Introduction about the company

Berger Paints India Ltd is an Indian paint company based in India. The company is
headquartered at Kolkata and has 14 manufacturing units in India, 2 in Nepal, 1 each
in Poland and Russia. It has manufacturing units at Howrah and Rishra, Arinso,
Taloja, Naltoli, Goa, Devla, Hindupur, Jejuri, Jammu, Pudcherry and Udyognagar.
The company has presence in 5 countries –
India, Russia, Poland, Nepal and Bangladesh. They have an employee strength of
over 3,500 and a countrywide distribution network of 25,000+ dealers.
Founded: -17 December, 1923
Founder: - Lewis Berger
Key person: -Kuldeep Singh Dhingra (Chairman) and Gurbachan Singh Dhingra (vice
Chairman)
Product: - Paints, Coating, Construction Chemical
CEO: - Abhijit Roy
Revenue: -Rs. 5,165.73 crore
Operating Income: - Rs. 718.55 crore
Net Income: -Rs. 460.83 crore
Total assets: - Rs. 3,504.70 crore
Number of Employees: - 3500+
Website: - www.bergerpaints.com
Industry Structure
Indian Paint Industry is over 1000 years old. Its beginning can be traced back to the setting
up of a factory by Shalimar paints in Calcutta back in 1902. Till the Second World War the
industry consisted of small producers and two foreign companies. After the war, the imports
stopped which led to the setting up of manufacturing facilities by local entrepreneurs. Still
the foreign companies continued to dominate the market, which in a way is the current
scenario as well. The initial decades saw the complete dominance of British Paint companies
such as Goodlass Walls (now Goodlass Nerolac), ICI, British Paints (now Berger Paints),
Jenson & Nicholson and
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Blundell & Eomite. The Indian Paints sector is valued at Rs 6,800 crores in value
terms and is very fragmented. The current demand is estimated to be around
650,000 tonnes per annum and is seasonal in nature. The per capita consumption of
paints in India stands at 1.0-kg p.a. as compared to 1.6 kg in China and 22 kg in the
developed economies. India's share in the world paint market is just 0.6%.
The Indian Paint industry can be divided as:
The organized sector comprising of large and medium size units The unorganized or
the small scale sector.
There are now twelve players in the organized sector with a market share of 70%.
This is in contrast to the 55% share that the sector commanded a few years back.
Major companies in this segment include Asian Paints (44% market share), Berger
Paints (17% market share), ICI (12% market share), Goodlass Nerolac (15% market
share), Jenson Nicholson (6% market share), Shalimar Paints and Rajdoot Paints.
The organized sector has grown at a CAGR of 11.5% in the last five years. The
unorganized sector comprising of over 2000 units has a combined market share of
around 30%. The major players are Asian Paints, Goodlass Nerolac, Berger, ICI and
Shalimar. Recently, world leaders like Akzo Noble, PPG, Dupont and BASF have set
up base in India with product ranges such as auto refinishes powders and industrial
coatings. Kansai Paints of Japan, which entered into collaboration with Goodlass
Nerolac in 1984, is now the holding company for Goodlass Nerolac with 64.52 %
equity holding. PPG has a joint venture with Asian Paints to manufacture industrial
coatings. Jenson & Nicholson and
Snowcem India are no longer active players because of dwindling sales in recent
years. In the 1990s, helped by a growing economy, the paint industry had recorded a
healthy growth of 12-13 % annually. This was mainly due to a drastic reduction in
excise from a staggering 40% to 16%. However, the growth was restricted in 2000-
03 to single digits. There was a revival in 2003-2004 with a robust growth of 13%.8.
The per capita consumption of paint in India is 700 grams against 19 kg in the U.S.,
and 2.7 kg and 5.8 kg in other developing countries like China and Brazil. As the
consumption goes with affordability, the low Indian figure is not a surprise. High
excise duties, low technology and low capital costs for production led to the
incidence of a high number of units in the small scale sector. However, since 1992
the government has been consistently lowering duties from 40.5% in 1992 to around
16% currently. This has led to lowering of price differential between the organized
and unorganized sector. Moreover the paints sector was also allowed to claim
MODVAT credit on petro-based products, thus lowering the excise incidence further.
Paints and Their Market Share
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Industrial Paints
Industrial paints comprising 30% of the market include automotive paints, high
performance coatings, coil coatings, powder coatings, marine paints and general
industrial coatings. The automotive segment is further bifurcated into OEMs and auto
refinishes. The automotive and general industrial coatings occupy top slot in terms of
production. Goodlass Nerolac is the market leader in this segment.

