Dabur India Ltd. - Globalization

Dabur, an Indian consumer package goods company, had established a strong brand equity in India by offering, for decades, a vast portfolio of over-the-counter products. In seeking international expansion in 1987, it first took the export route. It also "followed" the customer, targeting the Indian diaspora in the Middle East, Africa and the United States, already familiar with the brand. By 2006, Dabur had set up five manufacturing facilities outside India. In June 2007, Dabur had to make, in countries such as Nigeria for example, some critical choices. It had to choose between sticking to the diaspora, a market it understood best, and targeting the mainstream population. It had to choose its growth options between categories like personal care, in which it had built up competencies, and categories such as oral care and home care, which were the new engines of growth in its international markets but in which the company had no track record, either on the home front or overseas. The case study helps students deal with issues of growth and consolidation in a global market from the perspective of the company's chief executive officer and the head of its international operations.