D&L INDUSTRIES, Inc. plans to make more sustainable consumer products that will be distributed through its sister marketing company, Consumer Care Products, Inc.
“These are the types of products that we’re going into more in our group. Our group is really known for business-to-business, meaning ‘yong binebenta namin binibili ng ibang kumpanya (what we sell are bought by other companies), but we’re now making more consumer products,” D&L President and Chief Executive Officer Alvin D. Lao said in a chance interview.
According to Mr. Lao, what would make the initiative different is that D&L will be the one to produce everything for the products — from the packaging up to the content.
“We make the products ourselves … ’Yung laman, ’yung formulation, ’yung sourcing ng bote at ng dispenser (the content, the formulation and the sourcing for the bottles and dispensers),” he said.
“[We create the plastics and the content] but we never put it together. So, now we are starting to put it together,” Mr. Lao said.
D&L recently announced the launching of its non-toxic and 100% natural body soap, Dr. Coco Natural Body Soap, which followed the launch of its all-natural hand soap under the same brand during the pandemic.
“This product uses coconut oil. There’s no toxic ingredient inside. It is biodegradable, we can actually say it’s 100% natural and it is non-toxic. So, it’s better for health and better for the environment,” Mr. Lao said.
“In the next few weeks, you will see this being launched on Shopee, Lazada and other places,” he added.
Dr. Coco products will only be distributed locally, Mr. Lao said, as there are no plans yet to enter the global market amid the strong demand for consumer care products in the country.
“This is a brand we created. Our own brand but under a marketing company. For the purpose of D&L, it’s really to highlight that we are capable of coming out with a complete package,” he said.
Dr. Coco Body Soap will be a premium product that will be tapping the upscale market, which Mr. Lao expects to be big.
“Everyone takes a bath; everyone washes their hands. Filipinos are famous for bathing two to three times a day. So, the market is quite big,” he said. “As an industry, it’s huge, many many billions in the country … 110 million Filipinos, most take a bath twice a day, that’s a big market,” he added.
Mr. Lao said there are no plans yet of infusing the consumer product company into D&L while the group is studying how the union will work.
“We are nervous about looking like we are competing with our customers so we want to be careful. So, for now, it’s separated,” Mr. Lao said.
“Our focus as D&L is not retail, it’s really the creation of the total package for our customers. So, we can go to any company, any brand who wants a product to be made. We are a one-stop-shop, so we can do everything for them,” he added.
D&L marked the launch of the Dr. Coco products as its first step in manufacturing customized consumer products.
“Our intent is not to compete as a brand, because marketing is not our strength, it’s manufacturing,” Mr. Lao said.
He said that the company has consumer care products lined up but it has yet to decide what to launch first.
“We have to see first. We haven’t decided yet which one to launch first but there’s a lot [in the pipeline],” he added. — Justine Irish D. Tabile