KB George is the Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of Kerala-based HLL Lifecare Limited, a leading public-sector healthcare products manufacturing company. HLL started its life journey as a manufacturer of condoms to support the Union government’s ‘Small family, happy family’ campaign in the late 1960s. Today, the company Is one of the largest suppliers of contraceptives to the United Nations and has a brand presence in 45 countries.
In an interview with Moneycontrol, George talks about the extraordinary growth, transformation, and future of HLL from a Rs 15-crore company selling condoms, to a Rs 35,000-crore behemoth, dealing in 21 different products and operating a chain of diagnostic labs (281) and pharmacies (236), across the country, in a little over 50 years. Edited excerpts of the interview:
HLL has been a part of the Union government’s family planning initiative for over 50 years now. However, the latest National Family Health Survey shows that condom usage in India is extremely low. What do you think might be the reason?
The government has been pushing very hard on the usage of condoms, both contraception-wise as well as to control AIDS. Similarly, many social service organisations and NGOs are also distributing condoms to vulnerable groups. The retail sales (numbers) of condoms do not determine whether they are actually being used or not. Truck drivers don’t necessarily go and buy condoms from a retail or chemist shop. They are usually given condoms by social service organisations who work on the field. Also, the low usage does not reflect in the volume of condoms purchased by the government. HLL supplied 431 million pieces of male condoms to the government in the last one year alone.
Is ‘Moods’ (premium branded male condoms, which HLL launched for the mass market in the late 1980s) still the flagship product of the company?
The recall value and customer acceptance of ‘Moods’ among the public, especially in states like Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra, are very high. Yes, ‘Moods’ is still our flagship brand. We are currently in the process of coming up with three new variants of Moods for the international market: Moods grapes, Moods 1800 dotted and Moods diamond dotted. In addition to Moods, we have over 30 different brands today, selling everything from oral contraceptive pills, IUDs (intra uterine devices), to tubal rings, blood bags, pregnancy test kits, surgical sutures, and so on. HLL brands are now going to 45 different countries. We are also one of the largest certified suppliers to the United Nations.
Any new products in the pipeline?
We are currently working on graphene condoms. (Graphene is a form of carbon that has been dubbed a ‘miracle material’ due to its exceptional thin and strong qualities that can possibly enhance sensation and pleasure during sex.) We will roll out a prototype in a few months. And based on customer response, we will take a call on whether to go for mass production or not.
What about female condoms? How popular are they?
We came up with female condoms four years ago. The Indian market is still at a nascent stage. So, we are selling it to countries like Brazil and South Africa.
The COVID-19 years were an economically challenging phase for most companies. But for HLL, it proved to be a period of extraordinary growth.
How did this happen?
The financial year just before COVID-19 (2019-2020) was a good year for us. We made good profits. Then suddenly COVID-19 came and our factories had to be closed. Our core businesses like pharmaceuticals and diagnostic labs did not do well because they depended on customers, and customers were not coming due to lockdown and COVID-19 restrictions.
Also, there were no surgeries. So, there was no demand for some of our products like blood bags and surgical sutures. The government then made us a procurement and distribution agency for all COVID-19 emergency items around the country, including coveralls, N-95 masks, goggles, gloves, ventilators, etc.
The government also entrusted us with the procurement of vaccines. We were remunerated for all our services. So, even though our core business was down, we did exceptionally well as a logistics and procurement company. Our turnover crossed over Rs 35,000 crore in 2021-22, which is unimaginable for a small company, which started with just Rs 15 crore.
For a company that is doing exceptionally well, there is very little brand visibility for HLL compared to some of its competitors. Why?
It’s a conscious decision. The years from 2015 to 2018 were loss-making years for HLL. When the company is making loss, the last thing you do is to spend money on marketing. Those were the lull times.
Now that the good times are back, can we see more marketing campaigns from HLL or will the government’s disinvestment plans throw a spanner in the works?
Disinvestment is a policy decision. The plans have been going on from 2017 onwards. But we are still doing some sort of social media promotion, digital marketing, e-commerce and sponsorship events, etc. But how much push we give for those initiatives depends on how the company is moving forward. We are still not clear about that. Right now we are just waiting and watching.
(The writer is a senior journalist and founder of VVOX, a platform with a mission to eradicate sexual shame)
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