Analysing the bottled water industry

Analysing the bottled water industry Water is the one of the most important necessity for life. There are different drinking-water needs for individuals and they vary depending on the climate, physical activity and the body  culture of every individual. But for average consumers water need is estimated to be about two to four liters per day. The growing number of cases of water borne diseases, increasing water pollution, increasing urbanization,  increasing scarcity of pure and safe water etc has made the bottled water business just like other consumer items. Scarcity of potable and wholesome water at railway stations, tourists spots, and role of tourism corp. etc. has also added to the growth  Indians currently spending about $330m a year on bottled water, analysts estimate. The packaged water market constitutes 15 per cent of the overall packaged beverage industry, which has annual sales of at least $2.6bn, Deepak Jolly, a spokesperson for Coca-Cola India said.   President Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam has urged youngsters on July 17, 2010 to be aware of water conservation techniques to avoid grave water crisis in future.It is so sad that today, people are forced to buy water in plastic bottles The annual volume of the world bottled market of amounts to 109 billion liters, an average 17.5 liters of bottled water drunk yearly per person (Zenith International, International Council of Bottled Water Association, 2000). India ranks in the top 10 largest bottled water consumers in the world; its per capita per annum consumption of bottled water is estimated to be five liters Western Europeans are the major consumers, with an average of 93 liters/person/year. Asians presently consume the least. Thus there exists a vast potential market for bottled water in Asia. In India the value of bottled water industry is around Rs 1000 crore and its growing with the rate of about 40 percent annually (Business Today, 2001) and looking at the marketing potential many of the multinationals have entered the Indian market and has enhanced the marketing activity to tap the unexploited potential. Many of the brands compete in a very narrow market segments, comprising majorly upon the Travel, Tourism, Caterers, Restaurants, and Hospital segments and Meeting local demands. The attention is currently being focused on tapping the vast potential presented by entry into affluent / upper middle class households. The bottled water market share is majorly captured by Bisleri (51 per cent), Bailley (17 per cent), Yes (11 per cent) and Followed by Kinley (10 per cent) and Aquafina (4 per cent) (Source: BT Estimates June, 2001). In the natural mineral water sector Evian, Perrier, bisleri, and Himalayan are the major brands operating in India. According to a study conducte d at national-level, there are more than 200 bottled water brands in India and out of them nearly 80 per cent are local brands. Except in the metros, a bottled-water manufacturer was not to be found even in a one-room shop, between 1999 and 2004. The Indian bottled water market grew at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 25 per cent the highest in the world.  The total annual bottled water consumption in India turned to 5 billion  liters in 2004 from 1.5 billion liters earlier in1999.  Global consumption of bottled water was nearing  200 billion liters in 2006. The market leader is Bisleri International, which boasts a 40 per cent share. It is followed by Coca -Colas Kinley (around 25 per cent) and PepsiCos Aquafina (around 10 per cent).  The top players in bottled water industry in India are the major international giants like Coca cola, Pepsi, Nestle and noticeable presence of national players like Mount Everest, Manikchand, Kingfisher, Mohan Meakins, SKN Breweries , Indian Railways so on. PepsiCo India has prepared plan including, investment in capacity enhancement, packaging initiatives and below-the-line activities to pump up volumes in the over-crowded category. Meanwhile, India based Parle Agro is extending the manufacturing facility for  Bailley from 29 to 60 plants. The Indian packaged water industry will soon see a major tussle between Indian and international brands to gain market share.  Ã‚   major multinationals such as Coca-Cola and PepsiCo have been trying from the past 10 years to capture the Indian bottled water marke t. Now finally they have captured a significant part of it. However, Parle Bisleri kept its market share of 40 percent. Kinley and Aquafina are fast moving up, with Kinley holding 20-25 per cent of the part and Aquafina approximately 10 per cent of the market. 1.2 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY As we know bottled water is sold in a variety of packages: pouches and glasses, 330 ml bottles, 500 ml bottles, one- liter bottles and even 20- to 50-litre bulk water packs. The formal bottled water business in India can be divided broadly into three segments in terms of cost: premium natural mineral water, natural mineral water and packaged drinking water.   