1. A
PROJECT REPORT
ON
COMPARATIVE STUDY OF
MINERAL WATER INDUSTRY WITH SPECIAL
EMPHASIS TO BISLERI
Under the Guidance of:
Mr. R.N. SHARMA
Submitted by:
RICHA JAIN
ENROLLMENT NO. 0071341904
BBA(CAM) II SEMESTER
Course Coordinator:
1. Dr. L. M. Gupta
2. Ms. Vandana Sharma
In partial fulfillment of:
IDEAL INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT AND TECHNOLOGY
GURU GOBIND SINGH INDRAPRASHTA
UNIVERSITY, DELHI
1

2. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I feel great pleasure in submitting this project as the culmination of
my Guide’s efforts. This is a step towards the path leading to a
"Bachelor of Business Administration (CAM)” Degree.
This project required hard work, sincerity and devotion which I
tried my best to put in this project and in turn gained a lot of
knowledge and confidence from this project.
I am deeply grateful to my project guide MR. R. N. SHARMA who
has helped me in completion of this project. He has been a
constant guiding force and source of illumination for me. It entirely
goes to his credit that this project has attained its final shape. I
would like to thank him for his valuable advice and guidance.
I am also thankful to all the retailers for their kind cooperation in
filling up the questionnaire.
Lastly, I feel obliged to my friends who provided me with their
constant support without which this endeavour would not have
been completed.
RICHA JAIN
BBA (CAM)
2

3. CONTENTS
S. No. CHAPTERS Page No.
Acknowledgment 1
Executive Summary 5
Objective of the Study 6
Introduction 7
Mineral Water Industry - Current Scenario 10
Inception of Bisleri 11
• Product Profile
• Manufacturing
• Distribution
• Packaging
Marketing Mix of Bisleri: 4P’s of marketing 24
• Product
• Place
• Price
3

4. • Promotion
Advertising campaign of Bisleri 30
Methodology 39
Analysis 40
Strategies adopted by Bisleri 51
• Soft Target
• Getting in Shape
• Distribution Network
Conclusion 53
Limitations 54
Recommendations 55
Questionnaire 57
Bibliography 60
List of retailers covered during the survey 61
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5. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
‫ ٭‬This project "Comparative study of Mineral Water Industry with
Special Emphasis to Bisleri" aims to know about different
brands of mineral water kept by the retailers.
‫ ٭‬It also shows the satisfaction level of the retailers with regard to
the quality of the product.
‫ ٭‬For this near about 100 retailers from Delhi were being
interviewed using Structured Questionnaire.
‫ ٭‬Responses received from retailers were analysed to come to a
set of conclusions & suggestions.
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6. OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY
The objective of this project is to find out:
 Different brands of mineral water being kept by the retailers.
 Frequency of distributor's visits to the retailers.
 Availability of the various mineral water among retailers.
 Satisfaction level of the retailers with regard to the quality of
the product.
 Strategies and measures adopted by 'Bisleri' to counter the
competition by 'Aquafina' & 'Kinley'.
6

7. INTRODUCTION
Water is the most important liquid in the world. Without water,
there would be no life, at least not the way we know it. In today's
living condition, the need for Pure Drinking Water is becoming the
issue for the common Man.
Eighty percent of the human metabolism consists of water. This
is the reason why 90% of human diseases are water borne.
There are 3 types of water impurities, which are root cause of
water borne diseases
1. Microbiological-Bacteria / virus.
2. Dissolved impurities - chemical.
3. Imbalance of Mineral Contents.
There are rapid changes that are taking place in our environment
since long and the air and the water pollution is on an increase.
The main sources of drinking water are rivers and downstreams
which have also not been able to escape the pollution.
When the consumer became aware of the problems caused by
water pollution the market saw an advent of ceramic water filters,
which filters the dust and suspended particles but dissolved
impurities and microbiological impurities are not cleared out. The
mineral balance is also not maintained.
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8. 1980's witnessed more changes by a tap attachment wherein
Iodine resin is used to filter the water. It deactivates
microbiological impurities to an extent but has side effects due to
iodine and does not take care of dissolved impurities mineral
balance.
Late 1980's witnessed Ultra Violet based purifier, which filters
dust and deactivates bacteria to a great extent. It maintains the
odour and colour of water but does not clear out the dissolved
impurities and mineral particles. Thus came to the advent of
mineral water.
Historically, the need for purified water within Indian homes had
been kept down to a minimum. Essentially, there were three types
of water that was used for different purposes. The first type was
used for rinsing. The second type, which was used for cooking,
was cleaner and kept covered. The third type was the cleanest –
drinking water – and was very often boiled before use.
Since an average family needed a small quantity, not more than
five or six litres a day, boiled and filtered water had been a
convenient solution for some time. The fallouts were obvious. “It
was very difficult to convince the people that purification
system was worth the price. There was no visible way to
demonstrate the benefit,”
8

9. The otherwise somnolent market began to change once
companies like Eureka Forbes targeted the office segment, while
the mineral water players went after travellers. Ion Exchange was
the only company that had any measure of success in entering
homes with Zero-B. But clean drinking water returned on the
national agenda a little later.
Around 1989, drinking water became an issue again.
“Around early 1990’s time did a story on India as a key
emerging market and that was the triggered for all the players
eyeing this market."
9

