PG
5
CORPORATE DEVELOPMENT
CROWN APPOINTS
GROUP MARKETING
HEAD
CAN YOU GIVE US A BRIEF
BACKGROUND OF YOUR
PROFESSIONAL JOURNEY?
I am a marketing & brand communication
professional with over 12 years of
experience working with some of the
world’s most prestigious engineering
& capital goods, infrastructure,
construction, paints and coatings
brands & organizations. I hold an MBA
degree in marketing from The McGraw
University, Seattle (USA) and a PGDM in
Communications from Indian Institute of
Management (IIM) in Kolkata.
I started out as a corporate brand manager
at construction and engineering giant
Larsen & Tubro, before moving to German
MNC Seimens Ltd as the senior marketing
and brand manager. In 2007 I moved to
one of the top multinational paint and
coating companies, Kansai Nerolac Ltd as
the deputy general manager for marketing,
North & Eastern India. I left earlier this year
to join Crown Paints Kenya Ltd as the group
marketing head.
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE
PAINT MANUFACTURING INDUSTRY
IN KENYA IN COMPARISON TO
OTHER MARKETS?
I believe that the coatings and adhesives
market in East Africa has significant
potential despite the recent global
economic downturn and the challenges
and restraints. Investors who capitalize
on the developing East African economy
will benefit from a market that is driven
by minimal competition and limitations
when compared to the more developed
global markets of Asia, North America and
Europe.
Heightened industrial and economic
development in East Africa is driving
the coatings and adhesives market.
Additionally, the recently implemented
East African Common Market Protocol
encourages cross-border trade and
industrial expansion within the East African
region along with tax benefits for the
market participants.
AS THE NEW GROUP MARKETING
HEAD, WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS IN
TAKING THE CROWN BRAND
FORWARD?
There is a lot of competition in terms of
visibility and I’m looking at making Crown
Paints Ltd.’s communication simpler yet
trendy. By this, we will need to engage our
customers more on our specific product
range, both in the Kenyan and larger
East Africa market. Corporate Social
Responsibility will also be one of our key
focus areas this year.
ARE THERE ANY NEW PRODUCTS TO
BE INTRODUCED TO THE MARKET
SOON?
We are always looking at improving our
product portfolio. This includes a re-brand
of our auto paints as well as introducing
two new varieties; the lightweight body
filler and fast dry 1K primer. Other products
we are planning to introduce in the market
are timber master wood finishes, LMD Pro
anti mould solutions, energy efficient paint
and glow paints.
WHERE DO YOU SEE THE COMPANY
IN 5 YEARS?
We intend to triple our turnover in the next
10 years, consolidate our regional presence
and increase our market share. We shall
strive to enhance product knowledge
to users and customers. We intend to
improve our focus on automotive paints,
fashion paints, decorative paints and
exterior finishes. As a company, our focus
will always be to transform the lives of our
consumers and to be perceived as one of
the most innovative paint companies of the
world.
We are pleased to announce the appointment of Debashish Bhadra as GroupMarketingHead. Mr. Bhadra brings
with him a wealth of experience and we welcome and support him as he undertakes his new role. We wish him
a successful career with CROWN PAINTS KENYA LTD.
