Market Research for Launching SelfDefence Pepper Spray Product for Women in India

Group No. 4: Abhishek Gupta Meeta Dandekar Meera V S Amol Panditrao Manasi Vora Swati Yedekar (66) (80) (96) (100) (124) (126)

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

A journey is easier when you travel together. Interdependence is certainly more valuable than independence. This report on Market Research Pepper Spray Product Launch is the result of work whereby we have been accompanied and supported by many people. It is a pleasant aspect that we have now the opportunity to express our gratitude for all of them for their valuable guidance, for devoting their precious time, sharing their knowledge and their co-operation throughout the course of development of our project idea and the academic years of education. With immense pleasure we express our sincere gratitude, regards and thanks to our project guides Prof. Atanu Adhikari for their excellent guidance, invaluable suggestions and continuous encouragement at all the stages of our project work. We would also like to thank the participants of Focus Group Discussions and interviews.

Group No. 4: Abhishek Gupta Meeta Dandekar Meera V S Amol Panditrao Manasi Vora Swati Yedekar

(66) (80) (96) (100) (124) (126)

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CONTENTS
ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................................................................... 3 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................................................. 3 About the Product ............................................................................................................................................... 4 Existing Product Variants ................................................................................................................................... 4 RESEARCH OBJECTIVE ..................................................................................................................................... 5 RESEARCH QUESTIONS .................................................................................................................................... 5 LITERATURE REVIEW ....................................................................................................................................... 5 METHODOLOGY ................................................................................................................................................. 8 Sampling ............................................................................................................................................................. 8 Measurement and scaling ................................................................................................................................... 8 Qualitative Methods (FGD) ................................................................................................................................ 9 Quantitative Methods........................................................................................................................................ 10 DATA PREPARATION AND CLEANING ........................................................................................................ 10 Coding .............................................................................................................................................................. 10 Data Cleaning ................................................................................................................................................... 11 Importing data in SPSS ..................................................................................................................................... 11 DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSIS ................................................................................................................................ 11 Demographic Analysis of Respondents ............................................................................................................ 11 Purchasing Behavior of Respondents ............................................................................................................... 12 Product Feature Preferrence ............................................................................................................................. 14 STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USING SPSS ......................................................................................................... 15 Analysis 1: Willingness to purchase is affected by level of safety perceived by women ................................. 15 Analysis 2: Effect of various product features on willingness to purchase pepper spray for a women ........... 16 Analysis 3: Perceived safety levels is not affected by location of the customer ............................................... 17 Analysis 4: Aesthetic appeal of Pepper Spray has no effect on willingness to purchase for women ............... 18 Factor Analysis ................................................................................................................................................. 18 Analysis 5: What factors are deterrent to purchase of Pepper Spray product? ................................................. 20 Analysis 6: Price that customers are willing to pay is not affected by their income levels .............................. 20 DISCUSSION....................................................................................................................................................... 21 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY ....................................................................................................................... 23 FUTURE RESEARCH ......................................................................................................................................... 23 WORKS CITED ................................................................................................................................................... 24 APPENDIX .......................................................................................................................................................... 25

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ABSTRACT

The project aims at conducting a market research for pepper spray products, to study the feasibility of launching a self-defence pepper spray product for women in India. This project seeks to analyse the consumer perception and explore the need and demand for the product in the Indian market. Using secondary and primary resources, we intent to identify various design features, product pricing and distribution channels that need to be considered before the launch of the new product. In this study, Descriptive and Statistical Analysis are used for detailed market research to launch the Pepper Spray product profitably. Keywords: Pepper Spray, Consumer Perception, Safety for women, Market Research
INTRODUCTION

The recent statistics for crime against women in India shows a high incidence rate of 2,13,585 crimes (both under IPC and SLL) in 2010 with an increase of 4.8% from 2009. The crime rates have continuously increased during the past 5 years (National Crime Records Bureau, 2010). Every 26 minutes a woman is molested, every 34 minutes a rape takes place, and every 43 minutes a woman is kidnapped, according to the report commissioned by the United Nations International Drug Control Program, South Asia and the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment - Government of India (Crime, Dec 2002). With an inefficient enforcement system, self-defence against crime has become the need of the hour. There is a large gap in the awareness for selfdefence techniques and availability of these equipments in the consumer market. In international markets, we find extensive use of pepper sprays, tazers, stun guns for selfdefence. The Fifth Annual Marketing and Public Policy Conference in Atlanta, sponsored by the AMA's Journal of Public Policy & Marketing and Georgia State University in US shows that more women are buying guns and more gun companies are targeting weapons to women. However, due to various legal and economic constraints, these products are not freely available in India.

