Housing three of the most populated countries on the globe, South Asia (comprising India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Nepal) is one of the fastest-growing regions for the paint and coating producers.

The huge population of the region and rapid urbanization has provided paint and coating producers with many opportunities.

The nearly Tk 40,000 million ($471 million) paint and coating industry in Bangladesh has registered steady growth rates for most of the last decade.

However, in 2019 and the first six months of 2020 has not been one of the best periods for the country’s paint and coating producers.

Despite a year and a half slowdown, the country’s paint and coating industry has seen some brick corporate action and investment announcements by key paint and coating producers.

Japanese company Kansai Nerolac entered into Bangladesh’s market in mid-2018, while Berger Paints entered into three new ventures with leading international companies.

The country’s second-largest paint and coating producer, Asian Paints commenced construction of its second production plant in the country in January 2020.

Currently, nearly 50 companies operate in the sector in the country. Berger Paints Bangladesh is the market leader in the Bangladesh paint industry.

More than 80 percent of the country’s paint market is in the hands of foreign brands.

These brands include Berger, Asian, Roxy, Pailac, Aqua and Elite.

According to data from the Bangladesh Paint Manufacturers Association, Berger Paints holds 48 percent of the market share, followed by Asian Paints at 18 percent, Roxy and Elite at seven percent, Pailac at five percent and Aqua Paints at two percent.

Some 30 local companies, including Rainbow Paints, RAK and Uzala Paints, hold 13 percent of the total market share.

The country’s paint and coating market has attracted a slew of international paint and coating producers in recent years.

Japanese Kansai Paint invested $7 million (Tk 572.6 million) in 2018 for a 55 percent stake of RAK Paints through its Indian subsidiary Kansai Nerolac Paints.

“To start in Bangladesh, we wanted to tie up with a good and compliant company, as Japanese people value transparency – and that’s why we chose RAK Paints,” said Vishal N Mothreja, CEO of Kansai Nerolac Paints Bangladesh.

In January 2020, Berger Paints Bangladesh Ltd. and Chugoku Marine Paints, Ltd (CMP) of Japan entered into an agreement for cooperation and collaboration in the field of marine and industrial paints in Bangladesh. The agreement envisages joint efforts in producing, marketing and purchasing marine and related industrial paints in Bangladesh.

Berger will be the first Bangladeshi company to manufacture global standard marine paint products in the country.

Berger Paints has also entered into joint ventures with two other companies – Becker Industrial Coatings Holding of Sweden and UK’s Fosroc International – to form Berger Becker Bangladesh Limited and Berger Fosroc Limited to offer coil coatings and construction chemicals to the Bangladeshi market.

Berger Paints is the largest paint and coating producer in Bangladesh. With an estimated share of close to 50 percent, the company is a subsidiary of Indian paint producer Berger Paints.
Operating since 1970 in the country – Bangladesh was part of Pakistan at that time – Berger Paints is one of the oldest paint and coating producers in the country.

The company’s production facilities are located in the capital city Dhaka and Chattogram.

March 2020 concluded the financial year 2019-20 and Berger Paints registered total sales revenue of Taka 18, 820 million ($221 million), registering a growth of nearly six percent over the sales revenue figures of Taka 17,733,311 million ($209 million) registered in the previous financial year.

“In Bangladesh, the annual consumption of paints currently stands at about 180,000 tons. The sector recorded an over six percent year-on-year growth in recent times thanks to the rapid urbanization in a country of around 167.8 million people,” said Rupali Chowdhury of Berger Paints Bangladesh. “Plastic emulsion, distemper, weatherproof exterior coat and synthetic enamel are the key products that hold the major market share. Plastic emulsion and distemper are close substitutes of each other. The emulsion is basically used in high-end residences all over the country and distempers are economy class products generating demand in semi-urban and rural markets.”

Asian Paints Bangladesh

Asian Paint’s Bangladesh’s subsidiary, Asian Paints Bangladesh is the second-largest paints and coating producer in Bangladesh.

The company has its state-of-the-art production plant at Gazipur.

Earlier this year, Asian Paints started the construction work of its second manufacturing unit in Bangladesh in Mirsarai Economic Zone (MEZ) in Chattogram.

Asian Paints will invest a total of $20 million in the new plant, which is expected to go into production by June 2021.

The new factory will initially manufacture 30,000 tons of paint and allied products.

Spread over 20 acres of land, the factory will be equipped with modern facilities.

Kansai Nerolac

Kansai Nerolac has been focusing on Bangladesh’s paint and coating market in a major way.

The company has begged the order of Metro Rail project in the country.

Speaking on the occasion of the presentation of the annual report in August 2020, H M Bharuka, managing director of Kansai Nerolac India said, “In Bangladesh, we launched the Nerolac range of decorative paints through our subsidiary RAK Paints Ltd and received a great response from the market.”