P&G Now Lock Horns Over Shampoo Quality

Hindustan Lever Ltd (HLL) and Procter & Gamble (P&G) are now at loggerheads over claims on hairfall control that each has made on their respective shampoo brands — Sunsilk Naturals Silky Strength and Pantene Pro-V Hair Fall Control.

In a show of oneupmanship, HLL claims that its brand can control 70 per cent of hair fall, while Pantene’s new variant claims to reduce hair fall by 50 per cent.

The claims are based on laboratory tests, but the war of words is likely to lead the two traditional rivals to challenge the other’s claim. However, the companies refused to comment on this.

HLL head of hair care category Mukul Deoras said that they have patents of henna and lotus flower extracts used in Naturals Silky Strength resulting in 70 per cent less breakage compared to non-conditioning shampoos.

It has been proved by tests conducted at HLL’s R&D centre. The company declined to comment about them challenging the competitor’s claims.

On the other hand, the new Pantene has been endorsed by Swiss Vitamin Institute, which is an external institute. P&G’s Pantene Hair Fall Control, the latest launch, claims to reduce hair fall by 50 per cent in two months, which is endorsed by model Katrina Kaif.

Several hair oils exist in the Indian market that claim to cure hair fall and now a shampoo has joined the bandwagon.

P&G Technical Center (Japan) principal scientist Colin D’Silva said that it needs to be seen how the new Pantene stands vis-a-vis the hair oils.

Mr D’Silva added that he does not know about the competitor’s (HLL) claims and technology, even as research at P&G has proved their own 50 per cent claim with the presence of conditioning ingredients. Mr D’Silva was unable to confirm whether this new formulation has been patented.

The new P&G variant is priced at Rs 51 (100 ml bottle) and Rs 98 (200 ml bottle). The company claims to have garnered a 7-12 per cent growth in Pantene sales over past few years. Pantene’s market share is about 7.5 per cent, while that of Head & Shoulders is about 9.5 per cent. HLL is the market leader in shampoos with a share of 54 per cent in 2003 by value. Clinic Plus’ share is 25 per cent, Sunsilk’s 15 per cent and Clinic All Clear’s 9.4 per cent. One month ago, the new Pantene was launched in four South East Asian countries where the company claims good response.

The new shampoo which addresses hair fall problems, however, does not cure hair loss arising out of genetic factors, pregnancy, cancer treatment and dietary imbalances.

P&G hopes to maintain its margins in spite of the recent price cuts, through cost control in the distribution process.

Consumers’ opinion about shampoos claiming hair fall control is a mixed bag. Anuja Deshmukh, a pre-primary school teacher from northern Mumbai, said: “I used Sunsilk in the past, which gave a silky feeling to the hair. But I experienced substantial hair fall due to the strong chemicals and so I switched over to Himalaya Herbal shampoo.”