Mysore Sandal Soap
Encyclopedia
Mysore Sandal Soap is a brand of soap
manufactured by the Karnataka Soaps and Detergents Limited (KSDL), a company owned by the Government of Karnataka
in India. This soap has been manufactured since 1916 when Nalvadi Krishnaraja Wodeyar, the king of Mysore set up the Government Soap Factory in Bangalore
. The main motivation for setting up the factory was the excessive sandalwood
reserves that the Mysore Kingdom had which could not be exported to Europe
because of the First World War. In 1980, KSDL was incorporated as a company by merging the Government Soap Factory with the sandal oil factories at Shimoga and Mysore. Mysore Sandal Soap is the only soap in the world made from 100% pure sandalwood oil. KSDL owns a proprietary Geographical indication
(GI) tag on the Mysore sandal soap which gives it intellectual property rights to use the brand name, to ensure quality and also prevent piracy and unauthorised use by other manufacturers. In 2006, Mahendra Singh Dhoni
, the Indian cricketer
was selected as the first brand ambassador
of the Mysore Sandal Soap.
was one of the largest producers of sandalwood
in the world. It was also one of the major exporters of the wood, most of which was exported to Europe
. During the First World War, large reserves of sandalwood were left over because they could not be exported due to the war. In order to make good use of these reserves, Nalvadi Krishnaraja Wodeyar, the king of Mysore took the advice of his diwan, Sir M. Visweshwaraiah and established the Government Soap Factory in Bangalore. This factory, which was set up in 1916, started manufacturing soaps under the brand-name Mysore sandal soap using sandalwood oil as the main ingredient. A factory to distill sandalwood oil from the wood was set up at Mysore in the same year. In 1944, another sandalwood oil factory was set up at Shimoga. After the unification of Karnataka
, these factories came under the jurisdiction of the Government of Karnataka
. In 1980, the Government decided to merge these factories and incorporate them under a company named Karnataka Soaps and Detergents Limited. Sharabha, a mythological creature having a body of a lion and the head of an elephant, was chosen as the logo of the company. This was because the creature represents the combined virtues of wisdom, courage and strength and symbolizes the company's philosophy. The company has since diversified and manufactures incense sticks, talcum powder and detergent
s; apart from soap
s.
was selected as the first brand ambassador of the Mysore Sandal soap. Other marketing strategies being employed to market this soap include a scheme where the distributors who meet the targeted sales could enter a lucky draw where they could win silver or gold coins. About 85% of the sales of this soap are from the South India
n states of Karnataka
, Andhra Pradesh
and Tamil Nadu
. Majority of the users of this soap are above forty years of age and it is yet to gain more acceptance by the youth in India. Apart from the regular, Mysore Sandal Soap, KSDL has also introduced the Mysore Sandal baby soap to target this share of the market. However, KSDL is facing issues like shortage of sandalwood which has resulted in the company using only 25% of the manufacturing capacity of its factory leading to a lesser production of soaps. The main reason for this is the depletion
of sandalwood reserves in the state of Karnataka
.
To overcome this, KSDL has also started procuring sandalwood by bidding in the open market and is also considering importing the wood from other countries. The absence of a sustained
sandalwood regeneration programme has a taken a big toll on sandalwood reserves in Karnataka. This is a great irony
in a State that once set up factories to use up its excessive reserves and wears two GI (geographical indication
) tags on its sleeve on account of its historic association with the precious wood.
Soap
In chemistry, soap is a salt of a fatty acid.IUPAC. "" Compendium of Chemical Terminology, 2nd ed. . Compiled by A. D. McNaught and A. Wilkinson. Blackwell Scientific Publications, Oxford . XML on-line corrected version: created by M. Nic, J. Jirat, B. Kosata; updates compiled by A. Jenkins. ISBN...
manufactured by the Karnataka Soaps and Detergents Limited (KSDL), a company owned by the Government of Karnataka
Government of Karnataka
The Government of Karnataka is a democratically elected body with the Governor as the constitutional head. The Governor who is appointed for a period of five years appoints the Chief Minister and his council of ministers...
in India. This soap has been manufactured since 1916 when Nalvadi Krishnaraja Wodeyar, the king of Mysore set up the Government Soap Factory in Bangalore
Bangalore
Bengaluru , formerly called Bengaluru is the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Bangalore is nicknamed the Garden City and was once called a pensioner's paradise. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the south-eastern part of Karnataka, Bangalore is India's third most populous city and...
. The main motivation for setting up the factory was the excessive sandalwood
Sandalwood
Sandalwood is the name of a class of fragrant woods from trees in the genus Santalum. The woods are heavy, yellow, and fine-grained, and unlike many other aromatic woods they retain their fragrance for decades. As well as using the harvested and cut wood in-situ, essential oils are also extracted...
reserves that the Mysore Kingdom had which could not be exported to Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
because of the First World War. In 1980, KSDL was incorporated as a company by merging the Government Soap Factory with the sandal oil factories at Shimoga and Mysore. Mysore Sandal Soap is the only soap in the world made from 100% pure sandalwood oil. KSDL owns a proprietary Geographical indication
Geographical indication
A geographical indication is a name or sign used on certain products which corresponds to a specific geographical location or origin...
(GI) tag on the Mysore sandal soap which gives it intellectual property rights to use the brand name, to ensure quality and also prevent piracy and unauthorised use by other manufacturers. In 2006, Mahendra Singh Dhoni
Mahendra Singh Dhoni
Mahendra Singh Dhoni is an Indian cricketer and the current captain of the Indian national cricket team. He made his One Day International debut in December 2004 against Bangladesh, and a year later played his first Test, this time against Sri Lanka.Under his captaincy, India won the 2007 ICC...
