1

PREFACE

This Project has been prepared as per the requirement of my

B.Com curriculum. This will also give the proper knowledge of
‘Alternative distribution channels in paint industry.’
I have worked my best to keep the presentation of this Project
report simple and understandable. My aim is to make clear all
related points of the study.
While presenting the project report I am very optimistic about
its relevance to the organization.

Acknowledgement
 2

It gives me immense pleasure while thanking the Management of

Berger Paints India Ltd. for allowing me to do my Project Training
in this organization.

I am very much grateful to Mr.Bhaskar Dasgupta(Regional

Manager) Sales who gave me this opportunity to work under his
guidance and provided valuable suggestions

I would also like to thank Mr. Mainak Ghosh ( sales manager),

who provided all the information and untiring guidance throughout
the project.

I would like to acknowledge the efforts of Mr. Manosij Mukherjee

in helping me compile this project. Without his support, this
project would not have been complete.

I would also like to express my sincere gratitude to my college

guide Professor Tridib Sengupata for his valuable inputs and
assistance throughout.

I wish to take the opportunity to extend my sincere gratitude to all

those who have given me their precious time and humble guidance
in the completion of my Project report. During the preparation I
have also received full co-operation of the Sales Department.
 3

Part One

INTRODUCTION

History of Paint Industry in India

The Indian paint industry is a Rs 49 billion sector. The demand for
paints is relatively price-elastic but is linked to the industrial and
economical growth. The per capita consumption of paints in India
is very low at 0.5 kg per annum if compared with 4 kgs in the
South East Asian nations and 22 kgs in developed countries. The
 4

global average per capita consumption is 15 kg. In India the

organised sector controls 70 percent of the total market with the
remaining 30 percent being in the hands of nearly 2000 small-scale
units.

In India the industrial paint segment accounts for 30 percent of the

paint market while the decorative paint segment accounts for 70
per cent of paints sold in India. In most developed countries, the
ratio of decorative paints vis-a-vis industrial paints is around
50:50. All the industry majors have a vast dealership network and
are required to maintain high inventory levels. most of the paint
leaders have technical tie-ups with global paint leaders. Sector
comments Paint is a mixture of four elements - solvents, binders,
pigments and additives. Solvents give the paint a liquid flow while
the binder binds it to the surface. Pigments impart colour and
opacity to the paint and the additives give it special resistance
properties. The recession in the construction and automobile
sector had thrown in shades of grey across the Industry spectrum,
but the revival in these sectors is cause for cheer for the paint
industry as well. The balance sheets of the industry majors are now
painted with bright colours. Sector specifics on product lines,
paints can be differentiated into decorative or architectural paints
and industrial paints. While the former caters to the housing sector,
the automotive segment is a major consumer of the latter.
Decorative paints can further be classified into premium, medium
and distemper segments.

Premium decorative paints are acrylic emulsions used mostly in

the metros. The medium range consists of enamels, popular in
smaller cities and towns. Distempers are economy products
demanded in the suburban and rural markets. Nearly 20 per cent of
all decorative paints sold in India are distempers and it is here that
the unorganised sector has dominance. Industrial paints include
powder coatings, high performance coating and automotive and
marine paints. But two-thirds of the industrial paints produced in
the country are automotive paints. Market profile The leaders in
 5

the organised paint industry are Asian Paints (India) Ltd. (APIL),
Kansai Nerolac, Berger Paints, Jenson & Nicholson Ltd. (J&N)
and ICI (India) Ltd. Asian paints is the industry leader with an
overall market share of 33 per cent in the organised paint market. It
has the largest distribution network among the players and its
aggressive marketing has earned it strong brand equity. The Berger
Group and ICI share the second slot in the industry with market
shares of 17 per cent each. Kansai has a market share of 15 percent
in the organised sector. The market can be further split into
decorative paints and industrial paints.

The demand for decorative paints is highly price-sensitive and also

cyclical. Monsoon is a slack season while the peak business period
is Diwali festival time, when most people repaint their houses. The
industrial paints segment, on the other hand, is a high volume-low
margin business. In the decorative segment, it is the distribution
network that counts while in the industrial segment the deciding
factor are technological superiority and tie-up with automobile
manufacturers for assured business. APIL dominates the decorative
segment with a 38 per cent market share. The company has more
than 15,000 retail outlets and its brands Tractor, Apcolite, Utsav,
Apex and Ace are entrenched in the market. Kansai( formerly
Goodlass Nerolac Paints Limited), the number-two in the
decorative segment, with a 14 per cent market share too, has now
increased its distribution network to 10,700 outlets to compete with
APIL effectively. Berger and ICI have 9 per cent and 8 per cent
shares respectively in this segment followed by J&N and Shalimar
with 1 and 6 per cent shares. The share of industrial paints in the
total paint consumption of the nation is very low compared to
global standards. It accounts for 30 per cent of the paint market
with 70 per cent of paints sold in India for decorative purposes.