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ABOUT THE PRODUCT

Pepper spray, also known as OC spray (from "Oleoresin Capsicum") and capsicum spray, is a lachrymatory agent (a chemical compound that irritates the eyes to cause tears, pain, and even temporary blindness) that is used in riot control, crowd control and personal self-defense, including defense against dogs and bears. Its inflammatory effects cause the eyes to close, taking away vision. This temporary blindness allows officers to more easily restrain subjects and permits persons using pepper spray for self-defense an opportunity to escape. The usage of pepper spray as a self-defense mechanism differs across countries/ states with restrictions like Need for a license (Eg. Massachusetts)

Use made illegal (Eg. Italy, UK) Allowed only for law enforcement (Eg. Canada, Brazil)

In India, pepper spray is legal and does not require any licence, but they are sold via government-approved companies after performing background verification. Under the 'ARMS" act, license is required only for "Fire Arms" (containing gun powder & explosive ingredients), hence no license is required for pepper spray brands. Also under the law, selfdefense is permitted. However in countries like Philippines, the use of pepper spray for selfdefense is legal, and it is freely available in stores.
EXISTING PRODUCT VARIANTS

Presently, the use of pepper spray products is highly underdeveloped. There are only two major brands in the Indian market, viz. Cobra and Hawk, which are sold only through government

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authorized vendors and online websites. The potential of misuse of this product is high. That's one reason why the sale is restricted. Buyers will have to give proof of identity and residential proof. For instance, Cobra has also devised a color dye, where each spray has its individual color code. This will help us track down those who misuse the product. Cobra Design Reach Ingredient Container capacity Price Indian make 6 feet Aerosol spray with O.C 35 gms, 55 ml Rs 499 - 599 Hawk American Design, International make 10 feet 2% black pepper 35 gms in weight, 6cm length Rs 349

RESEARCH OBJECTIVE Feasibility study for launching self-defence pepper spray product for women in India RESEARCH QUESTIONS a. Research on consumer perception about the product and its use b. Identification of various design features expected from the product LITERATURE REVIEW The literature review focuses on two issuesNeed and effectiveness of self-defense techniques, pepper spray in particular Effective product marketing techniques Does equipping women with self-defense training/ techniques reduce violence against them? Does it increase the perceived sense of safety among women? Jocelyn A. Hollander (Hollander, ''I Can Take Care of Myself'' : The Impact of Self-Defense Training on Women's Lives, 2004) undertakes longitudinal study of self-defense training to find out the impact of self-defense training on womens everyday lives and whether it positively affects womens lives. The study suggests that apart from the direct application of self-defense techniques in situations of violence, self-defense training among women reduces their risk of assault by changing their sense of self, their beliefs about women, and their interactions with the world around them. Self-defense training makes women assertive which may deter a potential attack. Similarly, it reduces their anxiety regarding an attack, thus making them more
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confident and competent to use self-defense if the situation arises. Such trainings also enforce among women their right to defend themselves, like their right to take up physical space and their right to move through public space without restriction, which increases their motivation to protect themselves from violence. The research thus brings out the positive impact of selfdefense training on womens lives.