, the Indian cricketer
Indian cricket team
The Indian cricket team is the national cricket team of India. Governed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India , it is a full member of the International Cricket Council with Test and One Day International status....
was selected as the first brand ambassador
Brand ambassador
A Brand Ambassador is a person employed by a company to be the sales rep and physical representative of the company with respect to sales and marketing. The Brand Ambassador is meant to embody the corporate image in appearance, demeanor, values, and ethics....
of the Mysore Sandal Soap.
History
In the early 20th century, the Mysore Kingdom in IndiaIndia
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
was one of the largest producers of sandalwood
Sandalwood
Sandalwood is the name of a class of fragrant woods from trees in the genus Santalum. The woods are heavy, yellow, and fine-grained, and unlike many other aromatic woods they retain their fragrance for decades. As well as using the harvested and cut wood in-situ, essential oils are also extracted...
in the world. It was also one of the major exporters of the wood, most of which was exported to Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. During the First World War, large reserves of sandalwood were left over because they could not be exported due to the war. In order to make good use of these reserves, Nalvadi Krishnaraja Wodeyar, the king of Mysore took the advice of his diwan, Sir M. Visweshwaraiah and established the Government Soap Factory in Bangalore. This factory, which was set up in 1916, started manufacturing soaps under the brand-name Mysore sandal soap using sandalwood oil as the main ingredient. A factory to distill sandalwood oil from the wood was set up at Mysore in the same year. In 1944, another sandalwood oil factory was set up at Shimoga. After the unification of Karnataka
Unification of Karnataka
The Unification of Karnataka refers to the formation of the Indian state of Karnataka, then called as Mysore State, in 1956 when several Indian states were created by redrawing borders based on linguistic demographics...
, these factories came under the jurisdiction of the Government of Karnataka
Government of Karnataka
The Government of Karnataka is a democratically elected body with the Governor as the constitutional head. The Governor who is appointed for a period of five years appoints the Chief Minister and his council of ministers...
. In 1980, the Government decided to merge these factories and incorporate them under a company named Karnataka Soaps and Detergents Limited. Sharabha, a mythological creature having a body of a lion and the head of an elephant, was chosen as the logo of the company. This was because the creature represents the combined virtues of wisdom, courage and strength and symbolizes the company's philosophy. The company has since diversified and manufactures incense sticks, talcum powder and detergent
Detergent
A detergent is a surfactant or a mixture of surfactants with "cleaning properties in dilute solutions." In common usage, "detergent" refers to alkylbenzenesulfonates, a family of compounds that are similar to soap but are less affected by hard water...
s; apart from soap
Soap
In chemistry, soap is a salt of a fatty acid.IUPAC. "" Compendium of Chemical Terminology, 2nd ed. . Compiled by A. D. McNaught and A. Wilkinson. Blackwell Scientific Publications, Oxford . XML on-line corrected version: created by M. Nic, J. Jirat, B. Kosata; updates compiled by A. Jenkins. ISBN...
s.
Business
As of March 2006, the Mysore Sandal soap held a 6500 tonne share among the 450 thousand tonnes of soap produced and marketed annually in India. The KSDL's soap factory in Bangalore that manufactures the Mysore Sandal Soap is one of the largest of its kind in India having an installed capacity to produce 26,000 tonnes of soap per annum. KSDL had sales of Rs 1.15 billion (about $ 28.75 million) in the year 2004-2005 with the Mysore Sandal Soap having an average monthly sale of about Rs. 75 million ($ 1.87 million). Traditionally, the soap has not been marketed in a high profile manner and only during the year 2006, M. S. Dhoni, the Indian cricketerIndian cricket team
The Indian cricket team is the national cricket team of India. Governed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India , it is a full member of the International Cricket Council with Test and One Day International status....
was selected as the first brand ambassador of the Mysore Sandal soap. Other marketing strategies being employed to market this soap include a scheme where the distributors who meet the targeted sales could enter a lucky draw where they could win silver or gold coins. About 85% of the sales of this soap are from the South India
South India
South India is the area encompassing India's states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as well as the union territories of Lakshadweep and Pondicherry, occupying 19.31% of India's area...
n states of Karnataka
Karnataka
Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
, Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
and Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh...
. Majority of the users of this soap are above forty years of age and it is yet to gain more acceptance by the youth in India. Apart from the regular, Mysore Sandal Soap, KSDL has also introduced the Mysore Sandal baby soap to target this share of the market. However, KSDL is facing issues like shortage of sandalwood which has resulted in the company using only 25% of the manufacturing capacity of its factory leading to a lesser production of soaps. The main reason for this is the depletion
Depletion
Depletion may refer to:*Depletion , an accounting concept*Depletion region, a concept of semiconductor physics*Depletion width, a concept of semiconductor physics*Grain boundary depletion, a mechanism of corrosion...
of sandalwood reserves in the state of Karnataka
Karnataka
Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
.
To overcome this, KSDL has also started procuring sandalwood by bidding in the open market and is also considering importing the wood from other countries. The absence of a sustained
Sustainability
Sustainability is the capacity to endure. For humans, sustainability is the long-term maintenance of well being, which has environmental, economic, and social dimensions, and encompasses the concept of union, an interdependent relationship and mutual responsible position with all living and non...
sandalwood regeneration programme has a taken a big toll on sandalwood reserves in Karnataka. This is a great irony
Irony
Irony is a rhetorical device, literary technique, or situation in which there is a sharp incongruity or discordance that goes beyond the simple and evident intention of words or actions...
in a State that once set up factories to use up its excessive reserves and wears two GI (geographical indication
Geographical indication
A geographical indication is a name or sign used on certain products which corresponds to a specific geographical location or origin...
) tags on its sleeve on account of its historic association with the precious wood.