10. MINERAL WATER INDUSTRY
- CURRENT SCENARIO
A few years back, the mineral water market had been crawling at
the rate of 3-4%, or even a lower figure. Indians carried drinking
water in earthen pitchers, plastic or PUF bottles. But increasing
cases of typhoid and other waterborne diseases began to be
reported. In addition to this, liberalization happened and the
mineral water industry began to be stirred and shaken. The market
started growing an astounding rate of over 100% per annum. The
fact that there were very few players in the market meant that their
business grew by leaps and bounds.
The country's bottled water business is estimated to be more than
Rs. 1,100 crore, of which the branded market accounts for over
Rs. 700 crore and about 700 million litres in volume.
The rest is accounted for by the unorganized sector, which is
dominated by small regional players. The market is still growing –
at a rate greater than 80% per annum.
Today there are more than 200 brands, out of which 10 of
them are from top companies.
In the branded segment, Parle’s 'Bisleri’ is the market leader with
a share of more than 45%. Parle Agro’s 'Bailey’ comes a close
second with market share of 15%.
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11. INCEPTION OF BISLERI
The origins of Bisleri lie in Italy, and the brand owes its name to
founder Felice Bisleri, an Italian entrepreneur. Bisleri set up a
plant in Mumbai for bottling and marketing mineral water, which
was first of its kind in India. However, it did not satisfactory work.
Among other reasons, the fact that the Indian consumer was
unprepared to accept bottled mineral water was responsible for its
failure. Consumers’ mindsets were more geared towards boiling
water at home.
In 1969, Parle bought over the ‘Bisleri' brand. In those days Bisleri
water was available in glass bottles. Parle's taking charge of
Bisleri did not make a dramatic difference to the brand's fortunes
immediately. While it did gain in terms of visibility and reach
(piggybacking on Parle's existing distribution network), efforts to
expand the bottled water market were not exactly painstaking.
Parle at that particular time was interested in making soda water
and not mineral water. There were just minor initiatives on part of
the company for making mineral water as it was not considered to
be a very profitable business at that time people still considered
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12. boiling water to be a safer than mineral water. Moreover they were
not ready to pay for a commodity like water which was so
abundantly available.
In 1972-73 Parle changed the packaging of its bottled water to
plastic bottles and that significantly made a difference in the sales.
The buyers, then, were mainly the upper class - the trendy people.
In 1993, Coca-Cola bought Parle's soft drink brands- thumps-up,
limca etc. While Coca-Cola actually bought over Parle's
beverages, it agreed to a settlement that allowed the multinational
to bottle and distributes Bisleri soda for a time frame of five years.
The charge of Bisleri water, however, remained with Parle. The
upsurge in the sales of Bisleri started from this point as Parle sold
off its stable of brands to Coca-Cola. This was the time when it
started concentrating on making Bisleri a success in the domestic
mineral water market. The reason why Parle chose to retain the
Bisleri name was that Parle saw a fairly lucrative business of
mineral water in Bisleri's equity.
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13. The real shift in company’s policy towards mineral water industry
came in 1998, although the conscious efforts had already been
started in 1994. This change was primarily because of the fact that
the people, at this time, had started becoming more health
conscious.
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14. PRODUCT PROFILE
“It’s a compliment being generic to the category, but it’s not
very good when consumers think any mineral water brand is
Bisleri”.
Bisleri, a product established in India by Ramesh Chauhan,
Chairman of Parle Aqua Minerals has become a generic
brand. Bisleri was the first marketed bottled water in a totally
virgin market. The brand has become synonymous with
mineral water; consumers accept any brand offered by the
retailer when they ask for Bisleri.
So far Ramesh Chauhan’s Bisleri enjoys the largest market
share of 56% in the Rs. 1,100 crore mineral water markets and
is growing at the rate of 180% per annum. Annual sales of
Bisleri have touched Rs. 400 crores. In seventies, 'Bisleri' was
the only mineral water that had national presence and the sale
was to the tune of approximately one hundred thousand cases
valued at about Rs. 60 lacs.
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15. MANUFACTURING
A quick look at Bisleri's manufacturing reach indicates that it is
represented across the country – North accounts for 35% of
sales for the industry, West accounts for 30%, South 20% and
the East 15%.
In order to be available in untapped areas Bisleri has setup 16
plants located all over the country - three-fourths of which are
company owned. The balance is run by franchisees. Bisleri has 5
plants in the North, 5 in the West- two of which were setup at
Ahemdabad and Surat recently, 4 in the South and 2 in the East.
The company has bottling units located in Chennai, Bangalore,
Goa, Calcutta, Mumbai, Delhi, Jaipur, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab,
Indore and Nepal. The new plants are being set up in states like
Kerala, Orissa, Bihar and North Eastern States, which hitherto
have been unexplored by the company.
It is also changing its production strategy and shifting to a 10-hr
production schedule with sudden increase in demand planned to
be met by additional production.
15

16. Bisleri has planned to expand its operations by investing Rs. 60
crore in the upgradation of facilities. The 120-bottles per minute
(BPM) capacity of the 16 units across the country will be increased
to 240 BPM.
Conscious of the environmental implications of its PET bottles, the
company is to set up recycling plants at Delhi and Chennai, each
with an outlay of Rs. 50m. These will process 500 kg. of PET per
hour. The processed material will be an input for polyester yarn
manufacturers. In centers other than Delhi and Chennai, the
company will set up crushing units to crush the used PET bottles.
The company's expansion plans will see its water bottling capacity
go up from the present 400 million litres to 500 million litres. Parle
Bisleri Limited (PBL) is planning to invest Rs. 200 crore to
increase its bottling capacity and double its turnover. The
expansion will also increase the number of company's bottling
plants from 16 at present, to 25. The company will set up all the
new plants as green field plants. It doesn’t have any intentions to
acquire any existing plants.
16

17. DISTRIBUTION
It's obvious that availability holds the key to the market. For any
product to be successful the distribution system has to be really
good. Large tracts of the country have not been explored by the
national brands, which explain the proliferation of smaller
brands.
Bisleri’s strategy is to build a direct distribution system at an all-
India level. Currently, Bisleri has around 80,000 retail outlets in the
country with about 12,000 each in the Metros of Delhi and
Mumbai. It is intended to increase this number to 10 lakh outlets in
order to expand brand’s reach. That means serious investments in
company-owned trucks and carts. Parle hopes to double its
existing fleet of 1,000 trucks. This would make it the largest fleet
owner in the country.
In order to service the home segment, the 5 litre packs are being
pushed through the route of “Fat Dealers”(wholesale dealers) who
are retailers as well as stockiest and serve as supply points from
where customer can pick the required quota. The customer can
call the fat dealer and place order for home delivery of the 5-litre
pack. 180 of these dealers are already functional, and more are in
the process of being appointed.
17

