Leowood's floors flourish
smarnchai has a marketing budget of Bt40 million for the year.
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The demand for laminate floors has grown at an average of 30 per cent a year because of pocket-friendly pricing, according to Leowood Intertrade Co Ld, a producer and distributor, which expects its turnover to be up 50 per cent at Bt1.2 billion this year.
CEO Smarnchai Atipnumphai said half of its total sales last year (Bt800 million) had come from housing projects promoted by land-developers such as Sansiri, Plus Property, Property Perfect and Lalin Property while 30 per cent had come from traditional sources and 20 per cent from modern channels. To promote sales further and to achieve its target of Bt1.2 billion this year, the company has set a marketing budget of Bt40 million to promote new products and discount prices to its dealers who suggest the product to customers, he said. Smarnchai added that new products had been developed to meet the rising demand of customers. For instance, it recently got permission to use the Ultraman character for those looking to laminate children's rooms. The company has set a research-and-development budget of Bt10 million a year. At the RD centre new products will be developed to boost sales an average of 50 per cent a year, he said. Last year demand for laminate floors was four million square metres, worth Bt3 billion, and Smarnchai expects this to increase to 5.2 million square metres, up 30 per cent. He also predicts that 70 per cent of orders will come from new house-owners and the rest from the renovation and redecoration market. Leowood has a production capacity of two million square metres a year but only produces half that. Smarnchai said that if sales grew an average of 50 per cent a year the company would increase production to two million square metres next year.
Somluck Srimalee The Nation
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