P&G rolls out bar format to extend Tide India target

The variant is an attempt to extend the brand - which launched in India four years ago - into the US$444 million segment of the non-powder market.

Despite its short history, Tide has carved a four per cent share and achieved turnover of $39 million in the market. P&G's premium brand, Ariel, is available in bars, but it is believed P&G plans to withdraw it from the market.

"We still have a successful Ariel detergent powder business and, based on the consumer need for superior whiteness and whiteness maintenance, we felt the Tide brand is best positioned to meet this need via a bar," said Chester Twigg, director of sales at market for P&G India.

The bar is available in low-priced units that marketers in India are turning in a bid to drive volume sales. A 75g bar is priced at 11 cents, with the largest size at 200g selling at 29 cents.

The pricing puts Tide in line with Hindustan Lever's Rin Supreme, and is significantly lower than Ariel's 39 cents for a 200g bar.

Tide has successfully built on its 'Surprising Whiteness' platform, which its agency Leo Burnett originated in Chile, and launched in India in 2001.