Paint firm expects lower sales
National synchronised swimmers lift up containers of the new TOA Roofseal Sun Block paint while doing some laps yesterday during a press conference to launch the new product.
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Paint manufacturer TOA Paint (Thailand) has revised its annual sales target downwards, from Bt8.4 billion to Bt8 billion, following meagre growth in purchasing power in this year's first quarter.
Managing director Jatuphat Tangkaravakoon said the revised target still represented 5-per-cent growth over last year's total sales of Bt7.6 billion. He said 30 per cent of TOA's sales would come from industrial and wood paint and the remaining 70 per cent from house and building paint. The company's gross margin before operating costs will also increase nearly 1.5 per cent this year, due to the appreciation of the baht. "Half of our raw materials for producing paint colours is imported," Jatuphat said. "Last year, the exchange rate was Bt40 to the US dollar, and now it's a little more than Bt34 to the dollar. So we've seen a positive gain, because the baht's appreciation has reduced our raw-material costs 1-1.5 per cent from last year." He said TOA was setting aside a research and development budget of Bt100 million a year in an effort to develop new products that would meet customer demand and drive sales growth. "We want to be a 'total building solution', and as a result we must develop new products," he said. TOA Paint (Thailand) is the market leader, with a 47-per-cent share of Thailand's market for house and building paint, which was worth Bt12 billion last year. The company believes it will maintain its market share as the value of the market rises this year to Bt12.6 billion. In keeping with its business strategy, TOA launched a new product yesterday called Roofseal Sun Block, a coloured roof paint formulated to reflect solar radiation. It has been subjected to spectral-response testing at King Mongkut's University of Technology Thon Buri. The company claims the new paint will help to save up to 10 per cent of energy costs by reflecting heat from solar radiation. It is aimed at both the renovation and new-housing markets, and sales this year are expected to reach Bt72 million, Jatuphat said. The company plans to launch another two or three innovative products this year and has set aside a marketing budget of Bt200 million to drive sales, he said.
Somluck Srimalee The Nation
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