However, what leads women to actually adopt these self-defense techniques? Does mere knowledge of the positive impacts on their lives materialize into adoption of self-defense techniques by women? Jocelyn A. Hollander finds out the reasons behind enrollment of women in self-defense classes in her research (Hollander, Why Do Women Take SelfDefense Classes?, 2010). She examines whether women enroll in self-defense classes because of past experiences of violence. She concludes that past assault is not a major motivation for most women to enroll in self-defense training. Women enroll for these classes because they have heard about the positive effects of these through word-of-mouth publicity by their colleagues. Other motivators include a vision of more assertive, confident and capable possible selves and the fear of violence, often transmitted through second-hand experiences and stories. The research further shows that women are interested in learning self-defense, however, logistical issues such as time, expense, and the availability of classes act as barriers to their enrolment. The research thus shows the importance of word-of-mouth promotion in encouraging women to learn self-defence techniques. Similarly, the barriers to enrolling in self-defence classes show the scope for self-defence products like pepper spray. We also need to study the effectiveness of pepper spray as a self-defence technique and whether its usage results in any health hazards. Lethal effects of pepper spray usage may deter women from using them on suspected attackers. It may also lead governments to eventually ban the usage of pepper spray or limit its usage to only law enforcement agencies. Research by National Institute of Justice, U.S., (National Institute of Justice, 2003) examines the effectiveness and safety of pepper spray usage. It assesses whether the introduction of pepper spray has reduced the number of injuries to police officers from assaults. The study shows that the number of injuries to police officers declined after pepper spray was introduced and concludes that pepper spray is a reasonably safe and an effective less-thanlethal weapon. Research by Marita Broadstock (Broadstock, 2002), evaluates the evidence for adverse effects of pepper spray used in ways comparable to their application by police officers or
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mental health service personnel to acutely subdue a disturbed person. The research also identifies situations or populations related with increased risk. The study indicates that constituents of pepper sprays differ in terms of carrier solvents, propellants as well as capsacinoid strength, and this affects the effectiveness and safety profile of the pepper sprays differently. Misuse/ abuse of pepper spray like discharges close to the face and repeated exposures may increase the chance of adverse events, such as corneal abrasions. Ineffective use may lead to repeated doses of the spray which could increase the possibility of adverse effects on some groups of individuals less affected by pepper spray, such as the mentally ill, intoxicated or drugged. The study thus explores the safety and health concerns of pepper spray products. We need to gauge the potential consumer behaviour and marketing methods that can be utilised for an innovative product like pepper spray in the Indian market. Cheng-Hsun Ho and Wenchieh Wu (Cheng-Hsun Ho, 2011) state that there are two key factors that govern consumers adoption of innovative products: 1) Perceived product attributes & 2) Consumer traits. The article discusses the effect of consumer innovativeness on the relationship between the new product attributes and consumers intentions to adopt new products. The article tests the following hypothesis: 1) Consumers are likely to buy products which are perceived to be more advantageous than its predecessors 2) The compatibility of the new product affects the buying behaviour while complexity of the new product negatively affects consumers intention of buying the product 3) Trial ability and observability of the product has positive effects 4) People with risk-seeking personality traits are the one who are more likely to adopt innovations. The study shows that among the various attributes of new products, complexity significantly and negatively affects adoption intentions, whereas the other attributes were positively but insignificantly related to adoption intention. It partially supports the effect of consumer innovativeness on intention of adopting new products. Do customers evolve to a different channel choice process over time? If so, how many customers evolve? How can we characterize the decision process of customers who evolve? What are the managerial implications for channel management? Sara Valentini, Elisa Montaguti, & Scott A. Neslin (Sara Valentini, 2011) have studied these hypothesis in detail. The study results suggest that customers decision processes evolve during decision processes and customers who change do so from a decision process in which they are highly responsive to marketing to one in which they are less responsive. The authors have illustrated and discussed the implications for both managers and researchers.
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Word of mouth is one of the most effective means of diffusion of information about products like pepper spray. The study done by Jonah Berger and eric M. Schwartz (Schwartz, 2011) analyzes how the word of mouth affects dissemination of information and sales but why are certain products talked about more than others. Overall the findings shed light on psychological drivers of word-of-mouth (WOM) and provide insights into designing more effective WOM campaigns. The study shows that more interesting products get more immediate WOM but they lack ongoing WOM. Products that are more publicly visible receive more WOM both immediate as well as over time. Traditional marketing methodologies are losing ground while online marketing is gaining importance. For a product like pepper spray this channel can be of strategic importance. Zhang Wei-nian in his article (Wei-nian, 2007) studies online marketing theory, according to its relevance and features based on the analyses of direct-response marketing, relationship marketing, online marketing, merging marketing and database marketing. The study shows that online marketing concepts and strategies are developing rapidly and it will become the main stream marketing mode in the near future.
METHODOLOGY

For conducting our study, the following methodology was used by the group
SAMPLING

Since the pepper spray product mainly caters to the needs of women for security reasons, the population of the study is females in the age group of 16-45 years in India. For collecting the sample, a convenience sampling method had been used, owing to the limitation of time. An online survey was designed so that the subjects in the sample can spend minimal time in filling the information. Filled questionnaires were received from 85 surveyed subjects; however, after the data cleaning process for the missing data, further analysis has been based on a sample of 75 applicants.
MEASUREMENT AND SCALING

