Berger Paints steps up defence in competition with others

Berger Paints steps up defence as Birla Opus, JSW Dulux intensify paint market battle

SEBI RA – Shubh Consultancy – Sunil Kotak – INH000015826 Berger Paints India Ltd., controlled by the billionaire Dhingra family, is fortifying its business as India’s second-largest paintmaker seeks to fend off a challenge from deep-pocketed tycoons in the $8.2 billion sector. The Kolkata-based company, with a nearly 20% revenue share among publicly listed peers, has identified two areas for what its Chief Executive Officer Abhijit Roy called an “insurgent act.” Berger is strengthening teams in its weaker markets of Mumbai and Pune in the west, and Chennai and Bengaluru in the south, Roy said in an interview. The firm also plans to launch a new line of luxury paints, and add as many as 250 mostly exclusive outlets every year to take the count to 2,500 by March 2029. New rivals intensify pricing pressure The company’s on the back foot after billionaires Kumar Mangalam Birla and Sajjan Jindal unleashed a pricing war to wrest business from it and sector leader Asian Paints Ltd., which controls over 50% market share. Birla Opus and Jindal’s JSW Dulux Ltd. are gaining ground, said brokerage PL Capital in a Sept 16 note. Berger’s shares are down about 16% this year compared to a 10% fall the nation’s benchmark measure. The firm, valued at 525.4 billion rupees ($5.5 billion), is 64.56% owned by UK Paints India Pvt., which is controlled by Kuldip Singh Dhingra and his brother Gurbachan Singh Dhingra. The siblings acquired the business in 1991 from former liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya, whose Kingfisher Airlines Ltd. folded in 2012 after failing to pay creditors. All this is for information This is not a buy/sell recommendation. Thank you, Technofunda24