Demand for these paints is relatively price inelastic, but is prone to business cycles
and depends on industrial and economic growth. Major end user industries include
shipping, capital goods, white goods and heavy industries.

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The industrial paints segment due to specialized technology and high capital
expenditure attracts fewer players. Most Indian companies have tied up with or are in
the process of tying up with international paint majors to have access to the latest
technology.

A tie-up with a global paint manufacturer also enables the domestic company to
supply to local customers of its partner. For example, Goodlass Nerolac is a major
supplier to Maruti Suzuki because of Kansai, its Japanese collaborator and Suzuki
relations. It is for the same reason that Asian Paints (tie-up with PPG Industries,
USA) is a major supplier of paints to Opel Astra.

COMPANY COLLABORATION AREA OF COLLABORATION

BERGER PAINTS Herbert sons GmbH;
Valspar Corp. Inc,
Teodur BV
Auto coatings;
Heavy duty coatings;
Power coatings
ASIAN PAINTS PPG Ind. Inc.,
Sigma coatings,
Nippon Paints
Electro deposition primers;
High performance coatings,
Power coatings
GOODLASS Kansai paints Auto & Industrial coatings
ICI(India) ICI plc. Auto refinish
J & N Herbert sons GmbH

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Drivers to the growth of the Paint Industry
1. Increasing level of income and education – The increasing proportion of young
population along with increasing disposable incomes is leading to a change in
consumer habits. The Indian economy is shifting from a savings economy to a
spending economy. With more income at their disposal, people are now ready to pay
for better products and paint is no exception.

Educated consumers are more brand conscious and seek value in what they
consume. Thus, paint companies offering value-added features like non-toxicity,
weather protection, texture, ecofriendly production, etc. will attract more demand.
These value-added products enable the manufacturers to earn a better premium as
compared to the regular paints, thus offering higher margins.
2. Increasing Urbanization: Urbanization is leading to a shift from temporary houses
to permanent houses. Urban houses are well-designed in its interior as well as
exterior aspect. This calls for more houses being painted using medium and
premium paints. For urban houses, interior design is becoming a fashion statement
and a lot of paint is used to decorate the interiors. This will lead to an increase in the
per capita consumption of paint which will increase the overall demand of paint.
Urbanization also brings more nuclear families. More nuclear families mean more
number of houses even for the existing population thus further driving the demand.

3. Increasing share of organized sector: Decrease in taxes on key raw materials will
improve the position of the organized players. The Organized sector is expanding its
distribution network and adopting the installation of tinting machines at retail outlets.
These tinting machines offer a wide variety of colour shade options to choose from.
The unorganized players are not in a position to offer such facility as it is
comparatively capital intensive. Shift in use, from distemper segment towards
premier segment is also shifting market share from the unorganized sector to the
organized sector.
4. Development of the Realty, Automobile and Infrastructure sector: The growth of
the paint industry is largely dependent on the development of the realty and housing
sector, as decorative segment generates about 70% of the total paint demand from
this sector. The Automobile segment generates more than two-third of the demand
for Industrial paints, and hence is the growth driver for Industrial Paints. The
Infrastructure segment creates direct demand for paints as well as creates indirect
demand through supporting the growth of the realty, automobile, FMCG and other
industries where paint is used.
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The growth potential in the above 3 sectors is immense, the paint industry being
dependent on these 3 sectors is expected to grow along with them.
5. Availability of financing options: Easier housing finance and auto finance is
expected to favour more people to buy houses and travel in personal vehicles. This
will drive the growth of housing and automobile sector, of which the Paint industry
will get its share.
6. Increasing Penetration in the Rural Markets: Paint usage in rural areas is
generally in the distemper segment, hence dominated by the unorganized players.
Demand in rural areas is dependent on agriculture,

which is dependent on the monsoons. With the development of irrigation facility, the
dependence of agricultural output on monsoons will be on a decreasing trend. Also,
with the modernization of agriculture and accompanying development of rural India,
consumer preferences are expected to improve. Paint companies are expanding
their distribution network in rural parts of India, which is a relatively untapped market
for the organized players. These factors supported by the increasing penetration of
the paint companies will help drive the demand for paints.

