The move is significant since it marks Dabur's entry into the Rs 100-crore anti-dandruff shampoo and pitches it directly against Hindustan Lever Ltd (HLL) and Procter&Gamble (P&G), the two multinational companies currently dominating the anti-dandruff segment with their brands Clinic and Head&Shoulders (H&S), respectively. Dabur which had been working on the variant since last year finally launched the product last week after test-marketing it in Tamil Nadu for about a month. Launched in three sizes- 8-ml sachet (Rs 2.50); 100-ml (Rs 47) and 200-ml (Rs 87) bottles, Vatika anti-dandruff shampoo is a little cheaper than its competitive brands Clinic Plus and H&S.

Significantly, while positioning Vatika anti-dandruff shampoo on the natural platform, Dabur is attempting to spur volumes by harping on its `natural' strengths against `chemicals' used by Clinic and H&S. In its communication, it has even gone to the extent of taking a dig at the ZPTO issue-effective dandruff control...naturally! No harmful chemicals. No ZPTO-over which HLL and P&G had locked horns in 1997 in a bid to get the maximum mileage for their brands.

Flashback: In 1997, P&G launched ``Head&Shoulders with ZPT'' and was all set to launch a high-voltage television campaign to announce the launch. However, to pre-empt P&G's move, arch rival HLL launched Clinic Plus ZPTO and released a campaign before P&G's TVC. However, both the companies have stopped focusing on ZPT & ZPTO now! Clearly, Dabur's move to revive the ZPTO war is to create a link with the anti-dandruff shampoo brands and get a share of consumer's mind. The company, however, insists on being the only anti-dandruff shampoo with a herbal positioning in the marketplace and clarifies that its entry is prompted by the fast growth being witnessed by the segment. The anti-dandruff segment is believed to be growing at the rate of 15 per cent per annum compared to the overall shampoo market which is recording a minimal growth.

Since Vatika with its herbal positioning enjoys a strong brand equity in the hair care segment, Dabur hopes it will have a positive rub off in the anti-dandruff shampoo category as well.

Vatika shampoo has a marketshare of two per cent of the total 30,000 tonnes (Rs 650 crore) shampoo market. Clinic Plus is the leader in the overall category with a 31 per cent marketshare as well as in the anti-dandruff segment with a 75 per cent marketshare while H&S has a 25 per cent market share. Vatika hair oil claims to have a share of 10 per cent of the coconut hair oil segment.