In most developed countries, the ratio of decorative paints vis-a

-vis industrial paints is around 50:50. But, with the decorative
segment bottoming out, companies are increasingly focusing on
industrial paints. The future for industrial paints is bright. In the
 6

next few years, its share would go up to 50 per cent, in line with
the global trend. GNPL dominates the industrial paints segment
with 41 per cent market share. It has a lion's share of 70 per cent in
the OEM passenger car segment, 40 per cent share of two wheeler
OEM market and 20 per cent of commercial vehicle OEM market.
It supplies 70 per cent of the paint requirement of Maruti, India's
largest passenger car manufacturer, besides supplying to other
customers like Telco, Toyota, Hindustan Motors, Hero Honda,
TVS-Suzuki, Mahindra & Mahindra, Ashok Leyland, Ford India,
PAL Peugeot and Bajaj Auto. GNPL also controls 20 per cent of
the consumer durables segment with clients like Whirlpool and
Godrej GE. The company is also venturing into new areas like
painting of plastic, coil coatings and cans. APIL, the leader in
decorative paints, ranks a poor second after Goodlass Nerolac in
the industrial segment with a 15 per cent market share. But with its
joint venture Asian-PPG Industries, the company is aggressively
targeting the automobile sector. It has now emerged as a 100 per
cent OEM supplier to Daewoo, Hyundai, Ford and General Motors
and is all set to ride on the automobile boom. Berger and ICI are
the other players in the sector with 10 per cent and 9 per cent
shares respectively. Shalimar too, has an 8 per cent share.

Price sensitivity factors various factors that have influenced the

pricing of paints are summarised below: The industry is raw-
material intensive. Of the 300 odd raw materials, nearly half of
them are imported petroleum products. Thus, any deficit in global
oil reserves affects the bottom-line of the players. The major raw
materials titanium dioxide, phthalic anhydride and peutarithrithol
constitute 50 per cent of the total cost. Besides, this, there are other
raw materials such as castor, linseed and soybean oils, turpentine.
The raw materials cost sums up to a whopping 70 per cent. Any
increase in the prices of these raw materials could adversely affect
paint prices. Most of the paint majors have to import nearly 30 per
cent of their raw material requirements thus changes in import
policies can affect the industry. The prices of packing materials
such as HDPE, BOPP and tinplate have reduced considerably.
 7

However, the decision of the Central Government to ban import of

tinplate waste could lead to a spurt in the prices of the tinplate in
the near future. Technology collaboration All the paint majors have
tie-ups with global paint leaders for technical know-how. Asian
Paints has formed a JV with PPG Industries Inc to service the
automotive OEMs. Berger has a series of tie-ups for various
purposes. It has a technical tie-up with Herbets Gmbh of Germany
in addition to its joint venture with Becker Industrifag. With the
agreement with Herbets coming to an end in 2001, Berger has now
allied with the Japanese major Nippon Paints to boost its OEM
turnover since the Indian roads are being flooded with Japanese
automobiles. It also has an agreement with Orica Australia Pvt.
Ltd. to produce new generation protective coatings. The company
also has tie-ups with Valspar Corp and Teodur BV for
manufacturing heavy duty and powder coatings.

The industrial paints are slated to grow at an annual rate of 10 to

12 per cent per annum for the next few years. The industrial paint
manufacturers would benefit from the burst in the passenger car
sales. The two-wheeler industry has also registered a good show in
the current year. The commercial vehicles segment, a star
performer last year with 33 per cent growth, is expected to average
a growth of only 15 per cent this year. However, the raising
titanium dioxide prices and the negligible growth in agriculture
this year, will play spoilsport. Considering the past trend, the paint
industry is expected to show at least twice the growth of Indian
GDP in the ensuing years. The reduction of excise duties from a
high of 40 per cent to 16 per cent in the last five years has made
the numerous small-scale units unviable, as they no longer have a
price advantage over the organised sector. This has helped the
organised paint industry a lot. The industry is in a consolidation
phase and only those Indian paint companies with a strong
technical alliance, better distribution network and an ability to
compete in the global markets would emerge victorious in the paint
war.
 8

Company Profile:BERGER PAINTS

Berger Paints has come a long way since its inception in the year
1923. India’s second largest decorative paint player, Berger Paints
is headquartered in Calcutta and services the market through a
distribution network comprising of 82 stock points and 12,000+
paint retailers. One can trace the history of Berger Paints to the
18th century. In 1770, Louis Steinberger moved from Frankfurt to
London to sell a ‘Prussian blue’ colour, which was made using his
own formula. He then changed his name to Lewis Berger and by
1870 Berger was selling 19 different pigments, including black
lead, sulphur, sealing wax and mustard. After the demise of Lewis
Berger his sons took over the business. Sherwin-Williams, an
American company bought control of the company in the 1900s.

IN THE 1940’S

By the 1940s Mr. Hadfield had set up Hayfield’s (India) Ltd a

small paint company in Calcutta on 17 December,1923. Towards
the end of 1947 British Paints acquired Hadfield's (India) Ltd and
thus British Paints (India) Ltd was incorporated in the State of
West Bengal.

FROM 1950-1970
 9

In 1951, sales offices were opened in Delhi and Mumbai and a

depot was started in Guwahati. This resulted in sales rising to Rs.6
million in 1952. In 1969 Berger, Jenson Nicholson Limited, UK
bought the British Paints (India) Ltd. This marked the beginning of
Lewis Berger’s legacy in India - which the company would later
take forward to enviable heights. Mr. D. Madhukar took over as
the Managing Director in the year 1973. Under him the company
became the fastest growing company in the paint industry as sales
figures reached over Rs. 160 million by 1978.

FROM 1980-1999

The 80s and the 90s saw the launch of many new products such as
emulsions and distempers. The COLOR BANK tinting system was
launched through which the consumer can select from a range of
over 5000 colours. Mr. Amar Bose has been the Managing
Director since 2007, under whom Berger's team currently runs.

Apart from operations in Russia, with a production facility at the

Berger manufacturing unit at Krasnodar, Berger has also expanded
its footprint in Nepal by setting up a second unit. Today Berger’s
sister company in Bangladesh is the dominant leader with over
65% market share. In keeping with the Company’s dynamic
growth plan, Berger has also acquired Bolix SA of Poland, a
leading provider of External Insulation Finishing Systems (EIFS)
in Eastern Europe. As Berger continues to grow internationally it
also continues to be the second largest paint company in India.