Main Concerns of the Paint Industry

• Cost of raw materials: The Cost of Raw materials is an important factor as the
industry is raw material intensive. Fluctuation in the prices of Titanium dioxide and
Petroleum directly affect the production cost. This is more of a concern for the
Industrial segment as compared to the Decorative Segment, as it is comparatively
easier to pass on the costs in case of decorative paints. Also, a large portion of raw
materials are imported, leaving the cost factor vulnerable to exchange rate
fluctuation.
• MNC‟s entering the Indian Paint Market: The entry of Established foreign players
in the Indian market may increase the competition among the players of the industry.
This may lead to price competition which may impact the profit margin of the
companies. As a result, the increase in volume growth may not equally reflect in the
profit growth for the companies.

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Paint Industry Prospects
The market for paints in India is expected to grow at 1.5 times to 2 times GDP in the
next five years. With GDP growth expected to be over 7% levels, the top three
players are likely to clock above industry growth rates, especially given the fact that
protection that was available to unorganised players has come down significantly.
Decorative paints segment is expected to witness higher growth going forward. The
fiscal incentives given by the government to the housing sector have benefited the
housing sector immensely. This will benefit key players in the long term. Although
the demand for industrial paints is lukewarm it is expected to increase going forward.
This is on account of increasing investments in infrastructure. Domestic and global
auto majors have long term plans for the Indian market, which augur well for
automotive paint manufacturers like Kansai Nerolac and Asian-PPG. Increased
industrial paint demand, especially powder coatings and high performance coatings
will also propel top line growth of paint majors in the medium term.

Top Paint Brands in India

Goodlass Nerolac: - This company’s paint decors every third car in the country. It is
the market leader in the industrial paint segment supplying over 90% of the
requirements and has planned to increase its presence in the decorative segment
through aggressive new product development and brand building. They are the
second largest company in India in the decorative segment with a market share of
around 20%. They are the leaders in powder coatings. Goodlass Nerolac Paints Ltd
is a subsidiary of Kansai Paint Company Limited, which is the largest paint
manufacturing company in Japan and among the top ten coating companies of the
world, with a human asset of over 1900 professionals and a sales turnover of Rs.
925 crores. This company started in 1920 as Gahagan Paints and Varnish Co. Ltd.
at Lower Parel in Bombay. In 1930, three British companies merged to formulate
Lead Industries Group Ltd. In 1933, Lead Industries Group Ltd. acquired entire share
capital of Gahagan Paints in 1933 and thus, Goodlass Wall (India) Ltd. was born.
Subsequently, by 1946, Goodlass Wall (India) Ltd. was known as Goodlass Wall Pvt.
Ltd. In 1957, Goodlass Wall Pvt. Ltd. grew popular as Goodlass Nerolac Paints (Pvt.)
Ltd. Also, it went public in the same year and established itself as Goodlass Nerolac
Paints Ltd. In 1976, Goodlass Nerolac Paints Ltd. became a part of the Tata Forbes
Group on acquisition of a part of the foreign shareholdings by Forbes Gokak. In
1983, Goodlass Nerolac Paints Ltd. strengthened itself by entering in technical
collaboration agreements with Kansai Paints Co. Ltd., Japan and Nihon Tokushu
Toryo Co. Ltd.,
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 Japan. In 1986, Goodlass Nerolac Paints Ltd. turned into a joint venture of the Tata
Forbes and the Kansai Paints with the latter acquiring 36% of its share capital. In
1999, Kansai Paints Company Ltd., Japan took over the entire stake of Tata Forbes
group. During this journey, Nerolac has entered into technical collaborations with
other industry leaders such as E.I. Du-Pont de Nemours & Company Inc., USA and
Oshima Kogya Company Ltd., Japan for different products.
Berger Paints: - This company started in 1947 as British Paints when it acquired
Hadfield's (India) Limited, a paint company that produced 150 tonnes of ready mixed
stiff paints, varnishes and distempers. Sales offices were opened in Delhi and
Mumbai and in 1951 a depot was started in Guwahati. Sales rose to Rs.60 lakhs in
1952. The Company declared its first dividend and shifted the H.O. to 32,
Chowringhee Road, Calcutta. By 1959, modernization of the Howrah Factory was
completed and the first Resin Plant commissioned. With that, the Company entered
the Synthetics Paints mar
By 1965 British Paints (Holdings) Limited, UK was acquired by Celanese
Corporation, U. S.A. As a result, the controlling interest of British Paints (India)
Limited passed on to Cel. Euro N.V., Holland.
In 1969 Celanese Corporation sold their interest in the Indian Company to Berger
Jenson Nicholson Limited, UK.
In 1975, the foreign holding of the Company was reduced from 60% to 45% through
a Public issue. A year later the foreign holding was diluted to below 40% by sale of a
portion of the shares to the UB Group.
In 1983, the name of the Company was changed to Berger Paints India Limited
(BPIL) and by this time the Berger's operations were divisionalized into the Retail
Business Line (RBL) and the Industrial Business Line (IBL) in order to better cater to
the needs of the customers. During this period many new products were launched
like "Luxol Silk" the first premium emulsion in India, Viton Refinish for cars, Bison
Acrylic Distemper and Rangoli Acrylic Emulsion.
In 1990‟s, „Berger Pro Links‟, a service aimed at providing paint and application
related information to professionals, was introduced marking one of the first steps
into painting related services. In 1991, the stake of the UB Group in the Company
was purchased, by Mr. K S

