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Published on August 28, 2007

The country's biggest seller of automotive lubricants said the total market for lubricants in the past six months was 450 million litres. Lubricants are divided into three types - consumer, industrial and transport.

Shell had a market share of 20 per cent in the first six months and expects to increase it to 22 per cent by the end of the year.

"The fact is that consumers do have money, but are more careful where they spend this money. A result of this is that they are more picky when it comes to choosing lubricants. Customers are now looking for more value for money. Our research has shown that previously engine oil was something customers did not consider seriously as it was an occasional item, but now more people come and ask the mechanics what the right oil should be," said Pissawan Achanapornkul, Shell's sales general manager for Southeast Asia North.

Shell markets its consumer automotive lubricants under the Helix brand, which has been in the Thai market for over 15 years. It comes in three categories: Helix Ultra, Helix Plus and Helix Standard.

"We have grown by about 2-3 per cent when the market is going down overall, which shows that more customers accept our products as better quality," Pissawan said.

"The Shell Autoserv centres also provide good service, which attracts more customers to us. Ultimately it's customer satisfaction that brings them back," she added.

There are currently 60 Shell Autoserv outlets in Thailand. "We are considering expansion but only in the truly required areas as we believe that our current network covers Thailand very well," Pissawan said.

The lubricant market usually grows at about the same rate as the GDP. Thailand's GDP growth was forecast to be 5.5 per cent at the beginning of the year.

"Other countries in the region have shown more growth than Thailand. Vietnam expects growth of 8.5 per cent this year and the Philippines is set for 5.5-per-cent growth. But in the big picture of Asean, growth has been affected as Thailand is a large market."

Vijo Varghese

 The Nation