PUREIT- PROTECTING LIVES

THE BACKGROUND

In the developing world, most diseases are water-related - a major cause for this is the poor quality
of drinking water. The magnitude of the problem can be seen from the fact that diarrheal disease alone leads to
2 - 2.2 million deaths and 4 billion episodes of disease every year worldwide. An estimated 400,000* deaths
due to diarrheal disease happen amongst children in India every year. World Health Organization (WHO)
states that the provision of safe water alone will reduce diarrheal and enteric disease by up to 50%, even in the
absence of improved sanitation or other hygiene measures.

Waterborne diseases like place typhoid, jaundice, cholera, dysentery place immense social and economic
burden on our country. There is therefore a huge consumer need in India today for an affordable means of
getting safe drinking water. Boiling water, as a means of purification, is expensive, energy-intensive, and
cumbersome. Available storage and candle-based filters do not ensure safety from harmful germs. Electricity-
dependent and continuous tap-water dependent devices based on UV and reverse osmosis technologies are
beyond the reach of most consumers.

Given this context, Unilever embarked on a mission to provide safe and affordable drinking water through in-
home water purification. Unilever scientists have worked for many years to come up with a range of
technological breakthroughs that have led to the creation of Pureit a unique offering by Unilever. Pureit
provides1 litre of As safe as boiled water at a running cost of just 28 paisa without the hassles of boiling,
without the need of electricity or a continuous tap water supply.

All Pureit water purifiers come with an Auto Shut Off mechanism which ensures that a consumer is never
exposed to unsafe water. A consumable Germ Kill Kit needs to be purchased by a consumer once the Auto
Shut Off is activated, which happens after the designated litres of safe water is dispensed.

Pureit was test marketed in Chennai in 2004 and was launched nationally in India in 2008. Pureit has since
emerged as the largest selling water purifier brand in the country and has protected over 57.5 million lives
globally by the end of 2013. Pureit now has a global footprint and is available in 13 countries.


THE MARKET

Water purifiers in the Indian market were launched in early 1980s and presently the market is estimated at
around Rs.3200 crores per annum. Till the launch of Pureit there were only electric devices available and were
priced at around Rs. 5000/- .The cumulative penetration of water purifiers in 2008 had reached around 5% and
by 2013 in just 5 years of launch Pureit helped drive the category penetrations of water purifiers to 16%. Still
around 84% of the population in India depends on methods like boiling (25%) and simple physical filtration
methods like cloth filters to purify water.

Though the penetration of purifiers saw a step jump after Pureits launch it is still a large job to be done for
Pureit to drive the penetrations of purifiers to help achieve its stated ambition of protecting 500 million lives by
2020. The Indian market has three distinct segments namely Self Fill Segment (Gravity Fill Purifiers), Automatic
Fill (UV technology based) and Salt Removal (RO technology based). With these segments contributing to
40%, 20% and 40% in value terms to the category.

Segment Price (Rs.) Contribution
Manual Fill (Self Fill) 1200-3100 40%
UV (Automatic Fill ) 3600-10000 20%
RO (Automatic Fill
+Salt Removal)
10990 - 20990 40%






PUREIT- PROTECTING LIVES

THE PLOT

The rate of penetration of purifiers in India has been quite slow after the initial
rapid penetration by Pureit due to its launch in 2008 at a very accessible price point of
Rs. 1500/-. The quality of water in the meanwhile continues to deteriorate due to pollution and increased levels
of chemical contaminants like lead and rust in water. These contaminants cannot be removed by boiling and
simple filtration methods. The barriers to adoption are- no apparent impact on health in the short term other
than seasonal impact of water borne diseases and ability to pay for purchasing a purifier and the consumable
required to continue using the purifier as household budgets have come under inflationary pressures.

The Pureit communication in 2014 is designed to bring to light the need for purifiers as contaminants like lead
and rust can have serious health impact on humans especially among children. This communication is
designed to drive relevance for water purifiers by establishing the impact that chemical contaminants like lead
and rust can have on a childs mental development.

The barrier of affordability has been addressed through multiple routes- firstly the Pureit range Self Fill Water
purifiers starting at just Rs. 1200/-. For consumers at the bottom of the pyramid partnerships with MFIs in South
India have been forged where consumers can purchase purifiers at a very affordable monthly EMI of just Rs.
300/- per month.

Another route used by Pureit is to crowd source funds from individuals who would like to contribute to providing
safe drinking water to the poor. Waterworks is a non-profit partnership between the Unilever Foundation, PSI
(Population Services International) and Facebook. Waterworks operates through an innovative Facebook
application, which means that helping to improve the health and well-being of an entire community takes less
time than standing in line to buy a coffee. You simply connect the application to your timeline and choose a
small daily donation as little as 0.10 to partner with one of 75 PSI-trained Water workers in this pilot
programme in Bhopal, India. Each Water worker is given a mobile phone to take photos and record stories
which she shares with her partners on Facebook. She keeps her Facebook partner updated with her progress
so you can see how the equivalent cost of a cappuccino can have a big impact on 15,000 households in
Bhopal. The project has seen limited success as it competes in a very crowded I want to make a difference
market.

Pureit has through its various interventions aimed to address both the barriers to purchase of water purifiers-
Relevance and Affordability.

THE BRIEF

You need to provide an approach that can help address either or both the barriers to purchase of water purifier-
relevance and affordability. On relevance please use the Pureit Communication as the starting point to suggest
activations and routes to create high impact activations.

On the affordability you can explore any innovative routes to help getting consumers financial access to a
Pureit water purifier.

Remember- This is a no hold barred opportunity- Digital, Crowd Sourcing, New Financial Models, Activation
ideas, Leveraging Key Opinion Formers and ambient advertising are all fair game.

Only one area remains out of the scope of your suggestions- Product Innovations.

THE CARPE DIEM CHALLENGE

Consumer Insight - What insight really helps you unlock the barriers to purchase a water purifier?

The Big Idea - What is your idea and builds on the consumer insight and help address the barriers to purchase
a water purifier?

Size of prize - How big is the size of prize? How many people will your idea reach out to, and the logic thereof?

Success Measures - What will success look like? Please suggest specific KPIs to measure success of your
idea.

Does your idea have the power to protect lives?
PUREIT- PROTECTING LIVES



ANNEXURE

Official website: Pureitwater.com

You Tube link to the campaign: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3WClFxMb8jA&list=UU2-
2znVVuqUR6bjBCnloMng

Additional information can be accessed on: http://www.pureitwater.com/IN/lead-rust-drinking-water

MENTOR

Mr. Gauravjeet Singh - Marketing Manager, Pureit

Email id: Gauravjeet.singh@unilever.com