Dhingra, Mr. G S Dhingra and their associates. The sales of the company touched
276 crores by 1995-96. The latter half of the nineties saw Berger attain the ISO -
9000 certification (1996) and establishment of Berger's Quality Management System.
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Colour Bank tinting system was also launched through which the consumer can
select from a range of over 5000 colours and which are then made available in
minutes. As part of its expansion program, a new paint-manufacturing unit at
Pondicherry was commissioned in early 1997. Berger Paints Home Decor a
complete painting solution service was launched making painting a hassle free
activity for consumers. An illusion multichrome finishes was also introduced as
"designer finishes for walls" allowing consumers to transform their walls into fashion
statements. This is a first for the Indian paint industry.
ICI India was the subsidiary of the $15 billion British multinational company ICI Plc.
Brunner Mond & Co., one of the four Companies that combined to form ICI in UK in
1926, opened a trading office to sell alkalis and dyes in Calcutta. In 1923, Brunner
Mond & Co. (India) was incorporated and the company's name was subsequently
changed to Imperial Chemical Industries (India) Ltd., in 1929. During its 70 years in
India, ICI had created six subsidiary companies in businesses such as research,
chlorine, caustic soda, paints, rubber chemicals, explosives, polyester fiber, urea,
agro-chemicals, seeds, pharmaceuticals, specialty chemicals, polyurethane,
nitrocellulose, and surfactants. In 1984, all ICI companies consolidated in one of the
largest mergers in Indian corporate history.

By 1997, as a part of a restructuring exercise ICI had exited or was planning to exit
from several non-core businesses. The 1996 sales break up was as follows: Paints
43%, Explosives 28%, Rubber chemicals 17%, Pharmaceuticals 8%, and Other
Products 4%. ICI (India) ranked No. 4 in the paint business, after Asian Paints,
Goodlass Nerolac Paints and Berger Paints. Unlike the other paint companies ICI
(India) was a diversified unit and paint constituted 43% of its net sales. ICI (India)‟s
turnover in 1996-97 was $180 million and paint amounted to $77.4 million. ICI
identified paints as a thrust area and was aggressively moving to improve their
position.

