Dabur bets big on intl biz, to expand capacity

FMCG major Dabur India is betting big on its international business and plans to expand its manufacturing capacity to cater to the growing markets besides readying a slew of products for launch in new categories, a top company official said.

Dabur, the fourth-largest Indian FMCG firm with an annual turnover of around Rs 3,400 crore, aims to increase its foreign sales substantially to 25 per cent through both inorganic and organic expansion going forward.

Currently, it contributes about 20 per cent to the total turnover at Rs 600-crore (as at end-FY10).

"We want to be a world player and are open for any strategic acquisition in the near future. However, to drive growth, we also have to increase capacity constantly. This fiscal, we will invest around Rs 60-crore in expanding our manufacturing facilities -- one each in Egypt and Nigeria and two in the Gulf," Dabur (India) Chief Financial Officer S Raghunathan said on the sidelines of a CII event here today.

He said that international business was growing at a CAGR of 22-30 per cent and is expected to grow at the same number over the next few years.

Dabur manufactures oral-care, hair-care and several other personal-care products in these units and plans to scale-up production as it expands its foot-print across the globe.