18. The company plans to have its own distribution network in places
where it has its own plants. Franchisees would manage the
distribution in their respective areas of operation.
PACKAGING
Variety is spice of life. Today for any business organisation to be
successful it has to provide its customers with the differentiated
product that is a value buy for them. In order to cater to the
changing needs of the customers the business has to continuously
come out with the variants of the product so that it can target the
maximum segments.
Today, Aqua Minerals offers a variety of packaging options: 300
ml, 500 ml, 1 litre, 1.2 litre, 2 litre, 5 litre, and 20 litre. The 5-litre
bottles account for 35 per cent of sales showing a growing health
concern among the Indian society. 1-litre bottles account for 30
percent of the share, whereas the 500 ml bottles taking up 15 per
cent. The remaining sizes share the rest of the contribution.
The 2 litre bottles were introduced to slowly and steadily replace
the conventional 1 litre bottles. This would give them an advantage
over others. The 500-ml category was re-focused as a trendy
18

19. product, targeted at the teenage crowd and for the roadside
consumers.
Following is a quick overview of the various packaging options
provided by Bisleri along with the target consumers:
Size of the bottle Price per Target consumer
bottle
500 ml Rs. 6 Teenagers, college students and roadside
consumers.
1 litre Rs. 10 General consumers and travellers.
1.2 litres Rs. 12 Consumers demanding a little more water
at just a little more price.
2 litres Rs. 18 Small offices, shopkeepers, households.
5 litres Rs. 40 Households, institutes, offices, retail
shops, showrooms.
20 litres Rs. 200 Households, institutes, offices, schools
and colleges.
The following pie chart clearly shows the sales wise distribution
of the various pack sizes:
% share of pack sizes in sales
10 15 500 ml
1 litre
2 litres
35 30 5 litres
10 others 19

20. 20

21. ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN OF BISLERI BEFORE
LAUNCH OF ACQUAFINA & KINLEY
Every brand needs a good ad. campaign to establish itself in the
market. So it becomes very imperative to look at various ad.
campaigns that Bisleri undertook to build itself as a brand.
Bisleri started its game plan with the punch line of ‘Pure and safe’
and used the same catch-line for advertising. But with the advent
of many new players, all claiming the purity, it became very
imperative for Bisleri to differentiate its product so as to stand out
in the market. Bisleri found the answer in ‘sealed cap bottles’. It
claimed 100% purity.
While the bottles of the other brands, it claimed could be refilled
with ordinary or even germinated water, Bisleri’s seal capped
bottles ensured the consumer of purity of water and single-used
ness of the bottles.
The ad. showed a milk-man and a child showering their buffaloes
and filling the ‘so-called’ mineral water bottles with the same water
and packing them with the simple polythene seal and the
consumer not knowing about the ‘purity’ of the water he is
drinking. Next clip shows the Bisleri bottles being sealed with
plastic caps and ensuring the purity of water. The ad. did work for
Bisleri and it got its much needed product differentiation.
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22. In 2000, some giant brands like Pepsi and Coca-Cola entered the
mineral water industry with a big bang. Bisleri now had a big threat
of maintaining its market cap. While Coca-Cola introducing its
brand ‘Kinley’ as a health care product, Pepsi projected ‘Aquafina’
as something as pure as ‘Your own body’.
Pepsi targeted the young generation and introduced Acquafina as
a fancy product to carry.
The ad. campaign of Aquafina emphasized as ‘70% of your body
is water’ and thus give your body the purest water. The ad.
showed young vibrant models and created the atmosphere of
youthfulness. Water, Pepsi claimed, was no longer a simple
beverage, but was something highly fashionable. They
complimented it by giving their bottles an attractive look. This soon
caught the eye of the consumer. All these factors made Pepsi the
biggest upcoming competitor of Bisleri.
Where as Kinley lagged behind the race, showing a doctor
advising a family to take Kinley for pure water – not a very
attractive ad campaign.
Bisleri, to counter-attack the new ‘Feel-Young’ fever had to even
bolder steps. They first changed their base line from ‘Pure And
Safe’ to ‘Play Safe’. They tried a brand new ad. campaign to
catch the fancy of consumer.
22

23. The new ad. showed a young romantic couple on a marooned
island, when the girl seductively attracts the guy and he follows her
in trance. The moment he gets hold of her, she whispers
something in his ears. The next few shot show the guy looking for
something in frenzy…can not find it…. Rushes towards the
chemist’s shop…. Buys ‘something’ (keeping the audience in
suspense…or rather implicitly pointing for ‘…’). The girl opens it
and….takes out a bottle of Bisleri and quenches her thirst.
Caption: “Play Safe”. This campaign was to catch the attention of
youth and a new Indian society, which is supposed to be ‘not-so-
prudish’. Thus Bisleri has taken a very bold step. The TV ads.
have been complimented by print ads. also. The campaign is
reported to be doing pretty well.
23

24. CHALLENGES IN FRONT OF THE BISLERI
The company had the share of more than 50% of the national
market. But now the share of the company is going down, in the
pie of the national market. Until recently there was competition
with only the unorganized sector.
Other than the financial constraints up to an extent, the company
has to focus on the marketing management of the product. In light
of the challenge in front of the company and its current strengths
and position, it is handy to incorporate the marketing mix to
counter the marketing strategies of the competitors by developing
its own marketing strategies.
MARKETING MIX
The set of controllable tactical tools- product, price, promotion, and
place (4 P’s) that the firm blends to produce the response it wants,
in the target markets.
24

25. The 4P’s
PRODUCT
The main product of the company is the mineral water by the
name of Bisleri Mineral Water. Other than mineral water the
company has also the soda water under its brand name called the
Bisleri Soda Water. Bisleri, and that is the reason introduced the
concept of bottled mineral water in India, first, it has become a
generic name for the mineral water. Bisleri has become a perfect
synonym of the mineral water for the Indian consumers.
The main challenge facing the company or any other player in this
mineral water industry is that there is no scope of invention and
innovation in the product, which can be added as the additional
benefits of the product.
It is just water after all. This is what the Indian customers think of
the bottled water. If we are talking about a product like television
we can think that the innovations could provide extra benefits
derived from the product.
VARIANTS OF THE PRODUCT
25

26. The company is offering wide variants of the product. These
include the different quantities available of the product. Starting
from the Jumbo pack (20 lt. Jar) to the 500 ml. bottles. In between,
it also has 1 lt., 1.2 lt., 2 lt. and 5 lt. packs.
In terms of another variant the company has also come up with
small glasses of 300ml. Those are priced at Rs. 3 per glass. The
company has introduced these glasses for the social occasions
like marriages and get together. This again is very competitive in
the price field and also the customer is getting a convenient
product with the benefit of purity at such a low price. Now the
customers would not have to drink impure water served in
unhygienic glasses.
26

