When you are growing at a rapid rate, there is bound to be some inflation. I think a 5% rate of inflation is something that we should take in our stride.
We were licencees of Sara Lee Corp's air freshener brand Ambi Pur, which they sold to Procter and Gamble. So we handed it over to Procter and Gamble. Now we will introduce our own brand of air freshener.
We started the 10/10 objective in 2011, and that time, our turnover was about Rs. 15,000 crore. We would like to have a turnover of Rs. 1,50,000 crore by 2021. This will be through high growth in domestic and international operations as well as through acquisitions.
We own only a small percentage in Omnivore, but we manage it. It is basically a venture capital fund to help newer enterprises and provide them with the funding they require in their early stages of development.
We have very strong succession plans across all group companies. But we do not comment on it. The retirement age is 60 years, but it does not apply to family professionals who work in the business.
We have a company, Geometric Software, which is into engineering services software. We have a company called Nature's Basket, which is into gourmet retailing. Both are specialized companies.
We find it much better not to try and take the Godrej brand across, but use very strong brands we have acquired in different geographies and push them.
Our acquisition strategy is very clear: 3x3. Three continents - Asia, Africa and South America, and in three categories where we have strong positions - personal wash, household care and hair care.
In 2008, when the global financial crisis struck, it was a bad year for a lot of developing countries, and it manifested itself in consumer confidence.
I feel the Godrej brand has generally come to signify trust to most consumers. 400 million Indians use one or the other Godrej product on a daily basis, and they have come to accept it. We will, thus, continue positioning Godrej strongly on the trust platform.
From our group, we've had joint ventures with a lot of international companies: Procter & Gamble, General Electric, Sara Lee, currently with Hershey's and Tyson. We've learned a lot of the best practices.
