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Personal care brand Emami has reduced its spending on advertisement and sales promotion massively on a quarterly basis. The maker of BoroPlus has slashed its ad spending by 35.45 percent to Rs 94.29 crore in the September quarter compared to Rs 146.09 crore in the June quarter of FY 2025.

On a yearly basis, Emami spent Rs 103.88 crore on advertisement and sales promotions activities in Q2 FY 24.

According to the standalone financial result of the company, Emami registered a rise of 30.8 percent in its net profit in the second quarter of FY 25. The maker of Zandu, Navratna, and other personal care brands booked a profit of Rs 214.10 crore in Q2 FY 25 compared to Rs 163.58 crore in the corresponding quarter of last fiscal year.

The company's consolidated profit stood at Rs 211 crore between July and September 2024 compared to Rs 180 crore in Q2 2023.

According to Emami, brands like Navratna, Dermicool, and the Healthcare range and Pain Management range performed well in Q2.

<a href="https://www.storyboard18.com/advertising/hul-marico-godrej-trim-ad-spending-in-q2-fy25-to-counter-inflationary-pressures-46524.htm">HUL, Marico, Godrej trim ad spending in Q2 FY25 to counter inflationary pressures</a>
Mohan Goenka, Vice Chairman and Whole-Time Director of Emami said that the company's organized channels like 'Modern Trade, e-Commerce, and Institutional sales' have contributed 26.6 percent to its domestic business, a 190-basis point increase in the first half of FY 25.

Emami reported overall revenues at Rs 891 crore grew by 3 percent with domestic business growing by 2.6 percent.

In a stock exchange filing, Emami Ltd said that Quarter 2 brought several challenges at the macro level, such as food inflation, global political unrest, including in Bangladesh. However, Emami said that international businesses achieved a 12 percent sales growth, excluding Bangladesh.

<a href="https://www.storyboard18.com/advertising/maricos-profit-soars-105-yoy-despite-reduced-ad-spending-in-q2-fy25-46427.htm">Marico’s profit soars 105% YoY, despite reduced ad spending in Q2 FY25</a>

"Our international business demonstrated resilience despite geopolitical challenges, delivering double-digit growth, excluding Bangladesh. Besides the good performance of our existing brands, strategic investments and the recent launch of 11 new domestic products are set to boost consumer confidence and drive double-digit revenue growth in the second half," Harsha V Agarwal, Vice Chairman and Managing Director, Emami Limited said.

Further, in Q2 FY 25, Emami increased stake in Helios Lifestyle (The Man Company) from 50.4 percent to 98.3 percent.

Emami's stock closed at Rs 674.90, down 1.55 percent, on Monday afternoon.

Emami's ad spend drops 35.45% in Q2, net profit rises 30.8%

Music label company Saregama India Ltd on Tuesday filed its quarter 2 fiscal year 2025 results on the stock exchanges. The RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group firm has posted a marginal decline of 6.35 percent in its profit for the quarter. As per the BSE filing, Saregama Ltd's consolidated profit in Q2 FY25 stood at Rs 44.95 crore compared to Rs 48 crore in the corresponding quarter last fiscal.

The music company has scaled up its ad expenses by 91.6 percent to Rs 25.33 crore year-on-year. The company's revenue from operation in July and September quarter increased to Rs 241.83 crore from Rs 172.35 crore.

Saregama manages more than 180 influencers and artists with more than 11.8 crore followers and subscribers on Instagram and YouTube.

<a href="https://www.storyboard18.com/advertising/saregama-indias-ad-spendings-up-by-27-to-rs-24-25-crore-yoy-net-profit-declines-by-14-38654.htm">Saregama India’s ad spendings up by 27% to Rs 24.25 crore YoY; Net profit declines by 14%</a>

According to the company, the revenue from music declined by 2.5 percent in Q2 FY 25 to Rs 152.8 crore. However, the video segment's revenue witnessed a jump of 378 percent YoY. IN Q2 FY 24, Saregama's video segment's revenue stood at Rs 71.91 crore compared to Rs 15.05 crore in the same period last fiscal.