Berger is the lone supplier to Nuclear Power Plants with its

protective coatings. The automotive sector, be it cars or bikes, is
primarily ruled by Berger’s automotive coatings. Luxury cars
including Mercedes make use of Berger’s products. Companies
like Nokia use Berger’s services as well. Berger has tied up with
Becker of Sweden to manufacture coil coatings for steel surfaces.
 10

IN THE NEW MILLENNIUM

Jenson & Nicholson, Nepal was acquired as a 100% subsidiary and

renamed Berger Jenson & Nicholson, Nepal. The Motors &
Industrial paints business of ICI India with its factory at Rishra,
West Bengal was acquired as a 100% subsidiary Berger Auto &

Industrial Coatings Limited and then merged with the Company in

2005. Another new paints factory at Jammu was commissioned in
2003-04 and in 2005 the Company ventured into Russia through a
foreign subsidiary. New technical tie-ups were forged. Currently
the Company has Technical License Agreements with

→ DuPont Performance Coatings in the area of automotive

coatings,
→ Nippon Paint Co Ltd for new generation of automotive
coatings,
→ Orica Australia Pty. Ltd. In the area of protective coatings,
→ TIGERWERK Lack-u. Farbenfabrik GmbH & Co. KG,
Austria for specialised powder coatings and
→ Nippon Bee Chemical Co. Ltd for coating on plastic auto
parts and mobile phones.

Lewis Berger Home Painting was launched, offering painting

solution to customers - making it a hassle free exercise. Illusions
multi chrome finishes was also introduced as "designer finishes for
walls" allowing consumers to transform their walls into fashion
statements. This is once again a first for the Indian paint industry!

To avail the services all a customer has to do is call on Berger's

helpline 1901 - 3333 - 55 and enjoy customized service in the
comfort of his home.
 11

The name Berger was prefixed with the first name of Mr Lewis
Berger and a premium range of products was launched under his
full name. The The new trademark includes LEWIS BERGER and
incorporates a unique design and colour scheme, reaffirming the
Company's commitment towards aesthetics, product quality,
packaging and better service to dealers and customers.

The Company's sales in the year ended 31 March 2005 was Rs

9.83 billion.

History of Sanitary-ware Industries in India

India is a large, highly populated country of around one billion

people, with an economy, which is steadily growing. As per the
study, there were an estimated 125 million dwellings in India
(1995), but 200 million households. This reveals an acute housing
shortage. The U.N. predicts an increase in the population of 1.6%
per annum. There is a gradual migrant shift from rural to urban
areas and 27% of the population now lives in urban areas as
compared to 20% in 1971. There is a large difference in amenities
between the urban population and the rural. In 1994, 70% of the
urban population had access to adequate sanitation, whereas in the
rural community only 14% had access.
In 1991, approximately 64% of urban households had some kind of
toilet facility compared with 9% of the rural areas. There is a
widening difference in income between different regions, the rich
and the poor.
Sanitation is a must for every individual of our society. According
to the Government estimates, more than 50% of the urban
population does not access to sanitation facilities. Condition of the
rural areas abysmal that only 6% of the population are covered by
sanitation.
 12

Population Covered by Sanitation Facilities

1985 1990 1997

Rural 0.7 2.4 6.4
Urban 28.4 45.9 49.3
Sanitary-ware demand:
Sanitary-ware Industries in India for the last 6-7 years have shown
very dramatic growth with major players doubling their production
capacity. The Companies have also upgraded their manufacturing
system by introducing Battery Casting, Beam Casting and have
gone in for latest imported Fast Firing Cycle Kiln Technology.
These Companies have also upgraded their quality and have
introduced high value range in the market, which has been
accepted and appreciated. The demand for high value Sanitary-
ware in India is growing very fast. The Companies are trying to
meet the demand as the realization per Metric Ton for high value
product is very good which ultimately results in good profitability.
In order to educate the customers in India to go for quality
products and also for higher value sanitary-wares, companies have
adopted a very aggressive advertisement campaign. Companies
have also strengthened their dealer network by offering showroom
incentives and some of the companies have also gone for their own
retail outlets in major towns. The demand for Sanitary-wares in
India is growing @ 15% -17% every year.
The sanitary-ware industry in India is divided in two sectors. The
organized sector consisting of 5 companies (M/s. Hindustan
Sanitary Industries Limited, M/s. E.I.D. Parry, M/s. Swastik
Sanitarywares Limited, M/s. Madhusudan Ceramics, M/s. Neycer
India Limited), manufacturing sanitary-ware for the last 15-20
years and have established their Brand image. The organized
sectors produce fully vitrified sanitary-wares, using latest
technology and best of Ceramic Raw Materials available in India.
The unorganized sectors have adopted local Indian technology to
manufacture the basic sanitary-ware products. Since the
availability of raw material is in abundance and also very cheap in
 13

the state of Gujarat & Rajasthan, various companies have

established their factory in these areas. They are producing the
basic sanitary-ware in various brands. Unorganized sector's
percentage of production capacity and also their sales in the local
domestic market are higher than that of the organized sectors'
sales. Unorganized sanitary-ware manufacturer comes under small
sectors and hence enjoy the benefit of Nil Excise Duty and Sales
Tax and hence they sell their products in the domestic market
approximately 70% cheaper than the organized sector products.
Government of India Policy on Housing Sector is very
encouraging. The Government has announced Income Tax rebate
on housing loan to boost the housing sector. All financial
institutions are lending money for construction of house at a very
low rate of interest. Government figure shows that Housing Sector
is growing by approximately 25% every year. The need of Housing
in India with 100 crores population looks to be very potential. As
per DGTD Survey Report there is a shortage of about 20 million
houses in the country by the end of 8th Five Year Plan. The
housing has become a basic necessity, as people in India are
looking forward for improved sanitary condition. The concept of
making toilet is fast growing even in village areas, where toilet till
last two years did not exist.
The cost of producing sanitary-ware in India is substantially low as
compared to the advance countries, because the labour cost and the
basic raw materials for manufacturing quality sanitary-wares is
available at very cheap rate and in abundance. Because of our low
cost of production, Indian sanitary-wares are very competitive in
the neighboring countries and hence export from India is also
growing everyday.
Demand Estimates:
The total demand for sanitary-ware in India for the organized
manufacturers is at present approximately 80,000 M.T. per annum.
The region wise demand pattern can be estimated as follows:
 14

