Nirma

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For the Pakistani actress, see Nirma (actress).

IndustryFast-moving consumer goods
Founded1990
HeadquartersAhmedabad, Gujarat, India
Area served
India
Key people
Karsanbhai Patel (CMD)
ProductsNuvoco cements, Zero M Wall Putty, Nirma detergent, Nirma soaps
Websitewww.nirma.co.in

Nirma is a group of companies based in the city of Ahmedabad in Gujarat, India, that manufactures products ranging from detergents, soaps, cement, cosmetics, salt, soda ash, LAB and injectables. Karsanbhai Patel, an entrepreneur and philanthropist, started Nirma in 1969 as a one-man operation.

History[edit]

In 1969, Dr. Karsanbhai Patel, a chemist at the Gujarat Government's Department of Mining and Geology manufactured phosphate-free synthetic detergent powder, and started selling it locally. The new yellow powder was priced at ₹3.50 per kg, at a time when HLL's Surf was priced at ₹13. Soon, there was a huge demand for Nirma in Ruppur (Gujarat), Patel's hometown. He started packing the formulation in a 10x10ft room in his house. Patel named the powder as Nirma, after his daughter Nirupama. Patel was able to sell about 15-20 packets a day on his way to the office on bicycle, some 15 km away. By 1985, Nirma washing powder had become one of the most popular, household detergents in many parts of the country.[1][2]

By 1999, Nirma was a major consumer brand, offering a range of detergents, soaps and personal care products.[3] The group also set up a healthcare subsidiary called Nirlife to manufacture intravenous fluids.[4]

In November 2007, Nirma purchased American raw materials company Searles Valley Minerals Inc., making it among the top seven soda ash manufacturers in the world.[5]

Nirma Group started cement manufacturing in 2014 from a single plant in Nimbol.[6] In 2016, Nirma acquired Lafarge India's cement assets for $1.4 billion.[7] In February 2020, Nirma acquired Emami Cement for ₹5,500 crore (US$770 million).[8]

Major products[edit]

  • Soda ash
  • Linear alkyl benzene
  • Soaps
  • Detergents
  • Edible & industrial salt
  • Alpha-olefin sulfonate
  • Sulfuric acid
  • Glycerin
  • Infusions
  • Injectables
  • Critical care products
  • Medical disposables
  • Sugar
  • Cement
  • Single super phosphate
  • Castor oil
  • Multilayer tubes
  • Seamless tubes
  • Tube laminate
  • Flexible laminate
  • Paper & plastic cups
  • Tarpaulin
  • Injection molding
  • Bromine
  • Phosphoric acid

Operations[edit]

Nirma has over 25,000 employees and a turnover of over ₹20500 crore.[citation needed] The company has multi-locational manufacturing facilities, and a broad product portfolio under an umbrella brand – Nirma.

Nirma successfully countered competition from HUL and carved a niche for itself in the lower-end of the detergents and toilet soap market. However, Nirma realised that it would have to launch products for the upper end of the market to retain its middle class consumers who would graduate to the upper end. The company launched toilet soaps for the premium segment. However, analysts felt that Nirma would not be able to repeat its success story in the premium segment.[citation needed]

Nirma's success in the highly competitive soap and detergent market was attributed to its brand promotion efforts[citation needed], which was complemented by its distribution reach and market penetration. Nirma's network consisted of about 400 distributors and over 20 lakh retail outlets across the country. This huge network enabled Nirma to make its products available to the smallest village.[citation needed]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ↑ Mahesh, Chandni (23 April 2017). "The story of the dancing girl-Nirma". Medium (website). Retrieved 8 January 2020.
  2. ↑ "40 years ago...and now: Nirma girl endears, but brand's seen better days". Business Standard. Retrieved 8 January 2020.
  3. ↑ "SRIJAN March - 2010". srimca.edu.in. Retrieved 3 September 2016.
  4. ↑ Talukdar, Tapash. "Karsanbhai Patel: The man behind the sucess [sic] of Nirma" – via The Economic Times.
  5. ↑ "Nirma shares soar 7% on acquisition of US co". The Economic Times. 27 November 2007.
  6. ↑ Mascarenhas, Rajesh. "Nuvoco Vistas likely to file DRHP for Rs 5,000 crore IPO this week" – via The Economic Times.
  7. ↑ Pandey, Piyush (11 July 2016). "Nirma to buy Lafarge India cement assets for $1.4 billion". The Hindu. Retrieved 6 May 2021.
  8. ↑ "Nirma to acquire Emami's cement business for ₹5,500 cr". 6 February 2020 – via www.thehindu.com.

External links[edit]

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