The following attributes were considered for measurement and scaling: Age, family income, working or non-working, living in metro cities, marital status, and awareness of the product, purchase intention, perceived safety levels in the city, past purchase, design features and characteristics of product affecting purchase decision. Although the population study includes

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women living in India, only women from metro cities and tier-I cities were considered in the study, which is the intended target market for the launch of the product at the outset. Since the product is slightly expensive and falls under choice-product category, women with a family income of more than Rs.3 lakhs per annum has been included in the study. The attributes for the study were based on 3 types of scale nominal, interval and ratio scales. For the scaling process, only balanced and likert scales were used.
QUALITATIVE METHODS (FGD)

The group used two qualitative methods for identifying and understanding the qualitative aspects to be studied as well as parameters required for quantitative analysis. First method utilized for the research was interview method, conducted by researcher and three respondents who were aware about pepper sprays and had used the product in the past. The group received information about the product, features and its use by actual users which provided insights for making the questionnaire. The second method that was utilized was a focus group discussion to gauge the need and demand of pepper spray product and identify the desired features for product and distribution channel. There were 7 female students at IIMK as participants, from metropolitan and Tier-I cities, between the age group of 21- 25 years. The questions were structured broadly into 6 categories based on literature review and interview learningso Perceived safety in the city o Awareness about pepper spray products o Level of security perceived with the spray o Usage concerns of the product o Expected product features o Need for training for usage The key findings of the focus discussion were: o There was a perception of a feeling of greater safety after buying the product o Size of the product, Portability, Firing Range, Ease of Use, Aesthetic Appeal and Price were the top 6 features participants considered significant while purchasing the product o There was a general consensus amidst the participants regarding the need for training for using the product

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o Word of mouth emerged as the most effective way of communication considering the nature of the product o The maximum firing range was 5 ft o If it is greater than 5 feet, you might as well run o The pricing of the product should be less than Rs. 500
QUANTITATIVE METHODS

For collection of data for the exploratory study, a questionnaire survey was conducted to understand the opinions of the respondents. The questionnaire was designed by incorporating findings and hypothesis through a thorough literature review and focus group discussion undertaken by the group. Before the survey was floated for collection of responses, trial surveys were filled by 5 respondents, followed by an in-depth discussion about the survey. The group was able to identified gaps in framing the questions, intention of the answer options, and overall flow of the questions. Based on this feedback, changes were made in the questionnaire. Following which, an online survey was designed so that the responses from people based in metro and tier 1 cities can be considered within minimal time. Since many respondents may not be aware of the pepper spray products, a brief introduction with images and information website links were given at the start of the survey. Most answer options were devised on likert scale to understand degree of variation in responses. appendix) (Appendix No.1)
DATA PREPARATION AND CLEANING

(Refer to

The questionnaire was floated as mentioned above to a convenient sample. A total of 82 responses were received from respondents across India. However this data could not directly be used for statistical analysis. Hence the collected data is cleaned in the following steps
CODING

Each of the questions from the questionnaire was assigned a specific code. Also the responses were given specific code for the ease of analysis in SPSS statistical tool. E.g. Questions based on Likert scale i.e. questions asking preference of the shape of the product based on three parameters had five options to choose from viz. Most preferable to Least Preferable. Most Preferable option was assigned value of 1 and subsequently Least Preferable was

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given value of 5. Then to develop the data further, the data file is downloaded in EXCEL format. The sheet contains each response in a separate row.
DATA CLEANING

Out of the 82 responses that were collected, 7 responses were not complete and the responses were not given properly. Hence those 7 responses were deleted from the data file. Then consistency checks were also performed on the data file. This included checking the responses for extreme values and checking the logical consistency of the responses. Also missing responses were substituted with neutral answer values. This cleaned data was used for performing descriptive analysis using EXCEL software as shown later.
IMPORTING DATA IN SPSS

After cleaning the data, the data analysis strategy was formulated. Then the EXCEL data file was imported into SPSS software. The data was again checked for logical consistency.
DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSIS DEMOGRAPHIC ANALYSIS OF RESPONDENTS

