Britannia, HUL, Dabur, GCPL eye price hikes in September quarter

MUMBAI: FMCG companies are preparing to make consumers pay a little more. Britannia Industries, Hindustan Unilever (HUL), Dabur India and Godrej Consumer Products are considering further price increases in the September quarter as elevated commodity costs and geopolitical uncertainty put pressure on margins, according to a PTI report.

The companies had already implemented average price increases of around 2-5 per cent during the June quarter. They are now leaning towards selective hikes and shrinkflation, which involves reducing product quantities while keeping prices unchanged, to protect profitability without putting too much pressure on demand.

Companies are also closely monitoring crude oil prices, commodity inflation and weather-related risks, including the monsoon and the possible impact of El Nino.

Britannia Industries expects to implement another 1.5-2 per cent pricing action in the second quarter, mainly through shrinkflation in its Rs 5 and Rs 10 biscuit packs.

The company is facing higher costs for key inputs such as sugar and palm oil. Britannia managing director and CEO Rakshit Hargave said further pricing action could come during the current quarter.

“If the overall impact was 1 per cent, you would probably see maybe another 1.5-2 per cent coming in,” Hargave said during the company’s earnings call, according to PTI.

The company expects to protect its FY27 EBITDA margin at least at FY26 levels if input costs remain elevated, while maintaining that the demand environment remains healthy.

Godrej Consumer Products, which raised prices by around 5 per cent in the June quarter, could also take further pricing action in the September quarter.

GCPL CEO Sudhir Sitapati said the company was waiting for greater clarity on commodity costs before making a larger move. Several of its input costs are linked to crude oil, with changes in crude prices generally reflected after a lag of three to four weeks.

With Brent crude trading at around $80-85 a barrel, GCPL believes its current pricing is broadly sufficient and does not expect to need a significant additional increase immediately.

Dabur India expects input costs to remain elevated in the near term and plans to use calibrated price increases, productivity improvements and cost efficiencies to protect margins.

Dabur India global CEO Mohit Malhotra said price and revenue growth would play a larger role as inflation weighs on volumes.

“Price growth and value growth are becoming higher than volume growth. Volumes will be under pressure as the inflation is too much,” Malhotra said during the company’s earnings call.

Despite the pressure, Dabur expects to deliver double-digit revenue growth in FY27, supported by its brands, innovation pipeline and execution.

Hindustan Unilever is also preparing for pricing action across several product categories.

HUL had already raised prices by 2-5 per cent during the June quarter. CEO and managing director Priya Nair said the company expects sequential inflation of around 2-5 per cent in the September quarter.

“Between the September quarter versus June quarter, we see sequential inflation, which could range between 2 to 5 per cent. We will continue to take calibrated pricing into the quarter, depending on how inflation pans out,” Nair said.

The company plans to balance pricing measures with its focus on volume-led growth.

Tata Consumer Products is also keeping pricing measures on the table if inflation begins to hurt margins. Managing director Sunil D’Souza said the company was assessing the impact of input costs and would consider further price increases if necessary.

The company remains focused on achieving mid- to high-single-digit growth, while geopolitical uncertainty continues to cloud the cost outlook.

Nestle India, meanwhile, has flagged the possibility of softer consumption in the short term. The company is monitoring geopolitical and inflationary pressures, including the West Asia conflict and the potential impact of El Nino on the monsoon.

For India’s FMCG majors, the September quarter is shaping up as a careful balancing act. Selective price increases, smaller packs and tighter cost controls are emerging as the preferred tools to protect margins without risking a sharp slowdown in consumer demand.