People who suffer from headaches and migraines will agree when I say that for each sufferer, only a specific brand of pain balm helps alleviate their discomfort. In my case, it has always been Amrutanjan. Since I live near the company premises, I always stop to sniff the aroma while passing by it and give myself ‘preventive’ protection against migraines!
Hundred years ago...
Amrutanjan Healthcare Limited is a company that has been around for more than a century. So when it claims to be a pioneer ‘of pain and congestion management since 1893’, there is a ring of truth to it. It was initially established as a patent medicine business in Mumbai by renowned journalist, social reformer and freedom fighter ‘Desodharaka’ Kasinathuni Nageswara Rao Pantulu (the Nageswara Rao Park near the Amrutanjan office in Mylapore in Chennai is named after him).
The most well-known product from the company is the yellow-coloured pain balm, which, till a few years ago, had the word ‘Bombay’ inscribed on the lid of the bottle. To popularise the product that he had invented, the founder is said to have distributed it free of cost at music concerts.
The headquarters was shifted to Chennai in 1914. It became a public limited company — Amrutanjan Limited — in 1936. The name changed to ‘Amrutanjan Healthcare Limited’ (AHCL) in 2007.
Recall and loyalty
Amrutanjan pain balm was present in almost every household in those days and was one of the first items stuffed into handbags for journeys. Brand recall and loyalty among old-timers comes naturally, associated as it is with childhood memories. Its popularity can be gauged by the fact that the late chess legend Bobby Fischer reportedly asked Viswanathan Anand for Amrutanjan pain balm, complaining that he could not get it in Iceland!
A place at Lonavla is called ‘Amrutanjan Point’ and there is even an ‘Amrutanjan Bridge’ between Pune and Raigad districts, so named because of a huge neon sign of Amrutanjan Pain Balm.
Is new, better?
In 2011, the company felt it was time to revamp the brand image and become ‘relevant’ to the younger generation. With this end in view, it undertook a rebranding exercise, coming up with a new logo and new tagline, ‘pure healthy essence’. It also highlights colours that supposedly emphasise the ‘natural’ and ‘trusted’ source of their products, their effectiveness and zero side effects. The new campaign is: ‘Be ready with Amrutanjan’.
It must be mentioned here that not everyone is happy with the new look, tagline and new packaging. The brand recall still zeroes in on the distinctive yellow glass bottle with the words ‘Amrutanjan since 1893’ and the emphatic ‘It’s gone!’ tagline.
What’s on offer?
Though the focus is still on the pain balm, which has become synonymous with pain relief, other products have joined the stable. These have been categorised into three groups: ‘kick out pain’ for headaches and body pain; ‘relief’ for all types of congestion; and ‘purity’ for hygiene issues.
Pain management products include the Aromatic Balm classic headache remedy, which is ranked the sixth most trusted brand in India under OTC (over-the-counter) category in the study conducted by Economic Times Brand Equity Survey 2017. In fact, Amrutanjan’s flagship product is said to contain the best essential oils that, when used in this specific combination, give a range of therapeutic remedies.
Pain management : Other products are the Strong Balm, Headache Roll-On, non-greasy Back Pain Roll-On, Body Pain cream (said to be highly effective for arthritis pain), Joint Muscle Spray and the reusable Hot or Cold Body Ache Gel Pad (The roll-on is said to be another first from Amrutanjan, widely imitated by competitors).
Relief : Congestion relief products include Relief Cold Rub, Relief Inhaler (claimed to be the first inhaler with Nilgiri oil), Relief Cough Syrup (without drowsiness-inducing alcohol) and Relief Swas Mint.
Purity : Under this are ‘Comfy’, sanitary napkin for women, Decorn Corn Caps, Xpert Dermal Ointment for skin ailments and the popular fruit juice brand Fruitnik (a product from Siva’s Soft Drink Pvt. Ltd., taken over by AHCL in 2011) and Fruitnik Electro+.
All these are ayurvedic, OTC products containing extracts derived from natural sources through scientific methods. They are sold not just at pharmacies but also at grocery shops and even paan shops.
Numbers and plans
Rubefacients (herbal skin applications that ease pain and swelling of joints), digestives, inhalers, acne-relief preparations and analgesics reportedly make up the most-sought-after OTC products segment in India, with the first accounting for about 17 per cent of the ₹18,600 crore market.
In this category, Amrutanjan is one of the top 10 brands. It’s strong direct distribution network — with about 240,000 retail outlets — places it in a good position to take advantage of the ever-rising demand for OTC products. Plans are afoot to increase the direct distribution network to about 300,000 outlets by the end of 2018.
Since AHCL has both brand pull and reach, it has worked out a strategy. It concentrates on selling its traditional headache remedies in places with a population of less than 5 lakh and introduces its latest products in more densely populated areas.
Balancing act
It penetrated the rural markets of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar by introducing colourful sachets priced attractively at ₹2 (it was the first company to introduce this category). Apart from handing out free samples, it also used promotional films and vans to convey the benefits of its pain balm. These measures helped it generate good revenues from the rural sectors.
Over the last few years, it jettisoned its loss-making businesses and focused on its key products. Pain balm sales still top the company’s sales figures, but the dependence on it is slowly decreasing, with sales of other products picking up.
The brand has also diversified into other businesses like Amrutanjan Pharmaessence, a Fine Chemicals Division and an ISO 9001 certified company, which supplies high quality intermediates and bulk drugs. The Amrutanjan Care Specialised Centre for Pain Management offers help to those suffering from chronic, acute or cancer-related pain.
The company has been showing steady growth over the past three years. In 2017, its turnover was ₹230 crore.
Awards and CSR
AHCL, which has two manufacturing plants at Chennai and Hyderabad, has obtained Good Manufacturing Practice certification under Schedule T, authorised by the Government of India. Amrutanjan products are exported to many countries in Africa, the South East, Asia and even the Gulf. In 2016-17, the company entered the Oman and UAE markets.
The company has a comprehensive CSR policy, with the objectives of building the socio-economic development of the nation and ensuring environmental sustainability. Amrutanjan’s CSR initiatives cover funding for the Chennai unit of ‘People for Animals’ or PFA (which organises ambulance services, sterilisation and treatment camps and takes up animal-related issues in parliament); funding for an NGO called ‘Impact’ which concentrates on educating the girl child; funding for ‘Sparsha Trust’ that handles the rehabilitation of vulnerable children on the streets; solar electrification of all the facilities at the Thenur-based ‘Payir Trust’ for rural empowerment; help for tribals in the Nilgiris to protect and maintain drinking water sources; construction of toilets and drainage systems in rural areas; provision of relief materials during the December 2015 floods in Chennai; and arrangement of free cataract surgeries for patients through a tie-up with Sankara Nethralaya.