NORTH SOUTH EAST WEST TOTAL

18,000 32,000 15,000 15,000 80,000

Current Market Size:

The Indian Sanitary-ware market is worth around 500 crores for
the year 2001-02 with an annual market size of around 8 million
pieces. This represents a yearly growth rate of about 3-4%.
Major players:
Until the mid 1940s the only Sanitary-ware available in India was
imported mainly from UK and was used only in upper class
residences in major cities. The first Sanitary-ware manufactured in
India was by M/s. Parasuram Pottery Works. In the 1960s,
companies like EID Parry, in collaboration with Royal Doulton of
UK and Hindustan Sanitary-ware in collaboration with Twyford of
UK, started production of Vitreous China Sanitaryware. Other
major players who joined the organized sector were Madhusudan
Ceramics and Neyveli Ceramics. In the 1980s, 7-8 other players
had entered the organized sector, but most of them have since been
taken over by the majors.
The large foreign players like American Standard, Toto, Villeroy
and Boch have also set up distribution channels in India.
In addition to the branded products made by the above companies,
there are a large number of small-scale units mainly in Thangad
and Morbi districts of Gujarat.

Concerns:
It has been observed that many sanitary-ware manufacturers in the
small-scale sector do not manufacture ceramic sanitary-ware to
 15

standard quality norms. Moreover some of these manufacturers use

the word "Vitreous" along with their brand name whereas they do
not meet the water absorption standards and thereby are misleading
the consumers

Outlook for Sanitary-ware Industry in India:

In the next decade, India is expected to be one of the world's fastest
growing countries for sanitary-ware consumption. The sanitation
penetration has more than trebled from 8% in 1982 to 18% in 1994
and to 29% in 1999.
The comparative penetration levels in neighboring countries are as
follows: Pakistan: 50%, Sri Lanka: 65%, Malaysia: 94% and
Thailand: 96%.
The government impetus to improve hygiene and sanitation is
likely to increase the demand for sanitary-ware in India. Moreover
the increasing urbanization of India and the consequent
requirement for residential and commercial buildings will be a
major driver for growth of sanitary-ware. Along with this the focus
of the central and state governments to provide housing facilities to
the poor, is also expected to generate demand.
The National Housing Policy formulation that envisages "Housing
for all" by the end of Ninth Plan period is a big step towards this.
Indira Awaas Yojana, Samgra Awaas Yojana are programs for
providing housing to the rural poor is a key step taken by the
government in this area. The housing development organizations
like HUDCO, State Housing Development Boards and Rajiv
Gandhi Rural Housing Corporation Ltd. are also playing a large
role in this initiative.
It is estimated that there is currently a demand for 20 million
housing units in India. Further, a significant number of the 115
million housing units across the country will need reconstruction
for improvement. Therefore a replacement market will emerge,
 16

though currently original equipment sanitary-ware market accounts

for nearly 90% of the market.

SANITARYWARE INDUSTRY STATISTICS:

1. World production: 187 Million pieces

2. India's Share: 6.7 Million pieces.
3. not in the Top 10
World ranking (in production): (India A/c for
3.30%)
4. Global Industry Growth Rate: 5-7%
5. Growth Rate (India Domestic10%
Market):
6. Organized sector:
% Share of Production: 43%
No. of units: 6
103300 M.T. per
Production Capacity:
annum
95000 M.T. per
Actual Production:
annum
7. Unorganized sector:
% Share of Production: 57%
Production Capacity: 136700 M.T. per
 17

annum
120000 M.T. per
Actual Production:
annum

Company Profile: HINDUSTAN SANITARYWARE

INDUSTRIES LIMITED

It was the year 1960 when Mr. Rajendra K. Somany established

Hindustan Twyfords, in collaboration with Twyfords Ltd. of UK.
With a bent towards innovation coupled with the intention to
introduce vitreous china ceramics in India, he identified the
sanitary-ware market as the segment of interest. Hindustan
Twyfords was the first in the country to make available vitreous
china ceramics, offering significant improvement from the
prevalent earthenware sanitary products. Aware and focused
towards the burning need for sanitation across the country, this
opportunity well extended his desire for social welfare, and
bringing a much needed service to the nation. This was the
impetus that initiated the journey half a decade ago. With strong
family support, coupled with technical collaboration from
Twyfords, Mr. RK Somany established the Bahadurgarh plant,
which commenced production in 1962. Every decade thereon
marked a milestone of achievement in product innovation, market
penetration, internal expansion as well as venturing out to new
business segments – container glass and home retail.
 18

Concentrated and strategic progress enabled business expansion

through organic and inorganic growth. HSIL bought over another
sanitary-ware manufacturing sanitary-ware manufacturing facility
in South India, and recently commenced operations of our second
container glass facility in Bhongir, A.P. Today, HSIL stands tall
with strong market leadership in the building products market, and
a dominant player in the container glass segment. The Building
Products commands more than 38% of the market in the sanitary-
ware industry, while the Container Glass is the second largest
player in India. Customer Satisfaction, Product Innovation, and
Quality Control are the three pillars that have fostered high levels
of trust and respect for the Hindware Brand. The brand is trusted
and respected by millions of customers and thousands of dealers
across the country. The 40 million satisfied customers is
testimonials to is brand ethos. With a product spectrum ranging
from Sanitary-ware to Wellness, to Faucets and as of recently
covering Kitchen Appliances, Hindware satisfies the need of
bathroom and kitchen products.

