Turtle Wax India aims to treble revenues in CY2022

US-based car-care products brand Turtle Wax which entered India in June 2020, says it is satisfied  with the progress it has made so far in the country, and is looking forward to making a mark in one of the biggest car markets globally.

According to Sajan Murali Puravangara, managing director, Turtle Wax India, “As a start-up in India, our focus is on opportunities in the market. Last year, we doubled our revenues over CY2020 and this time, the plan is to multiply our top line numbers three times that of CY2021.”

The company is bullish about growth coming from the expansion of its on-ground Car Care Studios, which are set to expand to 14 outlets by end-March and scale up to a total of 30 outlets by end-December 2022. Turtle Wax India had commenced this journey by kickstarting three outlets, one each in Gurugram, Pune and Bengaluru in November 2020, in what is called a co-branded model, wherein it partners with existing detailers present in local markets.

After also venturing into Mumbai and Kochi, it is now set to expand these studios in Tier-II cities like Salem, Hubli, Surat and Chandigarh. “This model is working quite well for us and it’s very independent in its approach. The detailers are able to retain their identity and local flavour, and leverage the trust they’ve built over a period of time. These are very important factors that drive business. Having said that, the detailers get the entire support from us in terms of products, training and brand identity,” Puravangara explains.

After also venturing into Mumbai and Kochi, it is now set to expand these studios in Tier-II cities like Salem, Hubli, Surat and Chandigarh.

Turtle Wax India’s mainstream revenue source, however, continues to remain the sale of its do-it-yourself (DIY)-friendly products, which target car and motorcycle enthusiasts. While sales were skewed towards e-commerce platforms that the company used as it entered the Indian market in the thick of the pandemic, they have now rationalised to contribute 20-25 percent of the overall revenues.

“Our distributor network ranges from Trivandrum to Guwahati. That said, there are still some regions like Bihar where we do not have a presence. We have covered almost 50 percent of the car accessory store universe in India where customers can find our products,” Puravangara says.

The global supply chain challenges have hurt Turtle Wax as well, and in India, the company has undertaken an average price hike ranging between 8 and 10 percent to offset the high cost of raw materials and logistics as 95 percent of its products come imported from the US and UK.

In a recent move, Turtle Wax India has also partnered Reliance Smart, which will retail its products to offline customers through its 25 outlets initially. “We are steadily growing and finding ourselves at more counters in hypermarkets and more mom-and-pop stores where there is potential for our products,” Puravangara added.