The 86 Percent Solution: How to Succeed in the Biggest Market Opportunity of the Next 50 Years

Chapter 1. The Lands of Opportunity

The rapid development of the 86 percent of the world population in countries with a per capita gross national product (GNP) of less than $10,000 has made these areas the new lands of opportunity. But their complexity and distinctive characteristics will require different market strategies to realize these opportunities.

With growth slow at home, Procter & Gamble (P&G) stormed out of Cincinnati to increase its presence in India in 2004, slashing prices on detergents, shampoos, and other products. Unilever's Hindustan Lever, which had been in a much smaller and quieter Indian market since it first entered in 1888, responded aggressively. Prices on some products dropped by as much as half. Unilever, like other ...