They invested $11 million in a new decorative paints plant near Bombay and were
constructing a $16.7 million plant for industrial paints near Chandigarh in North India.
ICI (India) intends to go on an offensive with a target of achieving ten-fold growth in
10 years. The „10X Plan‟, as it was called, envisaged a strategy based on
acquisitions, take-over and alliances.
Asian Paints: - Asian Paints Limited was established in 1942 as a partnership firm by
four friends Champaklal H. Choksey, Chimanlal N. Choksi, Suryakant C. Dani and
Arvind R. Vakil to manufacture paints in a garage in Mumbai (Bombay).
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From its humble beginnings, the company has moved on to become the largest
paints company in India with a market share of 30 percent. The company with a
turnover of US$ 535 million on standalone basis and US$ 640 million on
consolidated basis (including turnover of all its subsidiaries) is one of the top ten
decorative paints companies in the world. Its reach and dominance in the Indian
market can be gauged from the fact that it is more than twice the size of its neares
competitor in India and it has been the market leader in paints industry in India since
1968.The company operates in 22 countries and has 29 paint manufacturing plants
in the world which service consumers in over 65 countries. The company operates
around the world on its own and also through its three subsidiaries Berger
International Limited, Apco Coatings and SCIB Chemicals.The company aims to
become one of the top five decorative paint companies in the world and has
embarked on an aggressive strategy of expanding its global operations. The
promoters hold the majority stake in the company (46.8 per cent of the equity stake).
The next largest shareholders are the foreign institutional investors (19.5 per cent
stake), followed by Indian public (16.5 per cent stake). Domestic banks, financial
Institutions, mutual funds and insurance companies hold 13.4 per cent stake.
Corporate bodies and non-resident Indians hold the remaining stake.

Company Philosophy
Purpose of Corporate Philosophy
An effective corporate philosophy helps a company develop a certain corporate
culture, ethical practices and strengthens the relationship between employers and
employees. It also positions the values of the company in the minds of others both
within and outside of the organization. Your corporate philosophy should give
employees a starting point for the decision-making process, so they are all operating
on the same page. Developing a corporate philosophy gives you something against
which you can compare candidates for new positions, thereby helping you make
hiring decisions based on whether an individual will fit within your corporate culture.
Creating a Corporate Philosophy
One of the first things to consider when creating a corporate philosophy is the
purpose of your business. A company’s philosophy can contain similar verbiage as a
company’s mission statement, but in more detail. For example, the mission
statement of a major search engine company is, “To organize the world's information
and make it universally accessible and useful."
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A portion of that company’s corporate philosophy includes the statement, “We do
search. With one of the world’s largest research groups focused exclusively on
solving search problems, we know what we do well, and how we could do it better.”
By reading these and other similar statements in its corporate philosophy, you can
ascertain its mission.

Corporate Philosophy Benefits

Small businesses benefit greatly from developing a corporate philosophy. A primary
benefit of a corporate philosophy is that it helps to build long-lasting, trusting
relationships between your business and clients. You should implement your
corporate philosophy within every level of your company, which allows customers to
trust that they will receive the same professional treatment throughout the
organization. A corporate philosophy also builds consistency between your
employees. When employees are familiar with the company’s philosophy, it makes
the integration of new hires easier and helps current employees embrace changes
within company that follow the corporate philosophy. Another benefit of a corporate
philosophy is that it can possibly give your company a competitive advantage
because you possess a clear vision of how you want customers and competitors to
perceive your business.

.
Company History and Milestone
The name Berger or Lewis Berger is today synonymous with colour worldwide.But
actually the origin of the name dates back to over two & a half centuries in England
in 1760, when a young colour chemist named Lewis Berger, started manufacturing in
Europe, 'Prussian blue' using a secret process that every designer and householder
coveted. Mr. Berger perfected this process & art of the blue colour, which was the
colour of most military uniform of that time. Enriched by the imagination of Lewis
Berger, the unending quest for creation and innovation in the world of colour & paints
still continues.
The history of Berger Paints India Limited as a company started in 1923 as
Hadfield's (India) Limited which was a small colonial venture producing ready- mixed
stiff paints, varnishes and distempers setup on a 2 acres of land in one of India's first
industrial towns close to Kolkata in Howrah, Bengal. Subsequently in 1947.

