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The comtemporary dadima who popularised Ayurvedic Concepts' products
with the yuppie segment is now going to be assisted by cricketers
Yuvraj Singh and Zaheer Khan to promote The Himalaya Drug Company's
latest product-offering-'Himalaya Chyavanaprasha'.
Enriched with honey and amla (gooseberry), a source of Vitamin
C, the new product was launched in the Capital, here on Tuesday
and joins a 350 crore strong domestic Chyavanaprasha segment, that
already has active players such as Dabur, Zandu and Baidyanath.
With the tagline, Sehat ho ya Kaamyabi-No Shortcuts (No shortcuts
to good health or success), the product launch is going to be supported
by a burst of advertising featuring the now popular dadima and the
brand ambassadors, respectively.
The company has a one year contract with the two cricketers. Targeting
kids, the product seeks to differentiate itself from the regular
perception of chyavanaprasha through its lighter colour and honey
taste.
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R&D focus
on tropical diseases
The company is looking
to focus its research and development efforts
on tropical diseases commonly seen in the sub-continent.
Both the CEO and ED of
the company confirmed that the company was working
on diseases such as malaria, kala azar, cancer
and HIV/AIDS.
The company's R&D outfit
is in Bangalore and the company intends to develop
products on its own steam. No plans were on the
anvil for co-development or co-marketing deals
in the country, they said.
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With long-distance runners such as Liv.52 in its robust product
portfolio, the Rs. 250-crore company expects its latest product
to corner 5 per cent of the market in its first year of operation.
However, Mr. Ravi Prasad, President and CEO of the company was unwilling
to divulge any figures on the company's adspend or proposed investment
in research and development, which is an important component leading
to its strong product portfolio.
He said that the company was looking to export the product through
marketing alliances abroad with distributors. The company was looking
to clock sales of Rs. 500 crore by 2005 and no plans were afoot
to become a listed company, he said.
The company also has about 18 retail outlets and plans to expand
this to about 50 this year. Himalaya's product portfolio comprises
personal-care products under the Ayurvedic Concepts brand, animal
health products, single herb brands under the 'Pure Herbs' brand
and other well-known brands such as Liv.52, Bonnisan and Geriforte.
Dr. S.K. Mitra, Executive Director with the Company, said that
the herbal ingredients were procured through contract farming or
buy-back arrangements from farms in South India and North East.
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