Appreciating the evolving customer needs, Hindware’s

Customer Service Division takes pride in its confidence of speedy
customer support, and in providing a spectrum of service
opportunities for enhancing the Hindware experience. HSIL’s
institutional partners include the respectable business houses India
– DLF, The Taj Hotels, GMR, Unitech, ITC Hotels, Mahindra,
Infosys, Coca Cola, Pepsi, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories, Hindustan
Unilever, Peron Ricard, Pfizer, Sab Miller, Dabur, Nestle, to name
a few.

This validation from the cream of India Inc. extends the

confidence and conviction in its values and vision. HSIL is
recognized among the top 300 companies in India, while rated
amongst the best 100 small and medium sized companies in the
world by the Forbes Magazine. HSIL is the first company in the
Building Materials Industry to be awarded the prestigious ISO
 19

9001, 14001 and OHSAS 18001 certificate, awarding effective

quality management and environment systems. It was also the first
in the country to receive the ISI license.

With its recent foray into the retail of Home Interior solutions,
we have extended our outreach to the end-customer. EVOK, our
retail brand specializes in providing a comfortable and convenient
one-stop shopping experience.

Currently located in NCR, upon consolidating its hold within

North India, EVOK plans to become the household’s most
preferred shopping destination. HSIL’s corporate office is located
in Gurgaon, with eight regional offices covering the length and
breadth of the country. It now has four manufacturing units, one
located in Bahadurgarh, Haryana, while the other three are located
in Andhra Pradesh.
 20

Part Two

The Main Study

 21

Objectives of the Study

• To rank the sanitary-ware companies in terms of their

market share.
• To provide Berger Paints India Ltd with market
information which would lead to the development of
newer distribution channels for their paints in the form of
sanitary-ware shops.
• To forge a successful collaboration between the sanitary-
ware industry and paint industry.
 22

NATURE OF THE STUDY

Berger Paints India Limited are toying with the idea of

collaborating with sanitary-ware dealers so that they can stock
their paints. This would provide the company with newer
distribution outlets and help them to reach wide areas with the
help of the long standing sanitary-ware dealers. With this the
company would be benefited immensely as they would not have to
look for new dealers who deal solely in paints. For this purpose,
the company conducted a market survey of sanitary-ware dealers
in the city of Kolkata to know about the market standing of each. A
structured questionnaire was provided on which the dealers were
questioned about the nature of products they stocked, their annual
turnover and the area of godown. They were also asked whether
they wanted to collaborate with a paint company. This was done
with a view to evaluate the commercial viability of such a
collaboration, if any. The questions were strategically chosen such
that every aspect of the dealer came to the fore.

The survey was conducted across the city of Kolkata and a total
sample size of 120 was ascertained. Out of the total 120, 70 dealers
participated in the survey. The areas were as diverse as Behala in
the southern fringes of the city to Dumdum, the northernmost part
of the city. The survey was conducted over a period of 25 days.
 23

Research Methodology

The research comprised primary and secondary data. The primary

data was collected by visiting sanitary ware dealers across the city
of Kolkata and asking them whether they wanted to forge
collaboration with any paint company. For this, a structured
questionnaire was provided by Berger itself on which the dealers’
answers were noted down. The questionnaire included questions so
as to analyse the dealers’ market standing which would give
Berger a heads-up regarding the business viability in case the
dealer wanted to collaborate with it. The financial standing of the
dealer would be revealed by such a questionnaire and it could also
be found out if the dealer had sufficient shelf space in order to
accommodate paint products. For locating the dealers, no prior
database was provided and I had to scour Kolkata in almost its
entirety to search for interested dealers. The market survey was
spread over a period of 25 days in the months of December’09 and
January’10.

The secondary aspect of the research comprised of information

obtained from the websites of the sanitary ware companies which
helped to learn more about their market standing and commercial
operations, also their profitability in the current scenario. The
combination of primary and secondary data helped me to reach
some concrete conclusions.
 24

RESEARCH REPORT CONTACT PHONE

NAME OF THE DEALER PERSON ADDRESS NO.