During the Quarter, the company released 400 plus Originals and Premium Recreations across Hindi, Bhojpuri, Gujarati, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Marathi, and Bengali languages. The company also released 1200 plus derivatives (LoFi, Trap Mix, Cover, Acoustic, etc.)

	
<a href="https://www.storyboard18.com/brand-marketing/saregama-launches-padhanisa-an-ai-based-music-learning-app-27803.htm">Saregama launches Padhanisa, an AI-based music learning app</a>

The company’s adjusted EBITDA stood at Rs 84.2 crore in Q2FY25 as against Rs 72 crore in Q2FY24 registering a YoY growth of 17%.

The content charge for the quarter increased to Rs 35 crore for Q2FY25 compared to Rs 18.5 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous year, that is, 89 percent Y-o-Y.

"FY25 has begun on a strong note with our new music release topping charts across different platforms. Diversification also gained momentum with successful live events and the launch of the third Saregama talent. We are well on track to be India’s premier entertainment company with IP being at the core of all its business activities," Avarna Jain, Vice Chairperson Saregama India, said.

Shares of Saregama were down 4.48 percent on Tuesday, trading at Rs 512.35 on the BSE following the Q2 result at 1:33 pm (IST)

Saregama's advertising expenses soar 91.6% in Q2 FY 25; Revenue from videos sees 378% jump

India's top fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies have cut spending on advertisement and promotions in the second quarter of the fiscal year 2025 due to high food inflation and a resultant squeeze in urban demand.

TAM AdEx in its latest report mentioned that FMCG majors' advertising volumes on TV saw a de-growth of 6 percent in the first half of  2024. However, ad impressions in the digital medium witnessed an increase of 7 percent in H1 2024 over H1 2023.

Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL), the maker of brands like Dove, Horlicks, Closeup, etc, has slashed the ad spending by 14.8 percent between July and September quarter (Q2) FY 25 year-on-year. During the Q2 earning calls, CEO Rohit Jawa said that HUL is investing behind its brands, strengthening its brand power, "We have seen a very strong trend in our brand power growth, which is reflected in our market shares, and make sure that we consistently invest behind the market development bets because those are multiyear and they compound".

<a href="https://www.storyboard18.com/advertising/fmcg-advertisers-spent-more-on-digital-and-radio-in-h1-2024-46207.htm">FMCG advertisers spent more on digital and radio in H1 '2024</a>

According to the Q2 earnings of HUL, the standalone ad and promotional expenses of the company stood at Rs 1,464 crore in FY 25 compared to Rs 1,720 crore in the corresponding quarter last fiscal. On a quarterly basis, HUL's ad spending has also been reduced by 11 percent (approx) in 2024. 

<a href="https://www.storyboard18.com/advertising/hul-cuts-advertising-spend-reports-slight-profit-dip-in-q2-fy25-45842.htm">HUL cuts advertising spend, reports slight profit dip in Q2 FY25</a>

Similarly, Good Knight brand maker Godrej Consumer Products dropped its standalone ad spending to Rs 263.57 crore in Q2 FY25 compared to Rs 279.44 crore in FY24. Marico trimmed down the ad and promotional expenses by 15.8 percent to Rs 117 crore in the second quarter of FY25. The company had spent Rs 139 crore in Q2 2023.

	
<a href="https://www.storyboard18.com/advertising/maricos-profit-soars-105-yoy-despite-reduced-ad-spending-in-q2-fy25-46427.htm">Marico’s profit soars 105% YoY, despite reduced ad spending in Q2 FY25</a>

Dabur Ltd's standalone ad expenses witnessed a decline but on a consolidated basis, it rose by 4.2 percent. However, Colgate Palmolive India and Patanjali pumped up capital on advertisement during the same period. 

While Patanjali Foods stepped up advertising & sales promotion substantially to Rs 130 crore in Q2 FY 25, Colgate Palmolive increased ad expenses by 18 percent to Rs 242.72 crore in the same duration.

