Visited the Patanjali Store just out of curiosity after having heard good things about it from many persons. "Total delight" is the only term that describes my experience. I have always been suspicious of Babas and have kept my distance from them. I would prefer to learn Yoga from Shilpa Shetty to a Baba-type teacher.
They say that Baba Ramdev has commercialised his brand. Nothing could be further from truth. He indeed has. The Patanjali brand of household stuff sells like hot cakes even in a small town like Salem and one has to wait one's turn in a queue. The reasons are not difficult to see. Everything is so well presented, packaged and ridiculously low-priced that one can only curse oneself for having been cheated all these years by the likes of Hindustan Lever, Colgate and Proctor and Gamble.
The Patanjali Stores sells everything of daily need - soaps, detergents, toothpaste, rice, atta, pulses, cooking oil, biscuits, cornflakes and even instant noodles. Every single thing is packaged professionally matching, if not beating the MNCs. Prices are unbelievably low. Soap cakes for half the price of what Hind Lever sells, shampoos and seventy percent cheaper, biscuits at half price and so on. Pulses are unpolished and very attractively packed. All foodstuff is fssai approved.
The range of soaps can shame Hindustan Lever and that of biscuits the Britannia company. The quality is top class and reassuring. The salespersons are ultra polite and are obviously well trained. They had staff, which spoke Tamil, Hindi and English. There is also an in-house consultant, who prescribes Ayurvedic medicines for you, all of which are available in the store at very reasonable prices. The blend of heritage and herbal offerings with modern stuff like moisturisers, sunscreens and hair-conditioners, liquid hand-washes is seamless.
This Baba is soon going to give the MNCs a run for their money. He has also launched a major advertising campaign in the media. The best part of it is that he does not use a beauty-queen or a film star as a brand ambassador. His market savvy and care for details will soon be a case study in Management Schools.
I recommend a visit to your nearest Patanjali Store.
(Disclaimer: I am not a follower of Baba Ramdev)
So true. I visited a shop on a busy street in Kandivali. There was a line, and people waited politely to see the doctor who doesn't charge for consultation. Spends plenty of time with the patient and gives advice about food, lifestyle changes, and of course the medicines. Medicines were dirt cheap, professionally packaged, and the dosages were explained well by the staff until the patient understood. I almost felt like I went to a grocery store plus a medicine store plus a clinic - all in one small shop. Quite impressed!!
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