Akash steel industries Mr.A.Sharma 39,strand rd,kol-6 22437314

S.Roy & co 142 B,SP Mukherjee rd,kol-26
Mr.Shyam
Modak builders Agarwal 108, Raja S.C Mullick rd,Kol-92 24122788
A.K Trading Mr. Khokan Das 598,Boral main rd, kol-84 9830185914
M.S Builders Mr.Argha Ghosh 103/B,S.P.Mukherjee rd,kol-26 9830364244
Sani Care 144-K,S.P.Mukherjee rd,kol-26
Mr.Subhash
Panja sanitary forum Panja 142-B,S.P.Mukherjee rd,kol-26
Sri Balaji tiles and sanitation Mr.K.Agarwal 522,D.H road,Behala Manton,kol-34 9433993932
Nirman sanitary Mr.R.Das 440,Raja S.C Mullick rd,Baghajatin,kol-86 24252286
The Shibisco 499,D.H rd,kol-34 24687026
Somany ceramics ltd Ms.Trupti Dutta 54/D,Hazra rd,kol-19 65224332
Shubham marble and sanitation Mr.S.Jaiswal 227,D.H rd,kol-34 24468252
Radha marble and sanitation Mr.L.Kundu 115,Bidhan Sarani,kol-4 5553434
Lokenath sanitary 237A,D.H rd,kol-34 24451786
Dolphin sanitary Mr.S.Basu 226,D.H rd,kol-60 24451397
Mr.Biplab
Sasmal & co Sasmal 639,D.H rd,kol-34
Mr.Chandan
Jaiswal sanitary stores Jaiswal 54/4C,Hazra rd,kol-19 24761615
Hindustan tiles company 122C,Karl Marx sarani,kol-23 24592186
Mr.Binoy
Sree Durga Hardware Chatterjee Naktala,kol-47
Mr.Umesh
Rainbow sanitary Agarwal 2/92,N.S.C Bose rd,kol-47
Mr.Gautam
Bharati Kundu 11,Raja S.C Mullick rd ,kol-47 24307589
Park sanitary emporium Mr.Jogen Dutta 23/20/3,gariahat rd,kol-29 24404131
Mr.Sukumar
Banerjee sanitary Banerjee 14,ramkrishna nagar,garia,kol-48 69428253
Himadri sanitation Mr.S.Roy 1,roy bahadur rd,kol-34 24683528
M.L.Roy & others Mr.D.K.Roy 28,college st,kolkata-73 65120521
Behala sanitary house Mr.K.Banerjee 535,D.H rd,Behala,kol-34
Mr.Kalipada
J&N Trading Dutta 76,Raja S.C.Mullick rd,kol-84 24303658

NAME OF THE DEALING WITH PAINT SHOP PROFILE STOCKED

 25

DEALER COMPANY/INTEREST COMPANIES

MKT.TYPE AREA(sq.ft)
Akash steel industries Yes/No Main rd 250 Hind,Parry
S.Roy & co No/No Main rd 200 G.I pipes,Hind
Modak builders No/Yes w/s 400 Bansal,Hind,Parry
A.K Trading No/No w/s 700 Johnson,Parry,Hind
M.S Builders No/No Main rd 200 Hind,Parry,Jaguar
Sani Care No/No Main rd 250 Somany,Essco,Parry
Panja sanitary forum No/No Main rd 500 Hind,Parry,Jaguar
Sri Balaji tiles and
sanitation No/No Main rd 625 Jasper,Hind,Parry
Nirman sanitary No/No Main rd 1000 Somany,Johnson,Hind
The Shibisco No/No w/s 550 Marc,Jaguar,EssEss
Somany ceramics ltd No/Yes Main rd 550 Marc,Hind,Parry
Shubham marble and
sanitation No/No Main rd 1000 Jaguar,Somany,Parry
Radha marble and
sanitation No/No w/s 525 Somany,Jaguar,Hind
Lokenath sanitary No/Yes Main rd 150 Hind,Parry,Jaguar
Dolphin sanitary No/No Main rd 200 Hind,Parry,Neycer
Sasmal & co No/No Main rd 650 Venus,Hind,Neycer
Jaiswal sanitary stores Dealing Main rd 275 Parry
Hindustan tiles
company No/Yes Main rd 375 Parry,Jaguar,Essco
Sree Durga Hardware No/No w/s 600 Somany,Hind
Rainbow sanitary No/No Main rd 325 Jaguar,Hind,Parry
Bharati No/No Main rd 575 Essco,Jaguar,Parry
Park sanitary
emporium No/Yes Main rd 200 Hind,Neycer,Jaguar
Banerjee sanitary Dealing Main rd 375 Hind,Neycer,Parry
Himadri sanitation No/No Main rd 300 Hind,Neycer,Parry
M.L.Roy & others No/No Main rd 300 Marc,Jaguar,Parry
Behala sanitary house No/No Main rd 400 Hind,Orient,H.B
J&N Trading No/No Main rd 475 Essco,Hind,Parry

NAME OF THE DEALER CONTACT PERSON ADDRESS PHONE NO.

Lokenath sanitary Mr.Ashish Dutta Raja S.C.Mullick rd,kol-32 24130362

Standard Mosaic and Sanitary 24/4A,College st,kol-73 22418155
Dutta sanitary and hardware Mr.B.K.Dutta B-92,Sukanta mkt,Jadavpur,kol-32 24142320
Das associates Mr.Suren Das 27/A-1,Raja S.C.Mullick rd,kol-92 24122166
Kumar Samanta &co Mr.Ashim Samanta 37A,College st,kolkata-73 22416163
Nanadalal Kundoo Mr.N.Kundoo 2/23,Vidyasagar,kolkata-47 24253038
Shivam Paints & sanitary Mr.S.Kejriwal 94,Raja S.C.Mullick rd,kol-47 9831009528
M.L Roy & co Mr.S.Roy 28,college st,kolkata-73 22418241
R.M Chatterjee iron foundry Mr.S.Basu 110,college st,kolkata-12 22417876
Subhadra sanitary Mr.K.Ghosh 1,Arpuli lane,kolkata-12 22411896
Supreme marble & sanitation Mr.K.Jaiswal 9,canal east road,kolkata-67 23562088
 26