Prabha Narasimhan, Managing Director & CEO of Colgate-Palmolive (India) Limited said that the advertising spend increased by 17.8% in the current quarter as compared to the same period last year due to increased support behind both brand and category development actions.

<a href="https://www.storyboard18.com/advertising/colgates-ad-spending-up-by-17-8-in-q2-fy25-net-profit-jumps-to-rs-395-crore-46022.htm">Colgate’s ad spending up by 17.8% in Q2 FY25, net profit jumps to Rs 395 crore</a>

"We expect continued difficult market conditions but remain committed to leveraging our very strong P&L which allows us to continue to invest behind superior products and advertising while we maintain our focus on ensuring better oral health for everyone in India," she added.

HUL, Marico, Godrej trim ad spending in Q2 FY25 to counter inflationary pressures

Dabur India, one of the FMCG giants, reduced its advertisement and promotional expenses in the second quarter of FY25 year-on-year basis.

Dabur spent Rs 164.87 crore between July and September 2024 compared to 173 crore in the same period last year.

The company's net profit also witnessed a decline of 17 percent to Rs 425 crore YoY. Dabur's Q2 revenue also fell by 5 percent to Rs 3,029 crore.

Speaking about the company's outlook, Dabur India Limited Chief Executive Officer Mohit Malhotra said, "We expect recovery in consumer demand in the coming quarters, both in urban and rural markets. We are focusing on strengthening our competitive edge in the marketptace by investing in scating up our ruraI footprint and rolling out consumer-centric innovations".

Dabur has approved an interim dividend of Rs 2.75 per equity share with a face value of Re. 1/- each (equating to 275%) for the financial year 2024-25.

Additionally, the company has announced its acquisition of Ayurvedic hair care brand Sesa Care Private Limited for an estimated price of Rs 315-325 crore.

Dabur will purchase 51 percent of Sesa's shares for Rs 12.59 crore and will also provide a corporate guarantee for Sesa's existing debt. The merger is likely to be finalised in 15-18 months.

Dabur India cuts ad expenses by 5% in Q2 FY25, net profit declines 17%

Online food delivery platform Swiggy has increased its brand marketing and business promotion expenses in its updated IPO-related documents.

Swiggy, on 29 October, updated its Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP) with Sebi- the regulatory body of the stock market in which it increased its ad expenses by 20 percent (approx).

<a href="https://www.storyboard18.com/advertising/swiggys-ad-spend-drops-26-to-rs-1850-79-crore-in-fy2024-to-cost-effectively-invest-in-marketing-43347.htm">Swiggy's ad spend drops 26% to Rs 1850 crore in FY2024; to 'cost-effectively' invest in marketing</a>


In the earlier DRHP, Swiggy had mentioned that it would utilise Rs 929.5 crore of its net proceed in brand marketing. However, in the latest document, Swiggy has increased the ad and promotional expenses to Rs 1115.3 crore.

Swiggy in its DRHP mentioned,"Our marketing initiatives may require continued investments, as we continue to expand our operations or as a result of competition... In addition, the evolving marketing approaches and tools may require us to experiment with, and incur additional expenses for, new marketing methods to keep pace with industry trends and user preferences".


Of the total estimated amount proposed for brand marketing, which is Rs 1115.3 crore, Swiggy has planned to utilise Rs 61.5 crore in FY25, Rs 332 crore in FY26, Rs 359 crore in FY27 Rs 362 crore in FY28, respectively.

<a href="https://www.storyboard18.com/brand-marketing/ipo-bound-swiggy-to-sponsor-shark-tank-season-4-rival-zomatos-ceo-kicked-out-from-show-44129.htm">IPO-bound Swiggy to sponsor Shark Tank Season 4; Rival Zomato’s CEO ‘kicked out’ from show</a>


"We intend to continue to invest in targeted marketing campaigns and other brand-building initiatives, cost-effectively, to create and increase brand recall, attract and retain more users, restaurant partners, merchant partners, brand partners, and delivery partners to our platform," Swiggy said in its DRHP.


