Incense sticks or agarbattis have been extensively used for religious purposes, and also for filling rooms with aroma. Beyond this, these can be used as insect repellants.

The market is dominated by unorganized players — nearly 75-80 per cent incense stick market is fragmented and is dominated by unorganized players. The challenge is to shift users from unbranded to branded use. There should be greater scrutiny of unbranded products and there should be restriction on cheap imports from China and Vietnam. There should be standardization of this market.

In organized market, there are fast moving consumer goods players (FMCG). Godrej Consumer Private Ltd (GCPL) has introduced mosquito repellant incense sticks. The brand name is Good Knight Agarbatti. Anti-mosquito agarbatti market is worth Rs.1200 crore. The total agarbatti market is Rs.10000 crore. Godrej product must have gained a market share of 5-10 per cent since its launch in December 2023.

ITC’s Mangaldeep, Zed Black from Mysore Deep Perfumery House are big players. They produce over a billion incense sticks per month. They focus on premium fragrances. They do aggressive promotion. Cycle Pure Agarbatti from Karnataka is also a big player. Some brands are lost midway — once upon a time Marath Darbar and Metro Darbar agarbattis were popular in Maharashtra.

This is a competitive market with thin margins.