Premium natural mineral water includes brands such as Evian, San Pelligrino and Perrier, which are imported and priced between Rs.80 and Rs.110 a liter. Natural mineral water, with brands such as Himalayan and Catch, is priced around Rs.20 a liter. Packaged drinking water, which is nothing but treated water, is the biggest segment and includes brands such as Parle, Bisleri, Coca-Colas Kinley and PepsiCos Aquafina. They are priced in the range of Rs.10-12 a liter. THE OBJECTIVES To study the consumer behavior and adaptation towards packaged drinking water To study brand equity and market share of various packaged drinking water brands To study the marketing strategies adopted by various packaged drinking water brands To study the market penetration of various packaged drinking water brands As the consumption of mineral/packaged water is very high with our research we will try to understand various factors which our affecting customer behavior, study of different dependent and independent variables and application of suitable tests will help to compare and analyze the data and acquire the objectives and successful completion of research. 1.3 CONTEXT OF THE STUDY We are conducting this study in the purview of Indian context. We have undertaken study to compare few packaged drinking water brands in Delhi and NCR region Why bottled water? Millions of people, both in rural and urban India,  suffer from inadequate or no tap water supply.   Even some parts of Mumbai, the countrys financial capital,  get a mere two hours of daily water supply.  The growing number of cases of water borne diseases, increasing water pollution, increasing urbanization,  increasing scarcity of pure and safe water etc. has made the bottled water business just like other consumer items  Bottled water  has been treated by distillation, reverse osmosis, or other suitable process and that meets the definition of purified water.   The bottled water treatments include:     *  Distillation.  In this process, water is turned into a vapor. Since minerals are too heavy to vaporize, they are left behind, and the vapors are condensed into water again.   *  Reverse osmosis.  Ã‚  Water is forced through membranes to remove minerals in the water.   *  Absolute 1 micron filtration.  Ã‚   Water flows through filters that remove particles larger than one micron in size, such as Cryptosporidium, a parasitic protozoan.   *  Ozonation.   Bottlers of all types of waters typically use ozone gas, an antimicrobial agent, to disinfect the water instead of chlorine, since chlorine can leave residual taste and odor to the water. In India around 100 companies sell an estimated 424 million liters of bottled water valued at around Rs 200 crore in the country annually. Most bottlers claim that their water is 100 per cent bacteria-free and contains minerals  that make it tastier and healthier. But is the water in these bottles really safe to drink? Do they conform to international or national standards?   To find out, the Ahmadabad-based Consumer Education and Research Society (CERS), an independent non-profit institution with a sophisticated product-testing laboratory, recently carried out a detailed study on 13 major brands of bottled water available in the country. The national brands Bisleri (separate samples were taken from their units in Bangalore, Ghaziabad, Calcutta and Baroda) and Bailley (Mumbai and Surat) were selected on the basis of their dominant position in the overall market. Bisil (Mehsana), Golden Eagle (Chennai), Aquaspa (Mumbai),Saiganga (Ahmednagar), Nirantar (Thane), Tirupthi (Chennai) and Yes (Nadiad) were included because of their regional popularity. To conform to international standards for such testing, 21 bottles of each brand were  tested in the CERS laboratory against analytical and sensory  parameters as well as for microbiological contamination. To ensure fairness, the results were sent to the individual companies for their comments 1.4 BACKGROUND In India For the product certification BIS have a scheme licenses are being grated to manufacturers who wish to claim that their bottled water brand is up to the Indian standards. It enables manufacturers to use popularly known ISI mark under BIS Act 1986 after that On September 29, 2000 the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare issued a notification [No. 759 (E), effective from 29.3.2001]. An amendment to the Prevention of Food Adulteration Rules 1954, the BIS certification Mark is now mandatory for packaged drinking water and packaged natural mineral water according to BIS water filled in hermetically sealed containers of various compositions, form, and capacities that is suitable for direct consumption without further treatment. It is subjected to treatment: decantation, filtration, and combination of filtration, aeration, filtration with membrane filters, depth filter, cartridge filter, activated carbon filtration, and