Swiggy spent Rs 558.9 crore in brand marketing and business promotional expenses in fiscal year 2024  which was 8.17 percent of total other expenses. Before this, the compnay spend Rs 595.4 crore (FY 23) in brand marketing and Rs 528.34 crore in FY 22. In the first quarter of FY 25, Swiggy's ad spending soared to Rs 147.252 crore-- 7.43 percent of the total other expenses.


In January 2024, Swiggy entered into an agreement with a marketing agency (Brand Promotion Arrangement). The company proposed to spend up to Rs 1,114.5 crore, over four calendar years on brand marketing services across various channels, including traditional media (including TV, print, and radio media), OTT media, and digital media.

Apart from brand expenditure, Swiggy has made several other tweaks in its latest document. The Bengaluru-based company has increased the targeted primary fundraising through the issuance of new shares to Rs 4,499 crore from its earlier plan of Rs 3,750 crore. In the offer-for-sale window, the company will now sell 17.51 crore shares.

The Softbank-backed firm has also planned to allocate 20% higher capital to its quick commerce business at Rs 1,179 crore, upfrom Rs 982 crore. Swiggy said it intends to invest Rs 755.4 crore in expanding its dark store network.


Swiggy IPO will open for subscription on November 6 and close on November 8. The food delivery platform has set a price band of Rs 371-390 a share. Swiggy will make its debut on the stock exchanges on 13 November.

IPO-bound Swiggy increases focus on brand marketing, allocates Rs 1,115 crore

FMCG major Marico has reduced its advertisement and sales spending in the second quarter year-on-year. The retail brand's standalone ad spending stood at Rs 117 crore in Q2 FY25 compared to Rs 139 crore in the corresponding quarter last fiscal year. 

The company's standalone profit soared to Rs 529 crore--a 105 percent increase YoY. On a quarterly basis, the company's profit saw a rise of 70 percent.

Marico's standalone revenue from operations stood at Rs 1,860 crore from Rs 1,791 crore while the total income rose to Rs 2,162 crore as against Rs 1,826 crore. 

According to the company's quarterly earnings, Parachute Coconut Oil contributes 33 percent to the company's domestic revenue, followed by Value Added Hair Oils at 20 percent; and Saffola Edible Oils at 18 percent.


"The domestic business maintained its improving volume growth trajectory on the back of healthy trends across most of the core and new franchises," Marico said. 

The company added that it witnessed stable demand trends in the country with rural growing at 2x the pace of urban on a YoY basis.

Marico said that the international business exhibited persistent strength across all key markets, underpinned by strong fundamentals and enduring growth potential.


According to the company, "The encouraging demand trends in the first half of the year hold promise of an improving trajectory in the second half. The above-normal monsoon season, government’s budgetary allocations towards boosting the rural economy, and upcoming festive season also bode well".

Marico's profit soars 105% YoY, despite reduced ad spending in Q2 FY25

Gillette India has scaled up its spending on advertising and sales promotion in the second quarter of FY25 as per the BSE filing.

The personal care product company spent Rs 113.44 crore on advertising and promotional activities in the September quarter compared to Rs 101.89 crore in the same period last fiscal year.

Gillette India's profit during the second quarter increased by 43.4 percent to Rs 133 crore in contrast to 92.69 crore in Q2 2023.

<a href="https://www.storyboard18.com/digital/high-costs-and-limited-returns-ad-spends-on-linkedin-likely-to-go-down-20-46203.htm">High costs and limited returns- Ad spends on LinkedIn likely to go down 20%</a>

The men's grooming company has also seen a spike in its total income from Rs 676.19 crore in Q2 FY24 to Rs 788.87 crore in Q2 FY25.

The company's revenue from operation increased by Rs 781.82 crore in Q2 FY25 from Rs 667.55 crore in the corresponding quarter last year.

