According to reports from Mint, Dabur is pursuing aggressive rural market expansion as part of its growth strategy. CEO Herjit Bhalla announced plans to double the company's direct reach to 100,000 villages directly, building on the company's heritage that began in 1884 as an Ayurvedic medicine venture founded by Dr. SK Burman. The company will maintain its core philosophy of Ayurveda while expanding its rural presence through premium products and stronger digital sales channels. As Bhalla noted in recent interviews, the rural-urban growth gap has narrowed significantly to 150 basis points, down from over 500 basis points earlier, reflecting the company's successful rural penetration strategy.
As reported by Mint, Dabur's premium products have shown strong momentum, contributing 20% of sales compared to 17% previously. The company aims to increase this share to 23% over the next 18 months, with the premium portfolio growing at four times the rate of the overall business. CEO Bhalla emphasized that this premiumization push will not compromise the mass-market portfolio, with general trade carrying the core business while alternate channels allow innovation and premiumization. In recent interviews, Bhalla highlighted that premium brands now account for 20% of overall salience and are growing four times faster than regular core portfolio products, with particular strength in urban markets through alternate channels.
According to Mint, Dabur's Project Saksham GTM 2.0 initiative has delivered significant improvements in distribution efficiency. The company has consolidated almost 40% of its distributors across general trade, with their turnovers doubling while attrition has decreased by 80%. This recalibrated go-to-market model is now delivering tangible results, with general trade delivering over 7% growth this quarter after two consecutive quarters of strong performance. Bhalla noted that these distribution improvements are directly contributing to better general trade performance, demonstrating the effectiveness of the company's strategic consolidation efforts.
According to Mint, Dabur is implementing comprehensive cost management measures to navigate the challenging inflationary environment. The company saved approximately ₹115 crore through efficiency programmes in the last 18 months and plans to increase this by 1.5 times in the next 18 months to fund investments. CEO Bhalla revealed that pricing increases are around 5.2% which will flow through the quarter, with additional calibrated price increases being implemented to protect the value equation for consumers. The company is focusing more on accelerating cost-saving initiatives than relying solely on price increases, targeting value-chain protection, cost efficiencies across the value chain, supply-chain productivity improvements and manpower optimization to maintain the right relative price index.
According to Mint, Dabur's digital channels are showing strong growth momentum. Alternate channels contribute approximately 30% of total sales, with e-commerce accounting for 13% and quick commerce representing 70% of this digital segment. The company has been attracting younger consumers through product innovation, launching Siens, a premium direct-to-consumer nutraceutical and wellness brand, in June 2025, and introducing gummies versions of popular herbal supplements like Chyawanprash. In recent interviews, Bhalla revealed that digital spends have increased to more than 43% and the company has increased influencer engagement by three times, with current levels being the highest undertaken so far. The company is also increasing advertising and promotion spends by 150 basis points while focusing on greater efficiency in the overall media mix.
