Breaking in a new brush

CHALLENGER BIRLA OPUS MUST SPEND BIG ON DEALER INCENTIVES AND MARKETING TO BUILD ON ITS EARLY ADVANTAGE

- GEETIKA SRIVASTAVA

EARLIER THIS WEEK, Asian Paints, the leader in India's ₹70,000-crore decorative paints market, took out a front-page ad in The Times of India touting its "warranty promise." One sentence in the body copy gave away the trigger. It said "At Asian Paints, it's never about assurances for a year." It wouldn't be unreasonable to assume that was a rebuttal to Birla Opus' "One Year Assurance" — a free repainting guarantee to the customer if she faced issues like paint peeling, blistering and chalking within a year of painting — announced this August.

Analysts say that Birla Opus's entry has shifted the industry dynamics. "Asian Paints slipping from 59% to 52% in market share represents the most dramatic shift I've witnessed in India's paint sector," says Mukul Goyal, co-founder, Stratefix Consulting. Birla Opus has notched up around a 6.6% share of the market, he adds, at a time when incumbents are busy navigating a turbulent phase amid margin pressures, weak urban demand, and intense price-based competition.