Calcutta plumbing stores Mr.Krishna Sanyal 25,college st,kolkata-73 22419529

Joy Maa Santoshi sanitation Mr.Amit Jaiswal 112,College st,kolkata-12 32402360
N.Dutt & co Mr.Nilratan Kundu 39-1,college st,kolkata-73 22417009
Gaurab trading co Mr.Gaurab Khandelwal 35,jadunath dey road,kolkata-12 22370080
Modern sanitation Mr.Soumo De 2,college st,kolkata-12 9830741302
South sanitary sales Mr.Debashish Hazra 174/1,n.s.c bose rd,kolkata-40 24811887
Ma Durga enterprise Mr.Arun Dutta 100A,N.S. C. Bose rd,kolkata-40 24712177
Home Décor Mr.Sudipto Bhattacharjee 14,college st,Kolkata-12 9830482877
N.K sanitary Mr.K.N.Bihani 37,Maharana Pratap Sarani,kolkata-1 22218631
Sonu sanitation Mr.Ajay Gupta 27,jadunath dey rd,kolkata-12 9883089962
Monmotho enterprise Mr.Tarun Chatterjee 23,college st,kolkata-73 22192999
Annapurna sanitary Mr.Swapan Kar 4,Jadunath Dey rd,kolkata-12 22122280
A.R sanitation Mr.Gyan Jaiswal 35,jadunath dey rd,kolkata-12 30270714
Ghosh & sons Mr.Arabindo Ghosh 4,jadunath dey rd,kolkata-12
C.A sanitation Mr.Bholanath Biswas 11,Akshoy Bose lane,kolkata-4 9830198705
Neelachal Mr.Jayanta Roy Chowdhury 2,jadunath dey rd,kolkata-12 40072504
Jaytee sanitation Mr.Karan Jaiswal 10,jadunath dey rd,kolkata-12 22120882

NAME OF THE DEALING WITH PAINT STOCKED

DEALER COMPANY/INTEREST SHOP PROFILE COMPANIES
MKT.TYPE AREA(sq.ft)
Lokenath sanitary Yes/No On lane 600 Hind,Parry
Standard Mosaic
and Sanitary No/Yes On lane 375 Hind,Neycer,C.I
Dutta sanitary and
hardware No/No On lane 350 Hind,Marc,Johnson
Das associates No/No Main rd 550 EssEss,Jaguar,Essco
Kumar Samanta
&co No/No w/s 350 Parry,Hind,Jindal Nezon
Nanadalal Kundoo No/No Main rd 600 Kajaria,Marc,C.I
Shivam Paints &
sanitary No/Yes w/s 500 Parry,Hind,Jaguar
M.L Roy & co No/No w/s 450 Parry,Hind,Neycer
R.M Chatterjee iron
foundry No/No Main rd 600 Hind,Parry,Sanyo
Subhadra sanitary Yes/No Main rd 200 Marc,Kajaria,Johnson
Supreme marble &
sanitation No/No w/s 800 Mirano,Johnson,Hind
Calcutta plumbing
stores No/yes On lane 200 Orient,Marc,Johnson
Joy Maa Santoshi
sanitation No/No w/s 100 Jaguar,Parry
N.Dutt & co Yes/No w/s 400 Leader,Auram,Suman
Gaurab trading co No/No w/s 100 Eagle
Modern sanitation No/No w/s 2000 Parryware,Hindware
South sanitary sales Yes/No w/s 300 Supreme,Jaguar,Parry
Ma Durga enterprise Dealing Main rd 1000 Parry,Roca
Home Décor No/No w/s 200 Johnson,Kajaria,Orient
N.K sanitary No/No w/s 350 Parry,Hind,Sanyo
Sonu sanitation No/No w/s 100 Parry,Jaguar,Essco
 27

Monmotho
enterprise No/No w/s 300 Hind,Parry,G.I
Annapurna sanitary No/No w/s 84 Parry,Neycer,Hind
Ghosh & sons No/No w/s 300 Hind,Parry,Johnson
C.A sanitation No/No w/s 150 Parry,Hind,Neycer
Neelachal No/No w/s 170 Parry,Cera,Neycer
Jaytee sanitation No/No w/s 150 Jaguar,Essco,Marc

NAME OF THE PHONE

DEALER CONTACT PERSON ADDRESS NO.

Ankit sanitation Mr.Pawan Sharma 112,college st,kolkata-12 22374019

Shivam sanitation Mr.Anupam Shrivastava 9C,Nirmal chandra st,kolkata-12 22122559
Krishna hardware Mr.Raju Dutta 105,Dum Dum rd,kolkata-74 25481208
Sanitary Palace Mr.Rajat Chatterjee 57/4B,N.S.C Bose rd,kolkata-40
Roy Bros. Mr.Milon Roy 140A,S.P Mukherjee rd,kolkata-26 24668754
N.I Enterprise Mr.Nikhil Bansal 188/1,N.S.C Bose rd,Bansdroni,kolkata-40 9831186807
Supreme Sanitation 57B,N.S.C.Bose rd,kolkata-40
Kalicharan De & sons Mr.K.Mullick 35,college st,kolkata-73
Jalaram Industrial Mr.Nikunj Parekh 40,Strand rd,kolkata-1 22304649
Ashutosh Roy & sons Mr.Probir Roy 110,college st,kolkata-12 22370802
Sanitary forum 131/42,N.S.C Bose rd,kolkata-40 24811399
Ambika Agency Mr.Dheeraj Jaiswal 2,Jadunath Dey rd,kolkata-12 32962325
Mahamaya Mr.Arjun Roy 95,S.P.Mukherjee rd,kolkata-26 9007439254

