rural markets.

A Mahendran, managing director, Godrej Sara Lee (GSL) said, "The latest figures show that GSL coils lead the sector with a market share of 33.2 per cent (in value) in the rural markets."

Mortein, market leader so far, shows a value share of 27 per cent. A Mortein spokesperson points out that at an all India level, Mortein Coils is still the market leader with 35.6 per cent market share. This is marginally higher than Good Knight's 35.5 per cent.

The market for mosquito coils in India, pegged at about Rs 650 crore, has been growing at about 10 per cent on a year on year basis.

Good Knight, says Mahendran, has been growing faster at about 18-19 per cent with the last two-three months registering growth at about 25 per cent.

The biggest contributor to this spurt in growth has been the success of the brand in the rural areas, where it launched a new product, mini jumbo coils.

"These coils offered higher value at that particular price point, which is why it went down well with the consumer," said Sunil Gadgil, general manager-marketing, GSL.

The other reason is the upgradation seen in the urban markets, which again have added to improvement in value share.

Mahendran says that apart from this, there have also been category innovations which have helped the brand do better. One of these is the Good Knight electric Gel which served as a substitute for mats at a lower cost.

The marketing for the rural areas too has seen different approaches ranging from skits to using local media and rural vans. The brand has also emerged market leader in the red coil category which is growing at about 30 per cent per annum, with a market share of 37.9 per cent