Targeting the underpenetrated domestic menstrual hygiene market, Niine Private Limited, a sanitary napkin maker plans to invest over Rs 500 crore in the next 5 years. Recently selected for the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme for Textile Industries approved by the central government, the company is projecting sales of its sanitary napkins worth Rs 300 crore in FY 2023.
“With the increasing awareness of menstrual and personal hygiene, sanitary napkins and baby diapers are showing a growth of more than 20% in their category, YoY. This is attracting further investment in this sector and the coming decades will surely be a period of growth for us,” Amar Tulsiyan, CEO & Founder of Niine. “In the next 5 years, Niine would be investing Rs 500 crore in phases, to set up more product lines of sanitary napkins, baby diapers and adult diapers that target the varied needs of our customers,” he said.
Tulsiyan has bigger plans thereafter. After growing its market shares in India and Nepal, the company plans to export its sanitary napkins and baby diapers across borders, into the adjoining countries. "To meet the different needs and expectations of our customers, our product range extends from basic to premium,” Tulsiyan said.
According to Statista, revenue in the feminine hygiene segment which includes sanitary napkins and tampons amounts to $5.85 billion in 2022. The market is expected to grow annually by 5.15 per cent (CAGR 2022-2026). As per Statista, in global comparison, most revenue is generated in China (US$10,580.00m in 2022) and in relation to total population figures, per person revenues of $4.16 are generated in 2022.
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Despite several government programs to improve utilisation of menstrual hygiene products, the latest National Family Health Survey (NFHS) released by union health ministry, around 50 per cent of women aged 15-24 years continue to use cloth for menstrual protection.
“The menstrual hygiene market in India has penetrated less than 20 per cent of the population and a huge reason for that is the taboo surrounding the topic as well as the lack of knowledge of the benefits of using sanitary napkins, making women resort to traditional and unsafe practices resulting in major health concerns,” Tulsiyan said.
Niine was launched in May of 2018 and in the first year of its launch, the company sold sanitary napkins worth Rs 32 crore. Niine’s sales grew to Rs 112 crore in 2019 and Rs 232 crore in 2021 and the projected estimate for 2023 is Rs 300 crore. Niine was one of the first brands to introduce free bio-degradable disposal pouches with its packs for safe disposal of used sanitary napkins. The company also included some elements from European style packaging by introducing resealable packs in its ‘Ultra Thin’ ranges. Users can simply pull out a sanitary napkin or a wet wipe and close the pack.
Some of the major players in the menstrual hygiene products in India are P&G, Johnson & Johnson, Emami and Mankind Pharma having a strong presence in the market giving a tough competition to the Niine.
“We have ventured into the baby care sector with our diaper pants and baby wipes as well as the hand hygiene sector with our sanitizers and hand wipes. We are also looking to launch adult diapers in the future,” said Tulsiyan. Company’s work under PLI scheme is also in progress. “Niine has already been launched pan-India and in Nepal and we are aggressively growing our reach to consumers by building up our market share. We have applied for land from the concerned industrial authority to set up an additional production facility in Gorakhpur and as soon as we get the allotment, we will order for the machines. In the meantime, we have the capacity to cater to the projected growth with our installed machines,” Tusliyan said.
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