27. PACKAGING:
The packaging of the product is an important factor in the
marketing of the product. The packaging of the product was
absolutely accepted by the customers till now. But it has been
along time the company has changed the packaging of 1 ltr.
mineral water bottle.
One of the competitors of the company, Pepsi, has mineral water
by the name of ‘Aquafina’. The packaging of the Aquafina is
creating the need for the company to change its packaging and
make it look sturdier. The brand Aquafina has been targeted
towards the youth and that is why they have made the bottle look
more hip. Bisleri would have to give a new look to its product to
stopping Aquafina from snatching its market share.
To conclude:
Looking at the facts above the company according to me
should pay attention on the packaging of the product so that
it is able to attract more customers.
Secondly, the company should go for Brand Extension. The
company should take the benefit of the brand name it has
created over a long period of time. It can introduce new
products in the category of beverages.
27

28. PLACE
Place stands for the company activities that make the product
available to the target customers. To make the product available to
the target consumers a good distribution network has to be there
to support the good quality of the product. Here in the case of the
mineral water industry the distribution network is an important
factor in being competitive and the catch lies in making water
available to maximum number of places in the country.
DISTRIBUTION NETWORK:
The small-scale players built their sales by piggybacking on the
generic category built up by Bisleri. It’s a battle that Bisleri can win
by sheer distribution muscle. One of the reasons why Bisleri is
running strong in this industry is its strong distribution network built
over the years since its inception. Further, Bisleri plans to increase
its distribution network over the southern and eastern region,
where it is behind popular brands like Team in Tamil Nadu and in
Andhra Pradesh.
Conclusion: It is very important for the companies to
understand that winners would be those who will endure a strong
regional presence. Therefore the companies should take some
immediate actions to make presence in the whole country and
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29. more important is every nook and corner of the states where they
are present today.
PRICE
AN ECONOMIC FACTOR AFFECTING THE BUYER’S BEHAVIOUR
Price is the sum of values that consumer exchanges for the
benefits of having or using the product or service. Price is the only
element in the marketing mix that produces revenue. All other
elements represent costs.
In India, where the majority of the population comprises of the
middle-income groups and lower income groups; it is not hard to
understand that pricing is one of the most important factor in the
buying decisions.
Bisleri has met the expectations of the consumers in terms of
pricing the product and also making the product available in
variations of litres, making Bisleri both convenient and affordable.
The company is following a very aggressive pricing. Its product is
available at a very reasonable price. Company charges Re.1 for
every 100 ml. This strategy by the company is very effective in the
Indian context where the consumers are highly price conscious.
The company has come up with another variant of the product. It
is 1.2 lt. bottle that is priced at Rs.12 keeping the price fixed at
Re.1 per 100 ml.
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30. Conclusion:
To conclude from the facts that the pricing strategy of the
company is very competitive and therefore the company is giving
value to the customers for money.
PROMOTION
Modern marketing calls for more than just developing a good
product, pricing it attractively, and making it available to the target
customers, companies must also communicate with their
customers, and what they communicate should not be left to
chance.
A Company’s total marketing communications program- called its
Promotion Mix consists of specific blend of advertising, personal
selling, sales promotion, and public relations tools that the
company uses to pursue its advertising and marketing objectives.
30

31. ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN
While designing the advertisement campaign, it is necessary to
keep in mind the opinion leaders. Youth are the opinion leaders of
the present time. And thus it becomes necessary to design the
campaign keeping the youth in mind. The opinion leaders would
further trickle down the message to the less active members of the
society.
This is exactly what Bisleri is doing. Bisleri has started an
advertisement campaign stressing the point of purity and flaunting
the patent right the company has over the breakaway seal. The
company has tried to put the message across louder, by using the
ad. campaign that catches the eye of everyone, specially the
youth.
31

32. MESSAGE CONTENT OF THE CAMPAIGN
Bisleri that was looking for a differentiator decided to make the
breakaway seal the symbol of purity. The tamper-proof seal was
developed, around which the communication was woven. The
campaign stresses the safety provided by the breakaway seal by
illustrating the ease with which conventionally sealed bottles can
be refilled and recycled.
The objective with the campaign would have been to highlight the
tamper-proof seal and create doubt in the consumer’s mind of the
purity of the other brands. That is, Bisleri is the only one that
guarantees purity and keeps you safe.
Conclusion:
New advertisement campaign of Bisleri is eye catching. This is
what the company should do. And also the company should make
the message clearer to the customers that it has the patent right
over the breakaway seal.
Apart from a high dose of investments on expanding bottling
capacities and an ad. budget that’s risen six-fold over last year, if
Bisleri wants to penetrate every possible segment of the market, it
can do that by introducing more pack sizes and establishing the
brand strongly with trendy new packaging.
32

33. Apart from creating consumer pull with campaign, the company, to
increase its sales would have to do the sales push as well. For
that it would have to give the retailers and other stockiest high
trade margins and incentives for keeping the product. This is very
important in case of this product because consumers would take
up what is available to them at ease and whatever retailer is
giving.
3 Cs
CONSUMER:
The central question the company has to understand is: How does
consumer responds to various marketing stimuli the company
might use? The company that really understands how customers
will respond to different product features, prices and advertising
appeals has a great advantage over its competitors. The question
can be further broken down to: Who buys? When do they buy?
Where do they buy? Why do they buy?
33

34. Who buys?
The middle income and the upper income groups are the users of
the bottled water. The lower income group is still dependent on the
water from wells and hand pumps. In the middle-income group
also, people buy bottled water while travelling.
Among the various income groups, these comprise the students,
the office going executive, tourists and the retired people. So the
company should go in for strategies to target customer segments
based on appeal, prices, convenient packaging and other
characteristics conforming to the customer segment the company
is targeting.
When do they buy?
The middle-income group buys mineral water while travelling. At
home or at the work place they mainly use water filters that are
installed. Or, they use large pack of bottled water like the jumbo
pack (20 Lt.) by Bisleri. The upper income group uses mineral
water only. So, they constitute a large part of the total market.
34