The demographic analysis is as shown below. Majority of the respondents were from Mumbai region followed by Kolkata and Delhi. In terms of educational background, majority of the respondents were graduates and post-graduates. Very few responses were from women who have only completed their Matriculation. As far as the monthly income is considered, more than half of the respondents were from high income group of monthly income more than Rs. 40000 followed by second category i.e. Rs. 20000 Rs.40000. The demographic analysis brings out some limitations of this study as explained in detail later.
Hyderabad Chandigarh 3% 1% Chennai 4% Bengaluru 16%

Metro city wise distribution

Kolkata 12%

Delhi 9%

Mumbai 55%

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Fig 1: Metro City wise distribution of respondents

Educational Background of Respondents
8% 3%

Matriculation

44%
45%

Post Graduate/Doctorate

Graduate Undergraduate

Fig 2: Educational background of respondents

Fig 3: Monthly income details of respondents

PURCHASING BEHAVIOR OF RESPONDENTS

This analysis is done to understand consumer preferences in purchasing the product. As shown in figures below, preferred purchasing location for respondents was general stores followed by medical stores and supermarkets. Nearly 40% respondents are ready to pay only Rs. 50 to 100 as price for the product and there were no responses for price category of more than Rs. 500. Most of the respondents were aware of the product pepper spray through preferred medium of television talk shows and word of mouth. However, the awareness about the Indian brands is very low which suggests potential for marketing this product in India. Also there is no specialized training required for respondents as shown by the results. Only providing user manual would be sufficient.

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Preferred Purchasing Location

5, (7%) 17, (23%) Super Markets

30, (40%)
22, (30%)

Medical Stores

General Stores
Online stores

Fig 4: Preferred purchasing location

Price consumers are ready to pay

0 4

20

Rs. 50 to 100 37 Less than Rs. 50 Rs. 100 to 300

14

Rs. 300 to 500 Rs. 500 or more

Fig 5: Price consumers are ready to pay for pepper spray

Fig 6: Awareness about pepper spray

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Medium for awareness

30

25 20
15 10

5
0

News paper

Magazines

Online media Word of mouth

Television talk shows

Fig 7: Medium of awareness

PRODUCT FEATURE PREFERRENCE

The survey also contained questions based on Likert scale in which five different shapes of the pepper spray product viz. Ring, Pen, Lipstick, Keychain and Can are compared on three parameters. These three parameters are Portability, Ease of Ease and Aesthetic Appeal. There were five options given to respondents from Most preferable to Least Preferable. The results of these questions are compared as shown below. Ring is the most preferred shape for the product which got Most Preferable rating on all three scales. This was followed by Pen, Lipstick, Keychain and Can. This gives us insight into consumer preferene for the product shape and features expected from the product.

Fig 8: Product shape preference based on Likert Scale

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STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USING SPSS ANALYSIS 1: WILLINGNESS TO PURCHASE IS AFFECTED BY LEVEL OF SAFETY PERCEIVED BY WOMEN

Fig 9: Bivariate Regression We performed a Bivariate regression in SPSS Software using Willingness to purchase (Q31) as dependent variable and Perceived level of Safety (Q5) as independent variable. Observed level of significance as shown is 0.040 which reflects that dependent variable Willingness to purchase is strongly correlated with independent variable within 95% level of confidence

Fig 10: Normal P-P Plot and Scatter Plot

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Figure 10: Normal probability plot shows that the errors are normally distributed. Scatter plots of residuals shows no pattern which indicates that there is no violation of the underlying assumptions of regression analysis.
ANALYSIS 2: EFFECT OF VARIOUS PRODUCT FEATURES ON WILLINGNESS TO PURCHASE PEPPER SPRAY FOR A WOMEN

Fig 11: Multiple Regression for analyzing multiple product features Multiple Regression between dependent variable Willingness to purchase and seven independent variables Shape, Size, Portability, Range, Ease of use, Price and Aesthetic appeal in SPSS Software shows the significance level of 0.079. Tolerance for the independent coefficients is greater than 0.20 and VIF is greater than 5 which are within acceptable value and so there is no multi-co linearity problem. However, the significance level of Aesthetic Appeal is .977 and Range is 0.794. Hence another analysis was performed by removing Aesthetic appeal product feature.