demineralization. It is disinfected to a level that wil l not lead to harmful contamination in the drinking water. There are Separate standards have been formulated by BIS for packaged drinking water (IS14543: 98) and for packaged natural mineral water (IS 13428:98). These standards give parameters to be tested and the requirements to be met in respective category of packaged water. According to BIS natural mineral water is different from packaged drinking water it is obtained directly from natural or drilled sources like spring artesian well, drilled well or from an underground water-bearing strata for which all possible precautions should be taken within the protected perimeters to avoid any pollution of, or external influence on, the chemical and physical qualities. It is characterized by its content of certain mineral salts and their relative proportion and the presence of certain trace elements of. It is required to be collected under conditions, which guarantee the original Natural bacteriological purity and chemical composition of essential components and is bottled at the point of emergence of the source under hygienic conditions. First ever bottled water in India under the name Bisleri was first introduced in Mumbai by Bisleri Ltd., a company of Italian origin in 1965. This company was started by Signor Felice  who first brought the idea of selling bo ttled water in India. Parle bought over Bisleri (India) Ltd. In 1969 and started bottling Mineral water in  glass bottles under the brand name Bisleri. Later Parle switched over to PVC non- returnable bottles and finally advanced to PET containers. Since 1995 Mr.Ramesh J. Chauhan has started expanding Bisleri operations substantially and the turnover has multiplied more than 20 times over a period of 10 years and the average growth rate has been around 40% over this period. Presently it has 8 plants and 11 franchisees all over India. Bisleri command a 60% market share of the organized market. To disinfect the water instead of chlorine, since chlorine can leave residual taste and odor to the water. To disinfect the water instead of chlorine, since chlorine can leave residual taste and odor of the chlorine and however it can be noted that retailers prefer Bisleri because people recall bottle water with name Bisleri. The FDA also classifies some bottled water according to its origin. Artesian well water: Water from a well that taps an aquiferlayers of porous rock, sand and earth that contain waterwhich is under pressure from surrounding upper layers of rock or clay.   Mineral water: Water from an underground source that contains at least 250 parts per million total dissolved solids. Minerals and trace elements must come from the source of the underground water. They cannot be added later. Spring water: Derived from an underground formation from which water flows naturally to the earths surface. Spring water must be collected only at the spring or through a borehole tapping the underground formation feeding the spring. If some external force is used to collect the water through a borehole, the water must have the same composition and quality as the water that naturally flows to the surface.   Well water: Water from a hole bored or drilled into the ground, which taps into an aquifer. Tap Water: Some bottled water also comes from municipal sourcesin other wordsthe tap. Municipal water is usually treated before it is bottled. CHAPTER2: REVIEW OF LITERATURE FDA defines bottle water as water that is intended for human consumption and that is sales in bottle or other containers, with no added ingredients except that may contain safe and suitable antimicrobial agents In the year 1980 we  were able to see more changes by introduction of a tap attachment where Iodine resin was used to filter the water. Iodine deactivates the microbiological impurities to a great extent but with this it also has side effects due to iodine and does not take care of dissolved impurities mineral balance. In the same year Late 1980s it was visible that  Ultra Violet  based purifier, which filters dust and deactivates bacteria to a much greater extent as compared to Iodine. U.V. based purifiers maintain the odor and color of water but even they do not clear out the dissolved impurities and mineral particles. Thus came the concept of mineral water. Reporting requirements are significantly less stringent for bottled water facilities and allow the industry much latitude in assessing risks as well as make assessment of compliance difficult. A regulation body was set in place to periodically and systematically collect, compile, and assess complied statistical Information and was provided by the international Bottled water association (IBWA) on the bottled water industry. The IBWA has set the current annual market for bottled water at about two billion gallons. Wells and natural springs are the main sources for 75 percent of bottled water and for rest the source is the municipal water supplies. Wells and springs are