November 20, 2008

Shree Cement launches rural initiatives

BS reported that, with the recent slowdown in the real estates market and upcoming additional capacity of 3 million tonnes, Shree Cements has turned its focus on the relatively untapped rural market to be the next growth driver for the company in coming years. Rural market's share in the company's overall sales has witnessed a steady increase of 7% annually in last 2 years and is expected to touch 10% annual average growth during the next 5 years.

It will manufacture an additional 3 million tonnes in 2 new factories in Chhattishgarh and Madhya Pradesh with an investment of INR 2000 crore. It has chalked out an expansive rural marketing plan for marketing this additional capacity in the villages of Rajasthan, Haryana, West Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat. It had plans of taking up its cumulative capacity to 20 million tonnes per annum by 2012.

Shree Cements has roped in a specialized agency that will help it in Hindi heartland markets. At a micro level, rural marketing entail drives will entail increasing retail presence inside smaller villages, kasbas and mini towns apart from visual merchandising at retail points together with rural and highway wall painting exercises that could make the brand visible in markets where mass media still has a poor reach.

Coupled with this, the company is also launching mass contact programs it called identification of purchase stimulators in the rural market. This will include conducting product training programs for masons, local construction contractors among others.

Mr HM Bangur MD of Shree Cement said that "We have adopted a lot of below the line marketing tools to drive rural growth. We have earmarked INR 5 crore this year towards rural marketing."