<a href="https://www.storyboard18.com/advertising/zepto-leads-ad-spending-surge-in-quick-commerce-outpacing-blinkit-45713.htm">Zepto leads ad spending surge in quick commerce, outpacing Blinkit</a>
The company oral care's revenue declined by five percent to Rs 132.92 crore from Rs 140.08 crore. However, revenue from the grooming segment jumped by 23 percent to Rs 648.90 crore year-on-year.

“We have delivered strong double-digit growth across both the top line and bottom line in the quarter. These results are a testament to our teams’ execution of the integrated growth strategy, which we remain committed to – a focused product portfolio of daily use categories where performance drives brand choice, superiority (of product performance, packaging, brand communication, retail execution and consumer and customer value), productivity, constructive disruption, and an agile and accountable organization – all aimed at delivering sustainable, balanced growth and value creation," Kumar Venkatasubramanian, Managing Director, Gillette India Ltd said.  

Gillette India boosts ad spend by 11% to Rs 113.44 crore in Q2 FY25

Patanjali Foods has stepped up advertising and sales promotion substantially to over Rs 130 crore in the second quarter of fiscal year 2025.

The FMCG major, which roped in several celebrities, including Shilpa Shetty, Shahid Kapoor, and Khesari Lal Yadav, for Nutrela-branded soya chunks and edible oils, has spent more than Rs 185 crore so far in FY25.

The company posted a standalone profit of Rs 308.97 crore, an increase of 21.38 percent YoY basis.

In Q2 FY25, total EBITDA increased by 17.81 percent YoY at Rs 493.86 crore.

<a href="https://www.storyboard18.com/brand-marketing/cci-approves-patanjali-foods-rs-1100-crore-acquisition-of-patanjali-ayurveds-home-and-personal-care-business-44547.htm">CCI approves Patanjali Foods’ Rs 1,100 crore acquisition of Patanjali Ayurved’s home and personal care business</a>

According to the stock exchange filing, the food and FMCG segment achieved sales of Rs 2,303.66 crore in Q2FY25.

The revenue from operations grew by 4.25 percent to Rs 8,154 crore in the September quarter. 

According to Patanjali, the food and FMCG segment's revenue stood at Rs 2,303.66 crore in Q2 compared to Rs 2,487.62 crore. The decline was largely in line with sluggish demand at the industry level.

The Food & FMCG segment contributed 27.90 percent to the Revenue from Operations, Patanjali said in a BSE filing.

	
<a href="https://www.storyboard18.com/brand-marketing/patanjali-foods-invests-rs-25-crore-in-wholly-owned-subsidiary-contemporary-agro-42961.htm">Patanjali Foods invests Rs 25 crore in wholly-owned subsidiary ‘Contemporary Agro’</a>

According to the FMCG player, the staples categories, which include rice, pulses, and wheat products, amongst others, recorded sales of Rs 1,032.43 crore as against Rs  945.01 crore in Q1FY25. "Cow Ghee, Chyawanprash, Honey, etc., booked revenue of Rs 621.48 crore as opposed to Rs 405.92 crore in Q1FY25," Patanjali added, "The biscuits division continued to be a key area of focus, registering a growth of 5.20 percent on QoQ basis with revenue of Rs 438.73 crore in Q2 FY25, while the 'Doodh' biscuit brand showed a marginal improvement, with a revenue of Rs 297.93 crore in the same tenure".


The Bab Ramdev-led brand said that its nutraceuticals business became profitable during the first half of FY25. Between July and September, nutraceuticals revenues reported 57.32 percent YoY growth to Rs 22.86 crore. The edible oil segment achieved sales of Rs 5,939.21 crore in Q2 FY25 compared to Rs 5,421.45 crore in the corresponding quarter of last fiscal year. Branded edible oil sales contributed around 74.83 percent of the total edible oil sales, it added.

Patanjali scales up ad spend to Rs 130 crore in Q2 FY25, net profit rises to 21.38% YoY

Colgate-Palmolive (India) Limited announced its financial results for the second quarter of the fiscal year 2024-25. The oral hygiene care company increased its advertising spend by 17.8% between July and September quarter FY2025. 

