How did Himalaya acquire a new non-pharma face with Ayurvedic Concepts?
In the past, Himalaya was offering therapeutic solutions through doctors. We then decided to come out with a personal care line, but we were just shying away from introducing them. We had launched these personal care products abroad and were doing fairly well and we later decided to bring them to the domestic market. But again we delayed, as we weren't too sure as to how the doctor fraternity would react to Himalaya going OTC. Hence we brought the personal care products under the Ayurvedic Concepts brand, and it hit.

What was the urgency for introducing a mother brand?
See, the Ayurvedic Concepts did well for us. Doctors also took to it positively. This was when we decided to club them all under one brand - Himalaya, which would be the common brand globally. Also, when we were going only through the doctors, the look didn't matter much, and so was advertising. But once we entered the consumer product line, we realized that we had to not just unify the brands but unify the look as well. The earlier yellow and brown labels looked a little tired in the domestic market, but in the foreign markets we had different labels. This was a bad idea. So we decided to have a uniform label for all the overseas markets.

How did you position Ayurveda in the scientific, modern light?
By heavily investing in R & D. Any product that comes out from our stable undergoes ten years of R & D. Due to this, the product is as sure about delivering its promise as an allopathic product, and is also minus the baggage of side effects. We invest 30 per cent of our revenue into R & D.

How did this positioning reflect in your communication?
By constantly telling our customer what we stand for - by gaining their trust by showcasing our constant research, which validates our products. Also, continuously showing the audience the various kinds of R & D activities that are in progress. But most importantly, at the end of the day we just allowed our product to speak for itself.

Was the timing of your brand positioning right?
If we had waited any longer, we would have had to spend even more to establish Himalaya as the mother brand. But Himalaya was already well known and was only becoming more popular. With our fear of negative reaction from doctors (about we going OTC) turning out to be unfounded, we speeded up our act.

Has the shift from the term "Ayurvedic" to "Herbal" caused any confusion amongst consumers?
Not at all. In the eyes of the consumer, Ayurveda and herbal are synonymous. The only difference, I think, is that Ayurveda is perceived as old and traditional, while the herb is accepted as contemporary and modern.

You heavily advertised Ayurvedic Concepts. But now, your ads are centered on skin and haircare items. Has there been a shift in the focus?
Not a whit. We still have the therapeutic products but they aren't the ones to be advertised as they continue to go through doctors. The personal care products like shampoos and lotions are being advertised because we feel that they will drive the entire portfolio.

So can we quote Himalaya as a good case-study for all those brands that eschew any change?
Absolutely. You have to have an appealing look for being accepted by the modern consumers who are very savvy. But if a company has to establish a brand, most certainly the imagery is important.

Any more changes in the offing?
No, I think we are all set and stabilized. The logo is beautifully set. Both the therapeutic and personal care products look good. So I think we are stabilized.