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 British Paints (Holdings) Limited, an international consortium of paint manufacturing
companies bought over Hadfield's (India) Limited and thus the name changed to
British Paints (India) Ltd.The gentleman who took over, as its first managing director
was Mr. Alexender Vernon Niblet, an Englishman who was later on followed by Mr.
Alfred Godwin in 1962.
Further in the year 1965, the share capital of British Paints (Holdings) Limited was
acquired by Celanese Corporation, USA and the controlling interest of British Paints
(India) Ltd was acquired by CELEURO NV, Holland, a Celanese subsidiary.
Subsequently in 1969, the Celanese Corporation sold its Indian interests to Berger,
Jenson & Nicholson, U.K. Then onwards the company British Paints (India) Ltd
became a member of the worldwide BERGER group having its operations across
oceans in numerous geographies and this marked the beginning of Lewis Berger's
legacy in India – which the company would later take forward to enviable heights.
From 1973 the company entered into one of its dynamic phases of business with
introduction of new generation products in the industrial, marine and decorative
segments under the able leadership of it first Indian Managing Director Mr.
Dongargaokar Madhukar.
Year 1976 was another turning point in the history of the company when the foreign
holding in the company was diluted to below 40% by sale of a portion of the shares
to the UB Group controlled by Mr. Vittal Mallya. The reins of the company were taken
over by Mr. Biji K Kurien as its Chief Executive & Managing Director in the year
1980. Finally, in the year 1983, the British Paints (India) Limited, changed its name
to Berger Paints India Limited.
The entire 80s & 90s saw the lunch of many new products from company's stable
such as premium emulsions and high quality acrylic distempers.
The COLOUR BANK tinting system was launched through which the consumer could
select from a range of over 5000 shades.
Again the fortunes of the company changed hands in 1991 with UB Group's stake in
the company bought over by the Delhi based Dhingra brothers, Mr. K.S. Dhingra &
Mr. G.S. Dhingra and their associates of the UK Paints Group. Presently Dhingras'
control a majority stake of almost 73% in Berger Paints India Limited, which is a
professionally managed organization, headquartered in Kolkata, with the
stewardship resting since 1994 until 2012 with the Managing Director Mr. Subir
Bose. The current managing director of Berger Paints India Ltd is Mr. Abhijit Roy.

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Company Background
Established in 17th December, 1923, the company then known as Hadfiled's (India)
Limited; was a small paint company based in Kolkata having its only manufacturing
facility at Howrah, West Bengal to produce ready mixed stiff paints, varnishes and
distempers. Post-independence, towards the end of 1947, British Paints (Holdings)
Limited, U.K acquired Hadfield's (India) Limited and thus British Paints (India)
Limited was incorporated.
From a production capacity of 150 tonnes and sales turnover of around Rs. 25 lakhs
in 1947, the company has come a long way to become at one point of time; a part of
the worldwide BERGER group in 1983 and thereby acquiring its present name
Berger Paints India Limited to having subsequently gone through further ups &
downs as well as ownership changes to gain its present status wherein the majority
stake is with Delhi based Dhingra brothers and business revenue more than Rs 2400
crs.
Today Berger Paints India Limited, having solely used and developed the name and
trademark BERGER and all its variants in India, is a household name in paint. With
Head Office in Kolkata the company manufactures and markets a range of
decorative & industrial paint products under various product brands and has it
operations spread throughout the length & breath of the country; with seven
manufacturing facilities in India and more than 85 depots, several regional & area
offices, besides four facilities overseas. It has a workforce of over 2500 employees
and a countrywide distribution network of 15000 plus dealers.
Berger Paints has clearly demonstrated its commitment to Indian consumers for over
88 years, by offering its varied range of high performing quality products backed by
highest level of customer service. Company's high ethical standards in business
dealings and its on-going efforts in community welfare make Berger Paints India
Limited a responsible corporate citizen.
While the company's decorative and Industrial paints continue to gain an increasing
market share, Berger as an organization has managed to achieve sustainable
competitive advantage through innovations in all spear of business, desire to excel
and by creating a winning culture & abiding faith in its values & philosophy among all
its stakeholders.
With Berger Paints we can now see your imagination of colour unfurl in front of your
eyes and watch your home come alive, telling a thousand tales.

