Marico, Emami boost ad spends, Dabur, HUL cut back: FMCG Q3 AdEx outlook

New Delhi: The FMCG sector, time and again, sits on the throne when it comes to the Indian advertising space. In the year 2024, FMCG continued dominating the space pouring a total of Rs 31,467 crore in the advertising sector in the country. This comprises 31% of the total ad spends fueling the Indian adland.  

For the quarter ending December 31, 2024, FMCG giants shelled out massive amounts to boost promotions. However, due to soft demands and global headwinds, few FMCG players also seemed to be pulling the plug on allocating a substantial chunk to advertising.

Among the FMCG stalwarts, while Marico, Emami, and Godrej emerged as splurgers, Dabur, HUL, and Colgate-Palmolive came out to be prudent spenders. Adhering to the trend, Hindustan Unilever maintained its position as the top spender. 

HUL devoted a total of Rs 1,507 crore in the third quarter of the current financial year. However, the ad spends declined 7% on-year. In Q3FY24, the FMCG major had spent Rs 1,626 crore. A notable move by HUL was the acquisition of premium actives-led beauty brand Minimalist for a sum of Rs 2,955 crore, bagging a 90.5% stake in the beauty brand. 

Right behind HUL was Godrej Consumer Products which registered an uptick of 6.14% on-year in the AdEx. GCPL, under the advertisement and publicity segment, spent Rs 364.37 crore in Q3FY25. In the corresponding quarter previous year, this expenditure was at Rs 342.37 crore. 

In the third quarter of FY24, Dabur dialled down its advertising expenditure to Rs 225.63 crore from Rs 244.54 crore in the previous year’s corresponding quarter, marking a 7.3% decline. 

Homegrown FMCG major, Marico, reported the highest jump in the AdEx, with the allocation rising from Rs 246 crore in Q3 of the previous year to Rs 293 crore in Q3 of the current year. As of February 2025, Marico has spent a total of Rs 823 crore on advertising, as compared to Rs 726 crore in the first nine months of FY2024. 

Emami, too, reported a rise in AdEx with the amount increasing from Rs 165.73 crore in the Q3 previous year to Rs 175.73 crore in the third quarter of the current fiscal year. 

According to a Dentsu report, digital media accounted for the largest share of advertising spend at 49%. FMCG directs 44% of its advertising budget to the online video category of the digital media industry. 30% of the budget goes to social media.

Be it the spenders or the savers, some common avenues of influence were omnipresent in the BSE filings and the statements by the honchos of these FMCG majors. Softening urban demand and unstable geopolitical conditions were highlighted as the laggards. Rural became the apple of the eye for the FMCG giants, some calling it the haven of consumption and resilience. 

For instance, Emami, in the company statement, said, “Urban demand faced headwinds, influenced by rising food inflation and liquidity constraints in retail and wholesale trade channels. Conversely, rural demand showcased resilience, buoyed by favourable monsoon conditions and a robust harvest, providing a silver lining amidst market uncertainties.”

Here’s the round-up of ad spends by major FMCG players in Q3