considered to be the sources from ground water. There are different regulation, rules and laws for different counties. For example there is a regulation in the United States, that whenever bottled water is being sourced from community water source then the label of bottle should mention this clearly so it is easily seen and recognizable. However in other case if the water is subjected to distillation, deionization or reverse osmosis then it can be categorized that way and then there is no need to mention the source. As we know Ground water passes through igneous rocks due to which very small quantities of mineral matter gets dissolved as we know this is because of the relative insolubility of the rock composition. Sedimentary rocks as compared are more soluble than the igneous rocks. Because of their higher solubility, they combined with greater abundance in the earths crust; they contribute a major portion of the soluble constituents of ground water (Todd, 1959). In areas recharging large volumes of water underground such as alluvial streams or artificial recharge areas, the quality of the infiltrating surface water can have intensive effect on the ground water. Salts are added to ground water passing through soils by soluble products of soil weathering and of erosion by rainfall and flowing water. Excess irrigation water percolating to the water table may contribute substantial quantities of salt (Todd, 1959) Qureshi and Barrett-Lennard (1998) reported that out of 560,000 tube-wells in the Indus Basin, about 70% of them are pumping sodic water. Thus use of sodic water has in turn affected the soil health and decreased the crop yield. It further concludes that the geographic conditions of the area may contaminate the underground water. However, the source of origin of ground water as well as its recharge is of great importance for bottling companies as to maintain the water standard. Jeffrey Smith.B. (2009) (Providing clean and safe drinking water is a major challenge not only in India but also globally.)As the contamination of drinking water has increased so the supplies and shortages due to overuse has put substantial stress not only on the portability of this resource but also on its availability to the growing global population. Because packaged water provides an important source of potable water for the Indian population, it is important for all the stakeholders to review and discuss best practices, so that working together; the Indian population can have confidence in the packaged drinking water. Mayers Michael (2007) said that (Consumers are profiled in terms of demographics and variations by region.) He also discussed what motivates consumers to pay more n more for bottled water, than they do for the water that is available from their household tap.  Improvements have been made with regard to the taste and health related qualities of products.   In 1958 the international bottle water association (IBWA) came in picture which was a trade association of water procedure, distributers, and suppliers activities include technical relation government relations and communication. E Selman n.keith (2005) conducted a survey which revealed that the data collected on bottled water production, specifically the production from the ground water, the primary source of bottled water relative to other uses of ground water, bottled water production was found to moderate uses of ground water. In Feb. 1999, drinking water foundation, The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) issued a report by the title of Bottle Water: Pure Drink Pure Type? in which they raised numerous wrong allegations against bottled water. CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH METHODS AND PROCEDURES 3.1 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY Convenience and quality have made the aspect of packaged drinking water quite familiar. There are quite a few numbers of brands marketing their packaged drinking water, and the variety of the same is also mushrooming with the introduction of various styles viz., bottled, bubble top, and so on. But with the number of brands influencing the purchase pattern, there comes the threat on domestic brands, hence a research has been carried over to analyze few brands of packaged drinking water to understand a) The consumer behavior and adaptation of packaged drinking water, b) The brand equity and market share of various packaged drinking water brands, c) The marketing strategies adopted by various packaged drinking water brands, and, d) The market penetration of various packaged drinking water brands. 