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Q13_1: Shape Q13_2: Size Q13_3: Portability Q13_5: Ease of use Q13_6: Price

Fig 12: Multiple Regression after removal of Aesthetic Appeal from list of Product Features The results of this new regression analysis show level of significance as 0.025 (Reduced from 0.079 earlier) which shows there is strong correlation between willingness to purchase pepper spray and five multiple product features Shape, Size, Portability, Ease of use and Price within 5 percent level of confidence.
ANALYSIS 3: PERCEIVED SAFETY LEVELS IS NOT AFFECTED BY LOCATION OF THE CUSTOMER

Q29_1: Delhi Q29_3: Kolkata Q29_4: Chennai Q29_5: Bangalore Q29_6: Hyderabad

Fig 13: Dummy Variable Regression

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We performed a Dummy Variable Regression between dependent variable Willingness to purchase (Q5) and independent variables Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad (Different cities-Q29_1, Q29_3, Q29_4, Q29_5, Q29_6). F-test significance level is .556 which shows no correlation between willingness to purchase and different cities and so product can be sold throughout India.
ANALYSIS 4: AESTHETIC APPEAL OF PEPPER SPRAY HAS NO EFFECT ON WILLINGNESS TO PURCHASE FOR WOMEN

Fig 14: Bi-variate Regression for Analyzing affect of Aesthetic Appeal on Purchase Behavior We did Bi-variate variable regression between dependent variable Willingness to purchase and independent variable Aesthetic Appeal. T- Test Significance level is 0.631 which

reflects no correlation between willingness to purchase and aesthetic appeal which is in line with the findings of FGD and multiple regression analysis.
FACTOR ANALYSIS

Fig 15: Factor Analysis

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We developed a factor solution using SPSS Software. Component matrix shows two components with Q13_2 having factor loading in both the components.

Fig 16: Anti Image Correlation Matrix for Factor Analysis Diagonal elements in Anti Image correlation matrix show the MSA of individual items. As each MSA (Measures of sampling adequacy) is greater than 0.5, it can be inferred that correlation matrix is favorable for Factor Analysis. However, as Aesthetic appeal shows no affect on Willingness to purchase (Analysis 4), we removed this independent variable and performed actor analysis again as shown below:

Fig 17: Rotated Components of Factor Solution Finding: We got two factors F1 and F2- Product Usage and Perceived Image respectively. Shape, Price and Size form the first factor Perceived Image & Ease of Use, Range and Portability form the other factor Product Usage respectively.

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ANALYSIS 5: WHAT FACTORS ARE DETERRENT TO PURCHASE OF PEPPER SPRAY PRODUCT?

Q23_1: Misuse by attacker

Q23_2: Health side effects on yourself

Q23_3: Legal consequences Q23_4: Mishandled by children

Fig 18: Multiple Regression to analyze factors deterrents to product usage Multiple regression was performed between dependent variable Hesitation to use the Pepper Spray (Q6_1) and independent variables Q23_1 Q23_2, Q23_3, Q23_4 (Deterrents to use the product). F-test significance level is 0.01 which reflects dependent variable Hesitation to use the product is strongly correlated with factors like mishandled by attacker.
ANALYSIS 6: PRICE THAT CUSTOMERS ARE WILLING TO PAY IS NOT AFFECTED BY THEIR INCOME LEVELS

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Q15: Price
Q28: Income level of customer

Fig 19: Bi-variate Regression to analyze affect of Income Level on Price Bi-variate variable regression between dependent variable Willingness to pay and independent variable Income level of customer has a significance level of .945 which shows that willingness to pay and income level of the customer are uncorrelated.
DISCUSSION

From the above Descriptive and Statistical Analysis we can infer following points: 1. There is awareness about Pepper Spray product in India only in 18-24 age group, however demographic limitations of the study need to be removed with a detailed market research 2. Television Talk Shows and Word of Mouth appeared to be the most influencing mediums of Promotion. Hence new Pepper Spray product needs to be advertised taking the same in consideration. 3. From the focus group discussions, it was clear that three factors viz. Portability, Ease of use and Aesthetic appeal mattered most for the consumers. Hence the same were considered for ranking the various shapes of the product. Ring was the most preferred shape of the product followed by Pen, Lipstick, Keychain and Can. 4. Also, consumers are not ready to pay more than Rs. 100 for this product. Hence Pen, Ring and Lipstick are the only three shapes that are viable given the no. of spray bursts in them. 5. From focus group discussions, it was concluded that the consumers were not aware of the Indian brands. The same was also confirmed by the primary data collected through questionnaires. Hence promotional activities are required for launching this product successfully.