35. Where do they buy?
The bottled water users buy the water from retail outlets and also
through tie-ups with dealers. Large consumers of bottled water
order their water requirements through dealers. The small time but
frequent consumer buys bottled water from retail outlets.
Why do they buy?
For obvious reasons, soaring mercury levels are directly
proportional to consumption of purified bottled water. The basic
reason consumers ask for bottled water is the safety. With the
growing health hazards in the country and as the people are
becoming more health conscious they are switching over to bottled
water. This is the reason that the industry is growing at fast pace.
The other reason after this is that the bottled water is convenient
to carry. They can throw the bottles after use unlike when they
carry water from home.
Consumer concerns and Perceptions
The thinking here is that with consumer perceptions about mineral
water changing, the brand Bisleri has to reinvent itself. Earlier,
mineral water used to stand for water enriched with certain
35

36. minerals and was picked up by health-conscious consumers. This
no longer holds. Mineral water has come to mean just that—water.
Albeit safe drinking water that is conveniently available. The
consumer does not really care if the water contains minerals. The
most important consideration is purity of the product.
What the company is doing to take care of the
consumer’s concern?
Tampering of seals:
Around 76 per cent of consumption happens in transit. Consumer
research conducted by me revealed that the overriding concern for
this set of buyers is the tampering of the seal. Many have
witnessed used bottles being refilled at railway stations. So when
a consumer buys mineral water, he would like to be assured that
the water has not been tampered with. Bisleri has rightly
introduced the concept of the breakaway seal to reinforce the
purity of Bisleri mineral water and given a surety to its consumers
that what they are consuming is SAFE.
Taste of the mineral water:
Many consumers want the mineral water to taste more like
“Water”. The consumer research done by me revealed that
consumers preferred Bisleri because of its natural taste.
36

37. COMPANY- BISLERI
North accounts for 35 per cent of sales for the industry, west
accounts for 30, south 20, and the east, 15 per cent. Bisleri has
five plants in the north, three in the west, four in the south and one
in the east.
In order to be available in untapped areas, Mr. Chauhan is
planning to set up manufacturing units in Bihar and Orissa where
Bisleri has no presence as of now. Currently, Bisleri has 14
manufacturing units - two of which were set up at Ahemdabad and
Surat.
COMPETITION:
The mineral water market is set to explode and hit the Rs. 2,000
crore marks in the next couple of years. This is drawing the big
guns attention. First Britannia launched Evian. And recently, soft
drinks giant Pepsi entered the fray with Aquafina. Now, Nestle too
is reportedly planning a foray. Meanwhile, Parle Agro’s Bailey has
been growing steadily. Small local players too are breathing down
Bisleri’s neck riding on better trade margins and intensive
distribution (in their respective areas of operation).
37

38. The competition facing Bisleri can be categorized into a few brand
names like
 Parle Bailey
 Pepsi Aquafina
 Coca Cola Kinley
With Parle’s Bailey being the main competitor and second in
market share in the organized market, Bisleri faces tremendous
competition from the unorganized sector.
Aquafina
The advantage for Aquafina is that though there are over 300
labels of bottled water in Indian market, few can be called brands.
It is necessary to remember that every product with a name is not
a brand; even Bisleri has become generic to this category.
It does not have any emotional values attached to it. So there was
no difficulty for Pepsi in creating space in such a market which is
completely different from the soft drinks market, where it will be
very difficult for any new player to find a slot.
Although Aquafina is only available in one pet bottle, the pricing, at
Rs.10, is competitive. And it is safe. In addition to the tamper proof
seal, there is a reliable method of checking whether the bottle has
been refilled. The date of manufacturing has been written on the
cap as well as on the bottle. Thus a person who is refilling it would
have to find a matching cap and bottle, the probability of which is
very low.
38

39. Coca Cola Kinley
Coca-Cola joined the race by announcing the imminent launch of
its own brand of water and, in the process, putting to rest rumors
of its so-called takeover of Bisleri. Kinley is targeting institutions.
Parle Agro’s Bailey
Bailey the brand that is owned by Ramesh Chauhan’s brother
Prakash Chauhan is very popular in the southern part of India.
Southern part of India accounts for 20% of the sale of the whole
water market industry. Bisleri would have a tough competition from
Bailey since the company plans to spread its presence in that part
of the country. Another thing that makes the competition difficult
for the company is the price at which its competitor is offering the
product. Like Bisleri it also gives the 1 lt. for Rs.10. The only
strength point of the company that it can capitalize is its generic
name. And also the company would have to enter that market with
a strong distribution base. We know the fact that Bailey has grown
at a rapid pace using the route of franchising which Bisleri has not
adopted as yet. This is another point that the company would have
to take care to face the competition.
39

40. METHODOLOGY
Sample
For the purpose of completion of this particular project retailers
were interviewed. The sample sizes of 100 retailers were taken in
order to come up with the result.
Sample technique
Sampling technique, Convenience sampling.
Sample size
100 retailers were covered in Delhi, in order to find out the effect
that Bisleri experienced due to entrants of two-multinational
companies- Pepsi's Aquafina and Coke's Kinley.
Tools and techniques for data collection
Tools and techniques for data collection are as follows:-
Primary data collection:
Primary data was through interview with the retailers using
structured questionnaire.
Secondary source of data collection:
Various Internet sites, newspaper, magazines were searched in
order to find information useful for completion of this project.
40

41. FINDINGS AND ANALYSIS
‫٭‬ Total number of retailers touched in Delhi
Shahara, Dilshad Garden, Preet Vihar, Lal Quarter, Vikas Marg,
Anand Vihar, Surajmal Vihar, Kaushambi, Gandhi Nagar and
Kailash Nagar.
Out of 100 retailers, everyone stored mineral water and basically
these shops were centrally located to the market and were
basically general store, confectionery shop and small kirana shop.
The survey revealed that almost every shop stored mineral water,
therefore it can be interpreted that mineral water in current market
scenario is on general demand and retailer enjoy selling it, as they
get good margin out of it.
‫ ٭‬Brand of mineral water kept by the retailers
The survey revealed that out of 100 retailers surveyed, all over
Delhi, 70% of the retailers kept Bisleri's mineral water, 25% Kinley,
30% Aquafina mineral water.
41