3.2 RESEARCH DESIGN Simply put, a research design is the blueprint for a study that guides the collection and analysis of data. The survey research approach was used in this project, saimple cause being that the consumers feedback was absolute for obtaining the data. A research project, initially, needs a basic preparation regarding the issues related to topic selected. For this one needs to do some deskwork. Deskwork includes: Determining the basic objectives of the study being pursued. Collation of secondary data related to the topic from sources like the internet, magazines newspapers. Studying the market, which one wants to cover? Analyzing the objectives on the basis of second hand data collected. The above mentioned activities at the initial stage of the project must be completed then the main part would be focused upon. 3.3 RESEARCH QUESTIONS Each of our objectives has to be converted into certain questions in the questionnaire. The research objective will only be fulfilled if we are able to do this conversion successfully and effectively. The objectives of our research are: To study the consumer behavior and adaptation towards packaged drinking water. The concerned research question corresponding to this objective are: What type of water do you prefer to drink? Mineral Water Filtered Water How frequently do you drink mineral water? Always Sometimes Often You drink mineral water because it is: Safe/Bacteria Free Handy/Portable When feeling thirsty you choose mineral water over soft drink? Always Often Sometimes Never Rank the following parameters as per your preference while purchasing mineral water. Brand Quality Price Availability To study brand equity and market share of various packaged drinking water brands. The concerned research questions corresponding to this objective are: Which brand do you prefer while buying mineral water? Bisleri Kinley Himalaya Qua Rate these brands on the factors given below( 1=bad; 5=excellent) Factors Bisleri Kinley Himalaya Qua Taste Price Availability Brand Packaging To study the marketing strategies adopted by various packaged drinking water. The concerned research questions corresponding to this objective are: Does advertising of the product have any effect on your purchase? Yes No What size of packaged water do you usually prefer? 500ml 1 ltr 5ltr 20 ltr To study the market penetration of various packaged drinking water brands. The concerned research questions corresponding to this objective are: Where do you buy bottled drinking water from? Metro/Railway Station Bus Stand Local Vendors Office/School Cafeteria Retail Outlets 3.4 PARTICIPANTS Population of the study: the group of individual to be studied. Our population of the study covered the region of Delhi/NCR. Sample size: We had taken a sample size of 100 consumers who were our respondents. They were selected by simple random sampling, due to the fact that in this case systematic sampling is not possible, cause one cannot say whether a person is using mineral water or not. Sampling technique: Simple Random sampling technique has been used in this project. In simple random sampling each unit of the population stands an equal chance of being selected in the sample size. Each unit has the same probability of being selected i.e. 1/N. PROFESSION % OF POPULATION IT/ITES 10% SPORTS/TRAINER 5% HOSPITALITY 15% MANAGEMENT 15% STUDENT 40% OTHERS 15% 3.5 DATA COLLECTION One of the most basic differentiation is between collecting primary data or secondary data. Secondary data collection is any information we may have used, but which has not been specifically collected for the current marketing research. But marketing research typically requires a lot of current data that is not available through the secondary means. The methodology used for the secondary data that is already collected may be unknown thus validity and reliability of the data is not known. Primary data collection is the data that is collected specifically for the project undertaken from the real respondents such as consumers, dealers, and other people associated to the research. In our project we have used primary data collection method through questionnaire from the consumers. We had circulated the questionnaire online as well as manually. 3.6 INSTRUMENTATION Mode Of Survey The consumers had to fill up our questionnaire , which was our instrument of survey. While pursuing the research, structured questionnaire with closed-ended questions were used. Structured Questions: they improve the reliability of the study, by ensuring that every respondent is asked the same questions. Structured answers: structuring or standardizing answers which the respondent can choose from in a questionnaire also achieves consistency of form. Additionally, it makes the interpretation of answers, analysis and tabulation, easier than in the case of unstructured answers. Closed-ended questions: questions which structure the possible answers beforehand are known as closed-ended questions. Preparing the questionnaire The questionnaire was prepared keeping in mind the objectives that we had laid down for the project. Each objective had had a set of questions lined up. The questionnaire followed the funnel approach i.e. the questionnaire follows a sequence starting with the general questions first and with more specific and personal questions later on to avoid specific questions biasing the general