NAME OF THE DEALING WITH PAINT STOCKED

DEALER COMPANY/INTEREST SHOP PROFILE COMPANIES
MKT.TYPE AREA(sq.ft)
Ankit sanitation No/Yes w/s 300 Hind,Parry,Jaguar
Shivam sanitation No/No w/s 100 Johnson,Marc,Parry
Krishna hardware Yes/No On lane 480 Parry,Hind,Jaguar
Sanitary Palace No/Yes Main rd 500 Hind,Neycer
Roy Bros. No/No w/s 250 Supreme,Essco,G.I
N.I Enterprise Yes/No w/s 500 Parry,Essco,Jaguar
Supreme Sanitation No/No w/s 350 Kajaria,Somany,Johnson
Ray Indra Chandra No/No w/s 200 Parryware,Nelco,Essco
Kalicharan De & sons No/No w/s 200 Hind,Parry
Jalaram Industrial Yes/No w/s 200 Cera,Marc
Ashutosh Roy & sons No/No w/s 400 Hind,Essco,H.B
Sanitary forum Yes/No w/s 500 Jaguar,Hind,Parry
Ambika Agency No/Yes w/s 150 Parry,Marc,Hind
Mahamaya No/No Main rd 300 Parry,Hind
 28

SUMMARY OF FINDINGS

During the course of the internship, several areas of the city were
traveled to question sanitaryware shop owners about their interest
in collaborating with paint companies. The inferences from this
project are discussed as follows:

1) In the central region of the city, comprising the areas of

Bowbazar, College Street, C.R.Avenue, the sample size was
55 shops out of which 30 participated in the survey. Out of
these 30, only one was interested in collaborating with a paint
company.

2) The stretch from Garia to Tollygunge provided a sample of

20 shops out of which 9 participated. Among these, one was
already in collaboration with a paint company while others
were not too keen on it.

3) Areas such as Hazra road, S.P.Mukherjee Road provided a

combined sample of 40 shops out of which 23 participated.
Amongst these, five showed some interest in collaboration
with a paint company as they treated it as a different line
altogether.

4) Dumdum and adjoining areas of Lake Town,Nager Bazar.did

not yield any positive results either as only three dealers
participated.

5) Ballygunge Phari had a dealer already stocking paints and

one showed interest in collaborating with a paint company.
 29

6) Kidderpore was a futile effort as there were not too many

dealers present in the first place.

7) Dalhousie and nearby areas of the Howrah Station also

proved futile.

8) Jadavpur provided a sample of 7 dealers out of which 4

participated. 2 dealers showed interest in a collaboration.

9) Behala was a huge market and had a sample size of 20

dealers out of which 10 participated. Amongst these, 2
already dealt in paints and one showed interest in entering the
paint business
.

Reaction from the dealers

 30

The questionnaire provided proved to be accurate in most cases as

it covered all the relevant topics with regard to the business of
sanitary goods. However, most dealers were unwilling to reveal
their annual turnover figures. Upon much persuasion and on
realizing that we did not mean any harm, some gave in. The
following dealers reacted positively when asked about their
annual turnover:

1) Ma Durga enterprise reported an annual turnover of

approxiamately 42 lacs accruing from their sanitaryware
dealership as well as paint dealership. They are an authorized
dealer of Asian Paints.

2) J&N Trading reported an annual turnover of Rs.7 lacs.

3) Lokenath sanitary reported an annual turnover of Rs.11 lacs.

 31

GRAPHICAL ANALYSIS
 32

The above diagram is a pictorial representation of the paints

market in India. It takes into account the major players in the paint
industry and draws up a comparative analysis between them. The
market share in terms of revenue is highlighted. Asian Paints is at
the top followed by Kansai Nerolac while Berger comes in a close
third. These figures are from a survey conducted in August 2009.

The above figure is a pictorial representation of the sanitary ware industry in

India. The different companies have been graphed according to their market
share in terms of revenue. Hindustan sanitary-ware industries limited have
emerged as the biggest player in this industry with 45% market share.
Parryware comes in a distant second with 30% market share. They are
followed by others such as Jaguar, EssEss and Cera. The data is of the year
2009.

The above figure refers to the data collected during the course of the market
survey. The brief given to me by the company was to question sanitary-ware
dealers whether they wanted to forge a collaboration with a paint company.
To this, most of the dealers replied in the negative as they thought they were
not in a position to enter into such a joint venture. This constituted 76% of
the respondents. 10% of the dealers contacted already had a dealership in
paints simultaneously with their sanitary-ware business. Only 14% of the
dealers showed a keen interest in collaborating with a paint company as it
meant a good business opportunity and they could then enter newer markets.
 33

The details of the interested dealers were duly intimated to the top
management of the company.

Limitations of the Market Research

During the course of the market research spread over a period of 25 days,
certain limitations were identified which are as follows:

1) The dealers had to be visited during their business hours . As a result

many felt the survey to be an unnecessary interruption in their work
and refused to participate.

2) Some dealers were hostile in their attitudes and did not provide the
relevant information in its entirety.

3) Some dealers were apprehensive about my original identity as no

authorization had been provided by the company. This led to them
refusing to disclose confidential information such as their annual
turnover, godown size etc.

4) No database of the dealers had been provided by the company. As a

result of this, it was necessary to travel to every corner of the city to
search for interested dealers. This made the job all more difficult as some
places like Kidderpore and Dumdum did not yield any positive results.
There was a dearth of sanitary-ware dealers in these areas. This
unfavourable situation could have been avoided if a database had been
provided.
 34

CONCLUSION

The market survey has provided me with very important and

conclusive results as to the nature of the industry and the various
forces at play. It has given me considerable understanding and
exposure to the market. The sanitaryware market in Kolkata has
proved to be highly competitive with many dealers vying for the
customers’ attention. This project has helped me to gain immense
first-hand experience as to how the sanitaryware market functions
in the city.
 35

Bibliography

1) www.bergerpaints.com
2) www.hindware.com
3) www.allbusiness.com
4) Business World magazine
 36

Part Three
 37

ANNEXURE