Grasim Industries targets second spot in decorative paints market with Birla Opus

He further stated that India's per capita paints consumption is much lower than the global average of 10 kg.

Grasim Industries Ltd, the flagship of the Aditya Birla Group, has entered the paints industry with the launch of Birla Opus and aims to secure the second position in the decorative paints market that bigger rival Asian Paints currently dominates.

The Aditya Birla Group company aims to achieve a Rs 10,000 crore gross revenue within three years of starting full-scale operations, it said on February 22. The Aditya Birla Group has made an upfront investment of Rs 10,000 crore and commissioned three plants in Panipat, Ludhiana, and Cheyyar in Tamil Nadu.

Kumar Mangalam Birla, chairman of the Aditya Birla Group, said the company aims to secure a profitable second position in the market in the coming years. In his speech, Birla said the group’s deep insight into the building materials ecosystem, honed over the years, offers Grasim a unique vantage point.

Birla Opus, according to KM Birla, is poised to boost the paint industry’s capacity by 40%. “No paint company globally has ever launched in one shot— factories, operations, products, and services, at the scale we are about to undertake,” he added.

“Birla Opus should be seen as a scale startup incubated by the Aditya Birla Group. It uniquely combines the agility, energy, and frugality of a startup with the muscle, reliability, and brand strength of a storied and dynamic conglomerate,” he said.

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Birla Opus products will be available in Punjab, Haryana, and Tamil Nadu by mid-March, with plans to distribute it in all 1 lakh population towns in India by July. The company aims to expand to more than 6,000 towns by the fiscal year-end, the fastest and widest pan-India launch in the paint industry.

Grasim’s entry will significantly boost competition in the decorative paints sector, which is currently dominated by Asian Paints and Berger. Birla said that six plants have been built from the ground up across India, and the capacity at Opus will be higher than the combined capacity of the second, third, and fourth players in the market. The fourth plant is expected to be operational from June end, and the sixth plant by March 31 next year, chairman Birla added.

Grasim’s paint business has registered 300,000 painters and contractors before its official launch. Birla said that Aditya Birla Capital would provide financing to the paint business dealers.

Birla Opus has launched its paints business with over 145 products. Birla stated that the company’s product range is already on par or ahead of the market leader in some segments. The company’s aim to venture into the paint business was driven by the booming construction sector.