(L to R) Sanjay Jain, Director; Manoj Dugar, Managing Director; Ayush Dugar, Chief Marketing Officer; Dugar Overseas, which markets German mint brand Impact Mints among other global fmcg brands in India.
Image: Madhu Kapparath
August 2016, Gurugram. “BMW bech rahe ho kya? Kaun kharedega ye? Maruti le ke aao (Are you selling a BMW? Who will buy this. Get a Maruti)…” Manoj Dugar was swamped with a flurry of not-so refreshing response from a sea of retailers across India. A German confectionery brand, Impact Mints had officially made its debut in India in 2016, and had granted exclusive distribution rights to Dugar Overseas, a Delhi-based company which has been marketing overseas FMCG brands since 1992, and also has its own range of confectionery and chocolate products and brands such as Sapphire. “Ye car nahin hai, mint hai. Nahin bikega (This is not a car but mint. It won’t sell),” there was a strong pushback from stockists, dealers, retailers and shopkeepers.