questions. A close end questionnaire was prepared by us for the same purpose, to be filled by the consumer. We have used the following types of questions in our questionnaire, Dichotomous questions Multiple choice questions Rating questions Ranking questions Semantic differential questions etc. 3.7 PILOT STUDY A pilot study is a pre-study of your fuller study. It can also be referred to as a miniature study of the project. In order to improve the macro picture, it is to a feasibility study, a small experiment designed to gather logistics and information prior to a larger study in order to improve the latters efficiency and quality. A pilot study will reveal deficiencies in the design, if any, of the proposed experiment or procedures and these can then be rectified before a larger picture is painted using more efforts and resources. Generally a pilot study is miniscule in front of the whole experiment, and therefore would provide only limited information on the sources and magnitude of variation of response measures. In our project we carried out a pilot study on 20 consumers as respondents. Our selection was again through simple random sampling. The pilot study helped us in the restructuring of certain questions lacking the simplicity and effectiveness of a survey. Through this pilot study we could make the appropriate and necessary changes in our research instrument on time rather than after completing the research paper. 3.8 DATA ANALYSIS After collection of data another work necessary for any data collector is to correctly analyze that data. Statistical tools helped us to correctly analyze the data. The statistical tool that we have used in our project is SPSS software. SPSS(originally, statistical package for social sciences) was released in its first version in 1968 after being developed by Norman H. Nie and C. Hadlai Hull. Statistics included in the basic software: Descriptive Statistics: Cross Tabulation, Frequencies, Descriptive, Explore, Descriptive Ratio Statistics Bivariate Statistics: Mean, T-Test, Anova, Correlation( Bivariate, Partial, Distances), Non Parametric Tests Prediction for numerical outcomes: Linear Regression. Prediction for identifying groups: Factor Analysis; Cluster Analysis(Two-Step, K-Means, Hierarchical), Discriminant. The statistical tools used in the project are: Attribut Based Perceptual Mapping Using Discriminant Analysis Discriminant Analysis Anova Correlation 3.9 LIMITATIONS Every project report has limitations, our project which was Comparative Study Of Few Packaged Drinking Water Brands also faced certain limitations. We observed the following limitations: The sample size of our project i.e 100 respondents was too small in comparison to the population. Too small a sample would have affected the reliability of the finding from the research. The data collection was done in some parts of delhi and noida . the project was generalized for the entire delhi/ncr region. There might have been biasness on the part of the respondents. 3.10 SUMMARY Research methodology and procedures are the most important part of a project report. The finding and the result of the research depends upon the methods used, the data collection, the research questions, the data analysis tools used. The final objective of a research is to achieve what it was meant to achieve. The conversion of the objectives into the questionnaire and ultimately the findings from the research is the core of the research project. CHAPTER 4 : DATA ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS 4.1 REVIEW METHODOLOGY Quantitative data collection The valuable data for the research has been taken from the given source; Primary data . The data was collected from: 1.a Customer Surveys A carefully structured questionnaire used to measure customer attitudes, levels of perception, intentions to purchase etc. 1.b The questionnaires have been filled online and through personal interview. Instrument 2.a Statistical Package for the Social Sciences was used for data analysis. Qualitative findings helped us to effectively phrase and position questions and eliminate ambiguity (in questionnaire/survey) by providing a platform to better understand brand preference, brand equity, marketing strategies and consumer behavior. The findings that emerged from the above mentioned research methods are crucial in assessing our objectives. 4.2 FINDINGS Through One Way Anova we came to know that the frequency of purchase of packaged mineral water by the consumer does not converge significantly on the consumers income. Whereas the consumption quantity of packaged mineral water by the consumer converges significantly on the income of the consumer. This helps us in understanding price sensitivity of the consumer while deciding the quantity of consumption of packaged drinking water Bisleri the brand has a strongest brand equity which attributes to its success in comparison to its other attributes like price, packaging ,taste and availability .The unstandardised discriminant f