“All DRF scientists engaged in generic (off-patent) oncology drug development business have been shifted to Dabur Pharma. DRF will now focus purely on drug discovery programmes,” DRF Chairman Anand Burman said. He declined to divulge the details of the ongoing collaborative research programmes due to confidentiality clauses, but hinted that at least one research is in the area of oncology.

According to him, continuing drug research, even after selling off their drug company, makes sense as DRF has been fashioned as an independent research entity.

While over 100 scientists moved out of DRF to be part of the research team of Dabur Pharma, majority of other scientists conducting research in areas like Ayurveda, Phytopharma, biotechnology, personal care products and food were shifted from DRF to Dabur India’s in-house research wing. DRF is now left with its drug discovery scientists and pursues at least three drug discovery programmes in collaboration with foreign universities and companies.

Though the Dabur Pharma website lists out the contract research services offered by DRF, Burman said the promoters are yet to take a final view on the future research programmes of DRF.

Fresenius, which closed Dabur acquisition on August 11, has acquired the rights for all existing products that have come out of DRF. “All discoveries that have been commercialized have gone to Fresenius, besides the patented nanotechnology-based drug delivery system and the entire team of scientists engaged in generic drug discovery research at DRF. Fresenius will continue at the same location for a short period,” Burman said.

For starters, Dabur has identified gastro intestine, stress, rejuvenation and pain as areas for future product roll-out. The company’s research arm—Dabur Research Foundation—is already working on developing multiple products for these segments. As part of its strategy, it plans to develop a portfolio of at least 7-8 lifestyle products by year-end.

“Our internal research suggested there are no natural or Ayurvedic products for the burgeoning lifestyle diseases. Hence, we have decided to focus on OTC products for such problems. As a result, we expect to increase the contribution of OTC segment to consumer health care division’s (CHD) Rs 155-crore turnover from 60% to 80% in two years,” Dabur India executive director (CHD) Depend Gang told ET.In line with this, the company is in the process of rolling out three new products—Bhringraj Ayurvedic Tel (a hair fall control oil), Super Thanda Tel (a cooling oil) and Dabur Active Blood Purifier. Dabur India also intends to launch above-the-line campaigns for these new products with their newly-appointed brand ambassador Juhi Chawla.

Dabur has just completed a packaging revamp of its existing OTC range and now plans to do so for the ethical products, which are promoted through Ayurvedic practitioners.

“The new packaging will try to make Ayurveda more contemporary for today’s consumers. The packaging up gradation is already complete for half of the OTC range,” said Mr. Garg.

The rural and semi-urban areas accounts for nearly 60% of the company`s sales in the segment and continues to grow at a much rapid pace than urban India. Dabur has three products in its portfolio, including the flagship Dabur Lal Tel, which has an overall market share of over 25%.

The company is especially looking at the digestives and massage categories in the baby care segment for growth, since it has a market pie of over 23%. The baby care market, which is estimated at Rs 15 billion comprising both branded and unbranded segments, is growing at almost 17% annually.

“This is the first-ever baby show to be held at such a scale in UP and Bihar. The idea is to grow the awareness about healthy and chemical-free baby care products and popularize Ayurveda in these cities. Open to babies of up to 15 months of age, the participants will be judged on various parameters like health, photogenic qualities etc. We had received over 7,000 entries for the show and have shortlisted 25 babies each from UP and Bihar for the two finals being held in Patna and Lucknow on March 29th and March 30th respectively,” said Mr. Rajeev John, Group Product Manager, Dabur India Ltd.

The Winner Baby will get Rs 50,000 cash prize, while the 1st Runner up will be awarded Rs 25,000 cash prize, and the 2nd Runner Rs 10,000 cash prize. All the remaining 22 contestants would also be given assured prizes worth Rs 2,000. Some other prizes to be given away at the event include:

Most Healthy Baby – Weight would be checked and compared with ideal age-weight combination and points would be given on scale of 1-10
Most Active Baby – Judges would observe each baby and give points
Most photogenic Baby – In this round all the parents with their baby would walk the ramp & the judges would select the winner

The company has also unveiled a refurbished range of Ayurvedic baby care products and is now positioning itself as the ‘Ayurvedic Expert for Babies’. The Dabur baby care range includes Dabur Lal Tel, Dabur Janma Ghunti and Dabur Gripe Water.

“With over 120 years of experience in Ayurveda, Dabur is today India’s most trusted name and the world’s largest Ayurvedic and Natural Health Care Company. With the rollout of the new, advanced range of Ayurvedic baby care products, Dabur is today the only company to offer a whole range of chemical-free products for infants. Dabur Lal Tel, Dabur Janma Ghunti & Dabur Gripe Water are the oldest and most trusted Ayurvedic formulations present in the market today,” Mr. John added.

Dabur Ayurvedic baby care products are fortified with herbs and natural ingredients like shankhpushpi, honey, ratanjyot etc. to provide safe and extremely beneficial care for your babies. While Dabur Lal Tel helps strengthen muscles and bones of babies, Dabur Janma Ghunti keeps the baby’s stomach fit, and Dabur Gripe Water helps digestion during the teething phase.

Presented over 4,500 sq ft, this four-story store is a one-stop destination for all your beauty, health and wellness needs, merchandising over 13,000 SKUs the largest-ever range offered by a health and beauty start-up retailer in India. In addition, ‘newu’ stores will introduce exclusively to the Indian market several leading international cosmetics and personal care brands.

Speaking at the launch, Chief Executive Officer Mr. Peter Baker said, “I am happy to announce the opening of the first ‘newu’ store in India. This store, opening its doors to the people of Delhi, will offer easy access to the latest and the best products from the world of Beauty, Health and Wellness. Beyond offering customers the widest product selection, ‘newu’ will provide them a superior, never-before shopping experience – simply new standards of customer focus and service.”

The ‘newu’ brand image presents a new dimension to lifestyle branded retail in India, designed by Pikefell, our UK-based brand agency. The ‘newu’ brand combines a modern global attitude with cultural relevance. The store’s ‘tone and manner’ has been created to provide customers with a ‘total shopping experience’; an organized and modern interior offering a relaxed, soothing ambiance for customers to discover a new world of beauty, health and wellness, in their own time.

Investment in new technology – All ‘newu’ stores will operate the first end-to-end (warehouse to point of sales) SAP stock management system, marking the first time a SAP fully integrated electronic management system has been implemented in India. The customer advantage; improved stock replenishment, better-value special promotions and stores that not only cater for national, but local needs. Our technology partners, global market leaders Accénture, have implemented this bespoke software for ‘newu’ retail operations.

The stores are presenting the latest in branded color cosmetics, fragrances, skin and face care, in addition to baby & family care, fashion accessories and jewelery, offering customers exceptional quality and competitive prices.

The company is planning to rapidly expand its presence in the organized retail market throughout India. “We shall continue to action a progressive expansion strategy with a presence in both high streets and quality malls, to attract our desired target audience. In the coming months, in addition to further stores in Delhi/ NCR, we will open stores in Hyderabad, Bangalore, Chandigarh and Ludhiana and growing the ‘newu’ presence to about 30 stores by the end of the 2008-09 fiscal,” said Mr. Peter Baker.

About H&B Stores Ltd.

H&B Stores is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Dabur India ltd and will operate a pan-India chain of Beauty, Health & Wellness retail outlets under the brand name ‘newu’. The stores will offer a range of health, beauty and consumer products, under one roof.