Gillette India Q1FY26 – Blades Sharp, Margins Sharper, Growth… Well, Let’s Shave the Truth
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1. At a Glance
Gillette India is that FMCG cousin who shows up at every family gathering with a perfect shave, premium aftershave, and a P/E ratio that screams, “I’m too expensive, but you’ll still swipe right.” With a market cap of ₹31,055 crore and a current price of ₹9,529, the stock is trading at a nose-bleeding 55x earnings. In the last three months, it shed -11.6% (probably market’s reaction to realizing shaving foam doesn’t grow at IT-sector CAGR). ROE stands at a luxurious 41.6%, ROCE at a jaw-dropping 56.1%—basically Gillette is printing margins like it’s selling liquid gold, not shaving cream. But here’s the kicker: 5-year sales growth is a lazy 3.7%. Imagine Virat Kohli scoring centuries but only once every five innings—that’s Gillette’s sales trajectory.
2. Introduction
If FMCG is Bollywood, Gillette is that superstar who doesn’t do many films but still charges ₹100 crore per movie. Every man in India above puberty knows Gillette. Their ads have made fathers pass razors like heirlooms. The company’s moat is literally sitting in your bathroom drawer.
But beneath the glossy ads and chiselled jawlines, the numbers tell a spicier story. Gillette India is 75% owned by P&G—the gora overlords who send global R&D but leave us with the joy of paying premium margins. Sales growth? About as exciting as watching Doordarshan on a rainy day. Profits though? OPM at 27.5%, Net Profit Margin at 18.7%—that’s Ambani-level profitability for selling glorified steel strips and toothbrushes with cartoon stickers.
Question to you: Do you think shaving blades are a forever business in an era where men are growing hipster beards and women are embracing laser hair removal?
3. Business Model – WTF Do They Even Do?
Gillette India basically sells two dreams:
Grooming (80% of revenue): Blades, razors, shaving gels, creams, aftershaves, and now fancy Venus razors for women who still prefer steel over salon waxing. Their portfolio includes Mach3, Fusion, Guard, and Venus—basically a hierarchy of “how badly you want to impress your date.” They recently launched Gillette Labs (premium razors that look like they belong in Iron Man’s lab).
Oral Care (20% of revenue): Through Oral-B, they push toothbrushes and electric brushes. FY24 even saw the launch of “Chhota Bheem” toothbrushes—because who doesn’t want to brush with the power of Dholakpur?
No R&D spends locally, because big daddy P&G does the thinking abroad. Gillette India just assembles, sells, and collects margins fat enough to make halwai shops jealous.
