ICI lines up innovations to boost sales

The new paints will be about 10 per cent more expensive compared to its current range but the company believes consumers would not mind paying premium for innovative products and services as long as they get value for money.

Rajiv Jain, managing director of ICI India, said, "In the face of competition the only way we can ensure year on year growth is through product innovations. Some of the innovations we are currently working on include paints that when applied can kill bacteria and other germs. This we expect to be our biggest selling point as consumers would not need to worry about pesticides after using our paints. We are also working on lighter shades that can lighten up rooms and create the illusion of larger rooms."

ICI is working on improving its service quality to consumers through its design studios.

For instance, the company is planning to set up 300 design studios in three years.

The design studios will assist consumers in deciding on paints and will even provide demos to consumers before the final purchase.

"Trends keep changing and we will invest in market research in order to be the first to spot the changes. For instance, a lot of young consumers are buying homes these days who prefer darker shades for walls, reason why we have noticed a significant increase in sales of dark colours. Automatically, we will launch darker colours," Jain pointed out.

One of the more interesting developments in the world of architectural coatings is the growing popularity of ceramic paints.

The form and toughness of ceramic material helps to create a smoother, more continuous film than a comparable conventional latex paint.

It is difficult for anything to penetrate a ceramic paint film and stains tend to remain on its surface, and can be wiped off.

The presence of the hard ceramic material also helps to produce a less tacky paint surface, so dirt will have less of a tendency to accumulate.

According to market data, emulsions are growing at a rate of 25 per cent and form 40 per cent of the turnover of Asian Paints and 45 per cent of paint maker ICI.

Domestic paint market is valued at nearly Rs 10,000 crore out of which 70 per cent is sold by organized sector players.

Decorative paints account for 70 per cent of sales.

Asian Paints has 45 per cent market share, Berger Paints 16 per cent and Nerolac 12 per cent.

The paint industry rode the boom in housing, infrastructure and auto sectors to see demand grow at 18-20 percent over the last 2-3 years.