DRIVOL, a leading German manufacturer, distributor and marketer of premium lubricating oils, greases and related services to automotive, industrial, marine, aviation, oil exploration and production customers across the world, is making rapid strides in the Indian market. DRIVOL, which develops, manufactures and markets lubricants with proven quality across different global markets, is gunning for aggressive growth in the Indian market.
We bring you details about the company’s strategy and plans to make it big in the country’s highly competitive lubricant space from a tête-à-tête with Mr. Nikhil Junnarkar, Vice President, Marketing, DRIVOL GmbH.
Excerpts:
Market scenario and outlook
The lubricant industry performance in India is primarily based on automobile sales and transportation & logistics which in turn depends on agriculture and manufacturing activity.
Fortunately, apart from manufacturing, there has been a robust demand in new vehicle sales & also the good monsoon will ensure a decent agricultural harvest. We therefore expect a robust demand for lubricants in the next 5 to 6 months.
DRIVOL started operations in India six months ago and is currently present only in seven States as of now. We have been doing exceeding well since the launch and have been only growing from strength to strength.
BS VI-readiness
The Central Government has recently announced that India will leapfrog from the Bharat Stage (BS) IV emission norms that are now in force to BS VI norms by 2020.
With the new regulations, there are a lot of technological changes that need to be made in the vehicles which will have an impact on pricing which will be significant.
Some of the major changes in the automobiles under the wake of BS VI norms will be fitment of DPF (Diesel Particulate Filter), SCR (Selective Catalytic Reduction) module, etc. As a result, the usage of microprocessors and hybrid vehicles will go up and engine downsizing will get a major thrust, moving towards smaller and more compliant engines.
The focus of the BS VI norms is on NOx, sulphur and particulates and to cater to these technological changes, low SAPS (Sulphated Ash, Phosphorous, and Sulphur) lubricants will have to be introduced to be compatible with after-treatment devices. DRIVOL being a German firm already has Euro VI compliant products, i.e., low SAPS in its product portfolio. Also, all the major DRIVOL engine oils are SUPERKLEEN, which means that the number of pollution causing impurities is already less as compared to normal engine oils helping the vehicle to achieve the stricter emission norms.
USPs
DRIVOL believes in innovation in everything we do. Innovation is a way of life with us. The top three factors which differentiate us from competition are:
- German Pedigree: Being a German brand, we will offer high quality products to our consumers.
- Differentiated products: Our engine oils are manufactured by a unique 3 stage microfiltration process which makes them SUPERKLEEN as compared to competition.
- Innovative solutions & approach:
- In-mould label packaging – first in the industry in India.
- Innovative packs – a 26 lit motorcycle engine oil pack.
- Zero credit sales – a big achievement for a new player in the lubricant industry. We sell on cash & carry.
- DRIVOL APP – our dealer schemes and incentives are uploaded on an exciting APP every month which one can access on the mobile.
Business model
We work on a licensee model and our products our currently manufactured in two plants across India. We are a new brand & though are overall numbers are small presently we are being recognized by the channel and consumers due to our innovative solutions.
Distribution network
We are currently present across seven States across India and our retail presence is growing fast day by day. We currently have around 40 distributors and plan to reach 75 with presence in 10 major States in the country by March 2017.
Long-term outlook
We feel that the lubricant market will grow at a CAGR of 3.5-4.5% till 2020. Given the focus on BS6, we expect to see a lot of automobiles manufacturers starting to make changes in the technology. DRIVOL will be one of the significant lubricant players in the Indian market in the next 3 to 5 years by offering our consumers differentiated and truly world-class products.