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6. Regarding the use of the product, most of the respondents said that there is no need to separately train them. Only user manual provided with the product should be sufficient. 7. From focus group discussions, it was clear that the most preferred buying location for the product is General stores. Hence the distribution of the new product needs to be done through general stores. 8. From literature review, it appeared that there is growing perception among women for safety. Statistical analysis showed that perception of safety among women significantly affects the willingness for women to purchase Pepper Spray. This perceived importance given to safety among women justifies the launching of this product. 9. Focus Group Discussion revealed Aesthetic Appeal as an important product feature; however SPSS Analysis reflected the contradictory result prominently. SPSS Analysis shows that product features influencing the purchase behaviour of Pepper Spray are Shape, Size, Portability, and Ease of use and Price. 10. Using Factor Analysis, multiple product features were clubbed into two components. Hence, product features impacting the product purchase are Perceived Image and Product Usage. 11. Dummy Variable Regression using different cities as independent variables reflected that willingness to purchase Pepper Spray is not correlated with location of user. So market for Pepper Spray exists throughout India. 12. From Focus Group Interview, various factors deterrent to purchase of Pepper Spray were revealed like misuse by attacker, mishandled by children, legal consequences and health side effects on user. However, SPSS Analysis reflected that Women considered mishandling by children as the prime concern for avoiding usage of Pepper Spray. Misuse by attacker and legal consequences do not affect womens willingness to use Pepper Spray significantly. 13. Bi-variate Regression showed that income level is strongly uncorrelated with price that women are willing to pay for Pepper Spray. This contradicted the general perception that higher income level women will be willing to pay higher price for Pepper Spray. However, as sample size considered for SPSS Analysis is small, above finding is highly inconclusive.

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Given the awareness level of Indian women about Pepper Spray Product, a new product can be successfully launched with appropriate promotional methods and considering inferences from consumer perception.
LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

We conducted only one focus group discussion of 8 women. More focus group discussions would give us better insights regarding consumer behaviour. Questionnaires were sent to respondent through social networking sites like facebook. As a result of this convenient sampling, the entire demographic profile was not covered. As explained in the descriptive analysis before, only women from age group 18 to 24 with majority of them from high income group responded to the questionnaire.

Sample size considered for the data analysis is 75. This sample size is small considering the aim of the project of launching new product across India profitably. Detailed cluster analysis could not be performed as respondent were mainly from the professional background within an age group of 18 to 24. Sufficient secondary data related to this product was not available within given constraints of the project. Detail study with data about the existing Indian brands and their performance in the market would be preferred.

Along with data collection through questionnaire, sample products could also be pilot tested in the market and actual perception about the usage can be gained.

FUTURE RESEARCH

Prototypes can be created for the pepper spray product using the insights gained from this research. These prototypes can be pilot tested. Pilot testing will help in profitably launching the product throughout India.

Detailed cluster analysis can be performed by taking respondents from across age groups, occupations and income groups. In this research, women within age group of 18-24 have been targeted. However, future research can be done to analyze the perception and willingness of other market segments like old women, jewelers etc.

A detail study of legal aspects of production and selling of pepper spray in India needs to be done in order to avoid any regulatory issues.

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Pepper spray product has also been known to be used for other purposes such as crowd control and as a non lethal weapon against criminals. This application can be explored further in order to improve sales.

WORKS CITED Broadstock, M. (2002). What is the Safety of Pepper Spray Use by Law Enforcement or Mental Health Service Staff? NZHTA Tech Brief Series. Cheng-Hsun Ho, W. W. (2011). Role Of Innovativeness Of Consumer In Relationship Between Perceived Attributes of New Products And Intention To Adopt. International Journal of Electronic Business Management . Hollander, J. A. (2004). ''I Can Take Care of Myself'' : The Impact of Self-Defense Training on Women's Lives. Violence Against Women . Hollander, J. A. (2010). Why Do Women Take Self-Defense Classes? Violence Against Women . National Institute of Justice. (2003). The Effectiveness and Safety of Pepper Spray. Sara Valentini, E. M. (2011). Decision Process Evolution in Customer Channel Choice. Journal of Marketing . Schwartz, J. B. (2011). What drives immediate and ongoing word of mouth? Journal of Marketing research . Wei-nian, Z. (2007). Online marketing and its strategy. China-USA Business Review .

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APPENDIX Appendix 1: Questionnaire

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