42. However it can be noted that retailers prefer Bisleri mineral water
which has got a share of 70%. This is so because people or
customer recalls mineral water with the brand name of Bisleri. The
new entrants basically Aquafina and Kinley is been kept by 30%
and 25% of the retailers and they consider that this product will
soon capture market share as the brand name will speak its
quality.
Pie chart-showing percentage of different mineral
water being kept by the retailers
45%
70%
26%
30%
Bisleri Aquafina Kinley Others
42

43. ‫ ٭‬Frequency of distribution visit
Distribution is one of the important parameters which holds on key
position for any fast-moving consumer goods as the sale of this
particular type of product highly depends on distribution network
and its availability, also frequency of distribution is taken into
consideration for the sale of this kind of product. Therefore it can
be interpreted that sale of any product depends on its distribution
and thus we can say that distribution and sales are interrelated.
The total number of retailers covered for the purpose of my
analysis is 100, and out of this almost every shop gets the mineral
water of each brand on a regular basis i.e. on a daily basis,
therefore linkage is always there with the company regarding the
demand for mineral water. This is good sign for the company as it
is in regular touch with the retailers.
43

44. Bar graph showing frequency of distributor visit
to retailers
100% 100% 100% 100% 100%
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0% 0% 0% 0% 0%0% 0% 0% 0% 0%
0%
Bisleri Aquafina Kinley Bailey Others
Daily Alternatively Weekly
‫ ٭‬Availability of the various mineral water
among retailers shows varying percentage
Easily Get but not Does not get
often
Bisleri 73% 18% 9%
Aquafina 75% 15% 10%
Kinley 60% 15% 10%
Bailey 70% 20% 10%
44

45. Bar graph showing availability of the various mineral
water among retailers
80% 73% 75% 70%
60%
60%
40%
18% 20%
15% 15%
20% 9% 10% 10% 10%
0%
Bisleri Aquafina Kinley Bailey
Easily Get but not often Does not get
From the data, it can be interpreted that availability of Bisleri
mineral water among the retailers is 73%. The retailers get the
product easily, whereas 18% of them feels that they do not get the
product offer and rest of the 9% retailers feels that they do not get
this product at all. Thus it can be said that, distribution system of
Bisleri is good and should try to maintain this pattern in order to
compete with Kinley and Aquafina which have strong distribution
network due to their soft drink link.
45

46. However, in the case of Aquafina 75% of retailers gets the product
regularly, 15% get the product on an irregular basis whereas rest
of the 10% retailer does not get the product at all.
In the case of Kinley 60% retailers get the product easily whereas
15% of the retailers get this mineral water on an irregular basis
and rest of the 25% retailers does not get the product at all.
Therefore Coca-Cola should do something with its distribution
network in order to capture more market share as it does not need
to create its separate distribution network for mineral water; this is
because they have already strong presence in the market due to
its soft drink link. Thus it can pose major threat to Bisleri in a long
run, if its potential is used at full capacity.
• Bisleri’s has strong presence in the market as it can be seen
from the table that 70% of retailers gets the product easily. 20%
retailers get the mineral water on an irregular basis, where as
rest of the 10% retailers feels that they do not get the product at
all.
46

47. • Other mineral water accounts 60% in case of easy availability,
20% feels that they do not get the mineral water in a regular
basis and rest of the 20% retailers feels that they do not get the
product all.
‫ ٭‬Regarding level of satisfaction in terms of margin
Satisfied Not satisfied
Bisleri 43% 57%
Aquafina 73% 27%
Kinley 78% 22%
Bailey 80% 20%
Others 80% 20%
Graph showing satisfaction level in terms of margin
90% 80% 80%
78%
80% 73%
70%
57%
60%
50% 43%
40%
27%
30% 22% 20% 20%
20%
10%
0%
Bisleri Aquafina Kinley Bailey Others
Satisfied Not satisfied
47

48. ‫ ٭‬Satisfaction level of the retailers with regard to the
quality of the product
Bisleri 65%
Aquafina 95%
Kinley 80%
Bailey 60%
Others 40%
Pie chart showing satisfaction level among the retailers regarding
quality of the product from the various players
48

49. 65%
95%
40%
60% 80%
Aquafina Kinley Bailey Others bisleri
After calculating % of retailers satisfied with the quality of mineral
water, it was found out that the Aquafina is leading ahead with its
competitors, as 95% of retailers feels that quality of this particular
brand is much better than the other mineral water, followed by
Kinley, where 80% retailers are satisfied by its quality then the
Bisleri 65% followed by Bailey's 60% and other mineral water
40%.
This shows that the quality of new entrants like Aquafina and
Kinley is much better; thus it can give tough competition to the
retailers in the particular parameter.
Therefore Bisleri should do something in terms of its quality in
order to maintain its existing market share.
49

50. ‫ ٭‬Analysis regarding role of advertisement in
increasing market share of following mineral water
Effective Not effective
Bisleri 60% 40%
Aquafina 92% 8%
Kinley 72% 28%
Bailey 30% 70%
Others 10% 90%
Bar graph showing the role of advertisement in
increasing market
100% 92% 90%
90%
80% 72% 70%
70% 60%
60%
50% 40%
40% 30%
28%
30%
20% 10%
8%
10%
0%
Bisleri Aquafina Kinley Bailey Others
Effective Not effective
50

51. Advertisement in today's competing environment plays an
important role in increasing market size of any particular product.
It can be interpreted from the given table that advertisement has
played a major role in the case of Bisleri to maintain the current
market size and compete in this competitive environment. 60% of
the retailers feel that advertisement of Bisleri has played major
role in maintaining its current market size whereas 40% does not
think so.
• In the case of Aquafina, retailers feel that advertisement for this
particular product has helped it to grow and capture the market
size and with this aggressive advertisement strategy, it is
expected that its market share will increase in near future. 92%
of the retailers feel that due to its advertisement, this particular
product is being accepted in the market, whereas rests of the
8% have varying reasons.
30% retailers feel that Bailey’s sale is due to the advertisement
whereas 70% of the retailers do not feel so. Therefore if Bailey
wants to increase its market share then it should do something in
this field also.
51