The company spent Rs 242.72 in advertising in the second quarter of FY2025 compared to Rs 206 crore in the corresponding quarter last year with increased support behind both brand and category development actions. At the same time, the company increased its investment in delivering perceivably superior products to consumers.

The Indian arm of the US-based personal care product reported a net profit after tax (PAT)  of Rs 395.1 crore in Q2 FY25 compared to Rs 340.1 crore in Q2 FY24, a growth of 16.2%. This includes one-off credit related to interest on income tax refunds received during the quarter.

<a href="https://www.storyboard18.com/advertising/colgate-palmolive-ad-spendings-up-by-9-79-in-q1-fy25-net-profit-rises-by-33-to-rs-364-crore-38114.htm">Colgate-Palmolive ad spendings up by 9.79% in Q1 FY25, net profit rises by 33% to Rs 364 crore</a>

The company reported 10 percent year-on-year topline growth for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, with domestic revenues growing by 10.5 percent. Net sales increased to Rs 1,609.2 crore from Rs 1,462.4 crore with all parts of the portfolio reporting strong consistent growth momentum. 

<a href="https://www.storyboard18.com/brand-marketing/colgate-eyes-100-recyclability-of-toothpaste-portfolio-by-fy2025-37946.htm">Colgate eyes 100% recyclability of toothpaste portfolio by FY2025</a>

According to Prabha Narasimhan, Managing Director & CEO of Colgate-Palmolive (India), toothpaste achieved high-single-digit volume growth on the back of brands- Colgate Maxfresh and Colgate Strong Teeth.

Narasimhan added, "Toothbrush continued to grow at double digits with rapid premiumization. We expect continued difficult market conditions but remain committed to leveraging our very strong P&L which allows us to continue to invest behind superior products and advertising".

Colgate-Palmolive shares were down 3.37 percent at Rs 3,221.65 on Thursday at 2:08 pm on BSE.

Colgate's ad spending up by 17.8% in Q2 FY25, net profit jumps to Rs 395 crore

Global social media giant X Corp's (formerly Twitter) Indian subsidiary has witnessed a sharp drop in the advertisement revenue after the dismissal of the company's ad sales team under the new management led by billionaire Elon Musk, according to a report by The Economic Times.

With the decline in ad sales revenue, Twitter Communications India also registered a sharp decline in net profit. The X Platform's Indian arm posted a profit of Rs 3 crore only in fiscal year 2024 compared to Rs 30 crore in the previous financial year. Compnay's revenue fell 90 percent to Rs 21 crore compared to Rs 208 crore.

Notably, advertising is one of the key sources of revenue of Twitter India where it has around 25 million users.

Twitter Communications has also cut employee benefit expenses by 95 percent to Rs 6 crore from Rs 130 crore after it fired nearly the entire workforce in India, which previously comprised 200 employees.

Globally, advertisers spent almost $744 million on X during the first six months of 2024--24% lower than compared to $982 million spent in the first half of 2023.

The X Corp and its Indian subsidiary are facing a struggle in their ad business since Musk officially took ownership of the company in October 2022. Musk pressurized advertisers to keep spending their money while offering a few assurances that they would curtail hate speech and misinformation.

Subsequently, members of the World Federation of Advertisers’s Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM), such as IKEA, Microsoft, Dell, Pepsico, and others boycotted the X platform.

Later, X filed lawsuits against the federation. Thereafter, at least 18 companies stopped purchasing ads between November and December 2022, such as Unilever, and CVS Health. X alleged that the federation created a conspiracy that saw its members “withhold billions of dollars in advertising revenue," Quartz reported.

Recently, X dropped Unilever from a lawsuit. The FMCG brand said in a statement it had "reached an agreement with X, which has committed to meeting our responsibility standards to ensure the safety and performance of our brands on the platform".

According to Kantar research, a net 26 percent of marketers reported plans to reduce ad spending on X in 2025.

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