CHAPTER – 1

INTRODUCTION :-
In the present era of competition the vary existence of any business Depends upon its customer
bank. Customer is the king in present business World. Gone are the days when producer or
seller used to rule the business World. Today customer is the main pillar on which any business
stands. Due To entry of the MNC’s there is cut throat competition in the market. They Have
already established in urban markets and now rural and suburban areas Are the thrust areas.I
have chose “To Study the Consumer Buying Behaviour towards Fairness Creams” to have a
deep knowledge of consumer behaviour Regarding fairness creams.
In my research I have tried to find out main brand used? Why these Brands are used ? Factor
affecting their purchase behaviour like price,Quality, results, etc. I also have tried to find out
relation in buying behaviour and age, sex, family income. The research study is a
comprehensive survey to reach deep in the Consumption pattern of the target customer.
Are men concerned about their complexion? Do men worry about skin fairness? If asked few
decades back the answer would be a big ‘no’ as fairness creams and cosmetics were the
personal properties of female race. But today alarming statistics reveal that cosmetics and
fairness creams are equally sought after by men too. As fashion trends and lifestyles change,
the attitudes and conceptions about human beauty also have undergone tremendous changes.
Today fairness is nota word mentioned only in the matrimonial advertisements but the society
believe that being fair is being beautiful and handsome.
A famous fairness cream is named ‘Fair & Handsome’ as if to proclaim that to be fair is to be
handsome. Tall and dark? Then you are not likely to be deemed handsome, going by current
trends, even though India has always worshipped dark gods. The metrosexual look is getting
preference – and that means men are chasing fairness creams and chemical peels, thanks to
media and advertising playing a role in promoting them.
Commenting on the Indian man’s growing fascination for fair skin, Apollo Hospital senior
cosmetic surgeon Anup Dhir told IANS: “I get around 8-19 inquiries every month from men to
improve their skin tone and help them look fairer. “There are times when a man accompanying
HISTORY OF FAIRNESS CREAM:
Fairness creams have been in the market since 1978 and have a significant market share in
India – a fall out of a colonial memory or ³snow white syndrome´ that constructs³white´ or fair
skin as superior. What is curious is that these creams used to target only Indian women but of
late men are being sought out as consumers for the product. Advertisements targeting women
have historically constructed fairness as a qualification for approval in the marriage market and
more recently to win well-paying job contracts. On the other hand, advertisements geared
towards men cite fairness as a necessary attribute for landing plush jobs. A ³fair´ man is a
³confident´ man and a leader.

However, such a construction goes against traditional notions of the all-powerful Hindu male
gods as dark (for e.g., the meaning of the name of one of the most charming and powerful
Hindu gods, Krishna is the ³dark one´)More significantly, these products have seen an increase
in their market share which begs the question: Is the marketing effort creating a new segment
in the category of fairness creams or is it nurturing an already existing hidden male desire to be
fair? Through market share analysis, literature review and interviews, the paper answers this
question.

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY :-

This report also includes a research on “Preference and Consumer Perception of Fairness
Creams” and the particular research objectives are mentioned below:

1.To find out brand consciousness of customers regarding fairness creams

2.To study the factors influencing brand preference of fairness creams
3.To determine the factors influencing purchase behavior of customers of fairness
Creams
4. To analyze the factors influencing the purchase decision of the respondents.
5.To know the current Indian market for fairness products.
6.To Analyze the brand and its buying behavior
7.To know the socio economic profile of the Respondents
 CHAPTER – 2

REVIEW OF LITERATURE:-
According to a research carried out by the students of Punjabi University on the Indian Market,
they determined that 36% of all respondents preferred Fair & Lovely as their brand of Fairness
cream which was the highest compared to other brands. However, this survey was Conducted
on women specifically which might be an influencing factor behind the high Preference towards
fair & lovely as a brand. The same survey also showed using empirical Data that the two factors
that women strongly considered before purchasing a fairness cream Was the brand itself and
the ability of the product to cause fairness of skin. These two factors Accounted for 68% of all
respondents. Another important finding from this research paper Shows that 46.7% of all
respondents stated television ads to be the biggest source of Awareness about fairness cream
brands and their value propositions.
Saumendra Das (2013) stated in his paper “Consumers’ Perception on Fairness Creams in India”
that the adoption of western culture of brand consciousness in India coupled with Increased
male expenditure on cosmetics has transformed the fairness cream market of India Into a
potential high growth industry, inviting all the global brands to operate in.
According To this paper, this Rs. 8000 crore market segment grew by 10% in terms of value
previous Year. Fair & Lovely has a massive 53% market share in India and experiences an annual
Growth rate of 10 to 15%. A survey conducted as part of this paper reports that Indian
Customers prefer Fair & Lovely over other brands of fairness cream regardless of age and
Income, mostly due to its ability make the skin fair which allows them to have a good
Personality in the society.
According to Kumar & Raja (2014), 30% of all users of fairness cream in India consisted of Men
who were secretly using female’s fairness creams in 2004 which paved the way for a New
market segment in the fairness cream industry – fairness cream for men. Emami Capitalized on
it and quickly launched their product Fair and Handsome in 2005. Fair & Lovely also set their
foothold on the market with their Fair & Lovely Max Fairness.
This Report has also stated that the customers are willing to pay premium price for fairness
creams Depending on brand and quality of the product. The findings of this paper states that
most Men are influenced by TV ads to purchase fairness creams and these men are typically
Students aged between 18 to 24. Garnier is the number one choice of fairness cream brand
Amongst men, while fair & lovely remains on top with female customers in India. To further
strengthen the findings from the previous papers, a 2006 study conducted by Manivannan,
Kannan &Natryan on the Indian fairness cream industry has found over 60% Respondents
prefer Fair & Lovely over other brands. 46% of the respondents stated “fairness” As the factor
influencing their choice. Roughly 80% of the respondents were exposed to Different brands
through TV Commercials. These findings have held true through countless Researches
conducted in India and are likely to applicable to the Bangladeshi market as well.

METHODOLOGY OF THE STUDY :-

The primary source of data for the report was secondary data that was extracted from the
Company database. As an intern, I had the exclusive access to project related information Some
of which I was able to use in the completion of this report. Besides that, I have also Used
information from the company website and other existing reports on UBL to produce a
Completely informative report.
For the research part of the report, primary data was used which was obtained by collecting
Data from 76 respondents via random sampling. Data was collected pertaining to different
Variables that applied to the fairness cream industry and its customers, using online survey
Forms. Secondary data was also obtained to support the primary data from online databases,
Journals and published reports. As a researcher, I compared the secondary data and primary
Data obtained to find out similarities and discrepancies in the information and reach a
Meaningful conclusion about the industry of our country.

Descriptive research design has been used for this study and a survey has been done for fact-
finding inquiries of different kinds. Sampling method used for the study is convenience
sampling method. A sample size is 60 respondents. The data is collected through the
questionnaire. Primary data collected through face to face interviews while filling up
questionnaires 60 respondents from Hyderabad. Relevant information gathered from
magazines, newspapers and project reports that formed the secondary data.