52. STRATEGIES THAT BISLERI SHOULD FOLLOW
IN ORDER TO RETAIN ITS MARKET SHARE
The soft target
Selling bottled water requires constantly expanding the market.
The company should also target the market for soft drinks. All the
soft drinks address three issues: fun, thirst and refreshment
followed by status to some degree. The thirst and the status value
of the mineral water are well accepted. There is very little the
mineral water brands can do to add the fun element around the
product. Again here, it becomes important for the company to
have a good distribution network. It should be understood that if
the mineral water is easily available everywhere then it can be said
with confidence that it would be able to replace the soft drinks as
thirst quencher. If we try and look at the reasons that why
consumers buy soft drinks as thirst quenchers: we would find the
answer as that either water is not available or if it is available then
safety is not assured. Therefore backed by a good distribution
network mineral water industry can grow at a rapid rate.
52

53. Getting in shape
The other improvement the company needs is in terms of
packaging. It is often seen that the youth are the opinion leaders,
therefore it becomes very important for any consumer product to
make a mark in that generation, if it really wants to grow. The
company for that would have to come with packaging that is
sturdier and portrays itself as a help brand.
Distribution network
The need for improving the distribution network is not only when
the company wants to target the soft drinks market. If it wants to
enter every part of the country and would face competition from
competitors like Bailey it becomes a prerequisite for the company
to have a strong distribution network. Take the example of Bailey,
it can be seen that this company has grown rapidly in the past and
is still on that trend. One of the important reasons for this rapid
growth is franchising.
53

54. CONCLUSION
The players who will endure will be those who have a strong
regional presence. Take the case of Team, which enjoys immense
popularity in Tamil Nadu. Similar brands with a regional presence
are Siruvani, and Koday. Thus, new players will be looking for a
distinct positioning. One such brand is Pepsi’s Aquafina, the
largest selling bottled water brand in the US. After its successful
test launch in Mumbai and Bangalore, Aquafina was released in
Chennai, Ahemdabad, Vadodara, and Pune. Pepsi has invested
over Rs.5 crore in the new Aquafina water project in Maharashtra,
which is the only Aquafina plant outside the US.
According to, executive vice president, corporate communications
of Pepsi Foods Ltd., “Aquafina will be helped by Pepsi’s network.
Moreover, Aquafina will be served absolutely chilled.” That makes
sense too, since surveys have indicated that an overwhelming
majority of the bottled water that is consumed in India is by people
who are travelling.
With the big players, who have the support of the financial muscle
and a large consumer base in other categories with them, like
Pepsi, Britannia, Nestle and Coke — the battle is the tougher
arena of brand building. All the multinationals are looking at high-
octane advertising targeting specific consumer segments. Sensing
54

55. troubled waters ahead, Bisleri is busy working on a strategy to
soak up the competition and protect his water kingdom.
55

56. LIMITATIONS
• The scope of this project is limited to areas in East Delhi only.
• Because of time constraint sample size was restricted on 100.
56

57. RECOMMENDATIONS
‫ ٭‬Advertisement to build the brand image that will provide the
required ground to establish the authenticity to the product.
‫ ٭‬Flavoured water without sugar and artificial ingredients could be
introduced so that the consumers also have a healthy substitute
to the soft drinks.
‫ ٭‬Bulk water delivery to home at no additional cost.
‫ ٭‬Company like Aquafina & Kinley should come up with other big
bottle variant.
‫ ٭‬POP (Point of Purchase) displaying the cost of water at Rs. 2
per mlt as the perception of the people is that mineral water
cost Rs. 10 per lt.
‫ ٭‬Awareness programs at health club, schools & Nursing homes.
‫ ٭‬Display of hot and cold dispensers and bottles at places like
hotels, clubs and airports where upper class group visits, as
they are the potential customers. Place like departmental
stores, petrol pumps and super bazaars can also be
considered.
‫ ٭‬Mineral water in poly bags like milk is more convenient to the
consumers.
57

58. ‫ ٭‬The company should organise camps at various part of the city
also road show to bring about the difference between mineral
water and filter/purified water and to tell the people how mineral
water is more hygienic than filtered water/purified water.
‫ ٭‬To aware people the cost benefit analysis to the customer of
how the mineral water would cost less and benefit more,
because people using purifier system cost too much.
‫ ٭‬To win over the consumer faith over the genuinety of the
product the company should have redressal forums where
people can convey their grievances.
‫' ٭‬Buy two bottles get one’ like offers can also be introduced by
big brands.
‫ ٭‬Pirated or copied variants of branded water to be stopped.
‫ ٭‬Plastic quality of bottle can be improved as especially middle
class segment don't want to throw plastic bottles after water
consumption and like the same bottle to be used in future or
domestic purposes.
58

59. RETAILER QUESTIONNAIRE
Name of Retailer:
Location:
1. Are you aware of the fact that there are more than 200 brands
in today's mineral water industry?
YES/NO
2. Which is the brand you stock more?
(a) Bisleri (b) Aquafina (c) Kinley
(d) Bailey (e) Hello (f) Kingfisher
(g) Evian (h)Any other (Pl. Specify? __)
3. Which brand offer best retailer margin?
(a) Bisleri (b) Aquafina (c) Kinley
(d) Bailey (e) Hello (f) Kingfisher
(g) Evian (h) Any other (Pl. Specify? __)
4. How easily do you get Bisleri mineral water from the
distributors?
(a) Easily (b) Get but not often (c) Does not get
5. How easily do you get Aquafina mineral water from the
distributors?
(a) Easily (b) Get but not often (c) does not get
59

60. 6. How easily do you get Kinley mineral water from the
distributors?
(a) Easily (b) Get but not often (c) does not get
7. How easily do you get Bailey mineral water from the
distributors?
(a) Easily (b) Get but not often (c) does not get
8. Which brand spends more on advertising?
(a) Bisleri (b) Aquafina (c) Kinley
(d) Bailey (e) Hello (f) Kingfisher
(g) Evian (h) Any other (Pl. Specify? __)
9. Have you ever received complaints regarding any existing
brand? If yes which brand?
(a) Bisleri (b) Aquafina (c) Kinley
(d) Bailey (e) Hello (f) Kingfisher
(g) Evian (h) Any other (Pl. Specify? __)
10. How often do you promote local brands and why?
……………………………………………………………………………
…………….
11. Do you feel any major differences between branded and
unbranded mineral water?
………………………………………………………………………………………….
60

