Despite a challenging demand environment marked by high food inflation and a resultant squeeze in urban demand, Dabur continued to drive consumer engagement across its key brands to end the second quarter of 2024-25 with a consolidated revenue of Rs 3,029-crore.

“Over the past couple of years, we have witnessed a marked shift in consumer buying patterns in favour of emerging channels like quick commerce, driven by the convenience this channel offers. This has resulted in the emerging channels growing in the high teens, putting the general trade under stress. To address the changing dynamics in the marketplace and support our distributor partners in tiding over the challenges, we took a proactive decision to rationalise inventory in the general trade, which resulted in a temporary dip in sales during the quarter. However, the move has resulted in improving the long-term health and hygiene of our business, paving the way for healthy growth going forward,” Mohit Malhotra, the CEO of Dabur India, said.

Dabur continued to invest behind its brands, helping the India Business report market share gains across 95% of the portfolio.

Malhotra added that Dabur's business fundamentals remain strong with secondary sales for the second quarter growing at over 2% and our five-year revenue CAGR for the India business at over 8%.

“We expect a recovery in consumer demand in the coming quarters, both in urban and rural markets. We are focusing on strengthening our competitive edge in the marketplace by investing in scaling up our rural footprint and rolling out consumer-centric innovations. Our focused approach towards expanding our rural footprint to over 1.22 lakh villages reaped rich dividends as rural demand outpaced urban demand by 130-bps during the quarter. To cater to this wider network, we have expanded our product basket with the launch of affordable and rural-specific pack bundles across categories, besides investing in consumer activations in the hinterland to establish a better connection with our consumers,” Malhotra said.

Dabur's International Business reported strong constant currency growth of 13% during the second quarter. The Egypt business reported a nearly 73% CC growth, while the MENA business grew by 10% and Sub-Saharan Africa grew by 26%. The Badshah business also reported a 15% growth in Q2.

Sesa is a leading brand in the Ayurvedic hair care market with a strong brand equity. “Dabur is a market leader in the hair oils category. The proposed merger of Sesa will bring to Dabur a premium brand with strong credentials around Ayurveda that will complement our existing portfolio and strengthen our presence in the hair care category. We look forward to the exciting opportunities this deal brings,” Mohit Burman, chairman of Dabur India, said.

Malhotra said, “This merger aligns with our long-term vision to consolidate our portfolio and tap into newer growth opportunities. By integrating Sesa's range of Ayurvedic hair care products and expertise with Dabur’s extensive distribution network, category expertise, and access to key international markets, we aim to grow the brand Sesa and deliver enhanced value to our stakeholders in addition to revenue and cost synergies.”

“Sesa allows us to fill a strategic whitespace. We will continue to actively look for additional targets in both traditional and new age areas” said Abhinav Dhall, who recently joined Dabur as executive director and group head of corporate strategy after spending several years in private equity and strategy consulting.

Sandeep Rai, CEO of Sesa Care, said: "With this proposed merger, our goal is to create a stronger, more resilient business that will provide even greater opportunities for growth in the future.”

Dabur is progressing well to meet its long-term sustainability commitments with a significant improvement in its Corporate Sustainability Assessment or CSA Score for 2024. Dabur has been ranked by DJSI amongst the top FMCG Companies in India with a score of 81, up from 72 a year ago. “We are committed to sustainability, ensuring our growth is responsible and environmentally friendly,” Malhotra said.