Aqualisa

Quartz
z Group-1

Abhishek Pathak

Ankit Vatsyayan

Manish Raj

Surbhit Sharma

Tarun Seth
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Case Facts
 Aqualisa quartz shower, state of the art product of the Aqualisa, was
launched in May 2001

 Quartz was the result of the intense market research, great work of
technology and design

 Ease of installation, reliability & compatibility were popular among the

plumbers while the beautiful design, stability of temperature and good
pressure made it ideal for the consumers.

 UK shower market was quite complex

 Only 60% homes had showers & the existing gravity-fed plumbing meant
low water pressure
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Contd…
 44% of UK market for shower was replacement shower

 The DIY consumer was inclined towards convenience as well as value of

the product.

 Property developers looked for a product which should be economical,

stylish & long lasting as well

 Most important role in this market was played by the Plumbers who badly
wanted a product which could take lesser time for installation along with
the durability.
 z U.K Shower Market
Electric showers:

 Does not require hot water supply & components mounted in bulky box

 Aqualisa product name- Gainsborough

Mixer showers:

 2 Types: Manual and Thermostatic

 ‘Aquavalve 609’ was the company’s core product.

 Blended both hot and cold water to set temperature.

 Additional booster pump required to enhance the flow rate.

 Installation requires excavation of bathroom.

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Contd…
Integral Power Showers

 Single compact unit that combined thermostatic mixer valve and booster
pump.

 Results in a bulky box on the wall.

 Less reliable than Mixer Shower valves.

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Distribution channels

1. Trade Shops

 Carried products across all available brands

 Primary Customer – Plumbers, who worked for developers, showrooms,

contractors or directly for customers

 Aqualisa brand was available in 40% of the trade shops

 Untrained staff as it’s difficult to know in detail about all 45000 SKUs
 z Distribution channels

2. Showrooms

 Showroom “consultants” helped their customers through the process of

‘selecting’ and ‘designing’ a bathroom “solution”

 Preferred to carry high-end product lines and brands

 Customers could view the product in a pleasant environment

 Offered installation services through subcontracting with contractors and

also through independent plumbers

 Aqualisa brand was sold in about 500 showrooms out of 2000

showrooms in U.K. Showrooms
 z Distribution channels

3. Do-It-Yourself retail outlet

 DIY retail outlets like B&Q offered discounted, mass market, do-it-yourself
products

 Electric showers led sales in this channel as they were cheaper and
easier to retrofit

 Aqualisa brand was unavailable through this channel but its

Gainsborough brand was available in 70% of the approx. 3000 DIY
outlets in U.K.
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Distribution channels
4. Plumbers:

 Master Plumbers in U.K. – 10,000

 Had to undergo several years of training and 3 years of apprenticeship to become

master plumbers

 Consumers often had to wait for six months before a plumber could take on a new job

 Installs 40 to 50 showers a year

 Charged about 40 to 80 euros per hour plus the cost of excavation and materials

 Unfamiliar products could present unknown performance problems and second visit is
paid out of plumber’s pocket

 Loyal to single brand & mostly Plumbers distrusted innovation especially if it involves
electronics because of the past experience.
 z Current scenario

 Sales team spent 90% time maintaining existing accounts and 10% in
developing new customers

 Conducted face-to-face interaction with plumbers to explain new product

 Very few units had sold in first 4 months (only 81)

 Plumbers were reluctant to use of innovation, particularly involving

electronics

 Showrooms seemed niche market for the new product as it was priced
between Euros 850-1080

 Aqualisa products were available only in 500 showrooms out of 2000.

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Shift in Marketing Strategy?
Option 1: Target consumers directly

Pros: Target consumers directly i.e. end-users and create a powerful consumer
brand

 This would enable them to compete with “Triton” the market leader

Cons: Costly strategy for Aqualisa

 It must be consistent to be effective.

Option 2: DIY Sheds

Pros: Gainsborough has already gained market share in DIY market so Aqualisa
Quartz can follow this

 Sales volume will be high.

Cons: Once you show in a DIY sheds, you cant climb back out

 Potential cannibalization
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Shift in Marketing Strategy?

Option 3: Targeting Developers

Pros: More number of plumbers get familiarized to this product

 Sales volume will be high

Cons: Developers may demand heavy discount which can dent the
company’s margin

 Significant time lag before the showers would reach end-consumers

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Analysis: Plumber is a Gate Keeper
Exhibit 4: Shower Selection for Mixer Showers

Total 73%
of influence
of Plumber influences type of
shower, not brand
Plumbers 20%
25%
Consumer selects type and
brand of shower alone (without
advice from plumber)
Consumer takes plumber's
advice on type and brand of
27% shower
28% Plumber selects type and brand
alone (without consultation with
consumer)
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Analysis: Plumber is a Gate Keeper
Exhibit 4: U.K. Shower Market of
Mixer Shower by Channel

• Trade Shops are the major

contributors in Mixer Shower
segment.
15%
• Primary customer for Trade
shops are plumbers. Do-It-Yourself
13% Showrooms
Trade Shops
OtherS
73%
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Recommendations

 Educating plumbers is of main importance to improve the sale in

this segment due to prejudices about electrical product.

 Immediate focus should be on educating plumbers as they are

the influencer and key decision maker.

 As soon as sales picks up “Targeting Consumers Directly” is a

viable option to increase the sales on showrooms (i.e. 25% as of
now).
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