61. 12. How often do your customers ask for Bisleri, Kinley &
Aquafina?
……………………………………………………………………………
…………….
8. How frequently you receive Bisleri, Kinley & Aquafina from their
respective distributors?
(a) Weekly (b) Twice a Week (c) Daily
14. If any suggestion
………………………………………………………………..
Thank you
61

62. BIBLIOGRAPHY
‫ ٭‬Marketing Management, Philip Kotler, Eleventh Edition.
‫ ٭‬Marketing Research, Harper W. Boyd, Jr. Ralph Westfall,
Stanley F. Stasch.
‫ ٭‬Research Methodology- R.C. Kothari, Second edition.
‫ ٭‬Various issues Business World, Business today.
‫ ٭‬Websites
www.bislerimineralwater.com
www.coke.com
www.pepsi.com
www.parle.com
www.google.com
www.rediff.com
62

63. List of retailers covered during the survey:
NAME OF THE RETAILERS LOCATION
AMIT CONFECTIONARY SHAHDARA
HANS PAN SHAHDARA
SHREE STORE SHAHDARA
AAR KAY ENTERPRISES SHAHDARA
GOEL AYURVEDIC & GENERAL SHAHDARA
STORE
MITTAL SWEETS SHAHDARA
KIRTI GENERAL STORE SHAHDARA
SHIVA GENERAL STORE SHAHDARA
OM THREADS & GENERAL STORE SHAHDARA
S. K. ENTERPRISES DILSHAD GARDEN
JAI SHIV GORAKH STORE DILSHAD GARDEN
RAMA DIARY DILSHAD ARDEN
GANESH STORE DILSHAD GARDEN
KUMAR GENERAL STORE DILSHAD GARDEN
SHIV GORAKH STORE DILSHAD GARDEN
BANGA GENERAL STORE PREET VIHAR
J. P. DIARY RPEET VIHAR
KOMAL STORE PREET VIHAR
J. P. STORE PREET VIHAR
ORISSA DIARY PREET VIHAR
63

64. MANOJ MANGLA STORE PREET VIHAR
BALAJI GENERAL STORE PREET VIHAR
KERELA STORE PREET VIHAR
SUPREME STORE PREET VIHAR
NEELU DIARY PREET VIHAR
NARESH GENERAL STORE LAL QUARTER
SHIV BHANDAR LAL QUARTER
BINDAL PROVISION STORE LAL QUARTER
SHARMA HOTEL LAL QUARTER
SANJAY GENERAL STORE LAL QUARTER
BABA BAKERY LAL QUARTER
DURGA STORE LAL QUARTER
SELECTION TAILORS LAL QUARTER
BINDAL ENTERPRISES LAL QUARTER
NARWAL SUPER STORE LAL QUARTER
AZAD JUICE CORNER VIKAS MARG
LUCKY STORE VIKAS MARG
NAVIN CONFECTIOBARY VIKAS MARG
AWASTHI STORE VIKAS MARG
MUNIRKA GENERAL STORE VIKAS MARG
AHSHIT CONFECTIONARY VIKAS MARG
SUPER STORE VIKAS MARG
AAPNA STORE VIKAS MARG
MANOHAR PROVISIONAL STORE VIKAS MARG
64

65. MUKUL JAIN STORE VIKAS MARG
SUBHASH GENERAL STORE ANAND VIHAR
NEETHI KERELA STORE ANAND VIHAR
JAGDAMBA PROVISION STORE ANAND VIHAR
PRIYA GENERAL STORE ANAND VIHAR
SINGHAL STORE ANAND VIHAR
BANSAL STORE ANAND VIHAR
SRI KRISHNA TRADERS ANAND VIHAR
SINGHAL SWEETS ANAND VIHAR
LODHIWAL STORES ANAND VIHAR
SINDHI STORE ANAND VIHAR
RAMESH TRADING COMPANY ANAND VIHAR
SHARMA STORE ANAND VIHAR
SHANTI PROVISIONAL STORE ANAND VIHAR
TILSI STORE SURAJMAL VIHAR
VARUN STORE SURAJMAL VIHAR
BIMAL STORE SURAJMAL VIHAR
SATISH STORE SURAJMAL VIHAR
KAMAL NATH STORE SURAJMAL VIHAR
VINOD PROVISIONAL STORE SURAJMAL VIHAR
GOEL SUPER BAZAR SURAJMAL VIHAR
MOHIT STORE SURAJMAL VIHAR
PARAWA STORE SURAJMAL VIHAR
LAL DEPARTMENT SURAJMAL VIHAR
65

66. BHATIA STORE SURAJMAL VIHAR
SAVITA GENERAL STOER SURAJMAL VIHAR
KRISHNA GENERAL STORE KAUSHAMBI
VIKASH STORE KAUSHAMBI
KEWLA STORE KAUSHAMBI
ANIL STORE KAUSHAMBI
JAGDAMBA GENERAL STORE KAUSHAMBI
P K GENERAL STORE KAUSHAMBI
9-9 SUPER BAZAR KAUSHAMBI
KANIKA GENERAL STORE KAUSHAMBI
KRISHNA DIARY KAUSHAMBI
RAJINDER STORE KAUSHAMBI
SHIVAM GENERAL STORE GANDHI NAGAR
BHARADWAJ STORE GANDHI NAGAR
SETHIA STORE GANDHI NAGAR
VATSH STORE GANDHI NAGAR
GANDHI GENERAL STORE GANDHI NAGAR
KOMAL GENERAL STORE GANDHI NAGAR
SHTAM STORE GANDHI NAGAR
PAUL STORE GANDHI NAGAR
GENERAL PROVISIONAL STORE GANDHI NAGAR
KALKA PROVISIONAL STORE KAILASH NAGAR
CHAWLA GENERAL STORE KAILASH NAGAR
RAKESH CLOD DRINKS KAILASH NAGAR
66

67. SUNNY STORE KAILASH NAGAR
TARUN STORE KAILASH NAGAR
NAYEDYAM STORE KAILASH NAGAR
67