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Transform our home with the POWER OF IMAGINATION.
Board of Directors
Mr. Kuldip Singh Dhingra (Chairman) Mr. Gurbachan Singh Dhingra (Vice-
Chairman) Mr. Abhijit Roy (Managing Director) Mr. Subir Bose (member in the Board
of the Company.) Mr. Anil Bhalla Mr. Gerald Kenneth Adams Mr. Gurcharan Das Mr.
Kamal Ranjan das Mr. Pulak Chandan Prasad Mr. Srijit Dasgupta Mrs. Rishma Kaur
Mr. Kanwardeep Singh Dhingra.
Landmark Projects
The Calcutta Club was set up in 1907 in response to the discriminatory practices of
the Bengal Club which admitted only white members. Today, it is not just popular but
also one of the most prestigious clubs in the city. A membership to the club is so
coveted and the list of prospective members believed to be so large, that it takes
over a year before the screening committee finds time to consider the suitability of an
applicant

A high rise condominium spread over five acres, Teen Kanya overlooks Lake
Nucifera. The three towers, 16 storied each, arranged in a semi circle overlook the
100-acre water body. Plenty of natural light, perfect cross ventilation and a whole
host of state-of-the-art amenities make the flats of Teen Kanya, in Action Area II of
Rajarhat, perfect for living. Living here is like living in the heart of nature with all the
modern facilities you can dream of.

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 Rs. 275 crores was poured into making the mall and the five-star hotel of City
Centre II – a multi-utility urban infrastructure project. The project, which took three
years to get completed, is built on five acres of land. City Centre II, at Rajarhat is just
3 km from the Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport. It has been
designed to give a boost to the hotel business while the mall caters to the people of
north Kolkata largely.

In 1994 as a development and maintenance services arm of The Dun & Bradstreet
Corporation and Satyam Computers and Services Ltd., blossomed into an
independent organization called Cognizant in a matter of two years. One of the first
IT services companies with key industry verticals as well as technology horizontals.

15
Berger’s Presence in India

16
Berger’s Presence All Over the World

Apart from operations in Russia, with a production facility at the Berger

manufacturing unit at Krasnodar, Berger has also expanded its footprint in Nepal by
setting up a second unit. Today Berger’s sister company in Bangladesh is the
dominant leader with 65% market share. In keeping with the company‟s dynamic
growth plan, Berger has also acquired Bolix SA of Poland, a leading provider of
External Insulation Finishing System (EIFS) in Eastern Europe. As Berger continues
to grow internationally, it also continues to be the second largest paint company in
India. Berger is the lone supplier of Nuclear Power Plants with its Protective
Coatings. The automotive sectors, be it cars or bikes, is primarily ruled by Berger’s
automotive coatings. Luxury cars including Mercedes make use of Berger products.
Companies like Nokia uses

Market Share of Industrial Paints

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 Market Share of Industrial Paints

Goodlass Nerolac Paints Ltd. Asian Paints (India) Ltd. Berger Paints (India) Ltd.
ICI India (Ltd.) Shalimar Paints Ltd. Others

17%

41%
8%

9%

10%
15%

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Market Share of Decorative Paints

Market Share of Decorative Paints

Asian Paints (India) Ltd. Goodlass Nerolac Paints Ltd. Berger Paints (India) Ltd.
Shalimar Paints Ltd. Others
ICI India (Ltd.)

25%
38%

6%

8%

9% 14%

Marketing Mix in relation to Berger Paints

Marketing decisions fall into four main controllable categories namely
Product Place Price Promotion
Relating these factors with respect to Berger Paints
Product: - Berger is committed to offer quality products that satisfy consumers‟
ultimate desires from paints with the help of state-of–art technology. Berger always
believes in one step ahead in offering new product to create more value for
customers‟ money. Berger outsmarts other competitors of the market through its one
step in advance policy and innovative market offers.

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Berger is trying to fill up all holes of the market through offering a wide range of
products to meet the needs (Premium to Economy Paints) of different types of users
and to solve the different types of functional requirements (Industrial, Decorative &
Marine).
Due to shift in market growth trends Berger is trying to establish itself in the
economy segment of the paint market.
Place: - Another major component of marketing mix is place. During our visit at
BERGER I was able to include inventory, transportation, coverage, channel, logistics
and market and market segments etc. under these marketing mix components.
Differentiated market segment
Berger’s market segments are differentiated. They use different types of marketing
mix for different segments. Their product quality, advertisement, promotional
techniques, price are high for upper class customers. Again for the people of middle
class on the basis of their income, occupation, taste, lifestyle different marketing
policies are applied. We can observe this deviation in TV advertisement.
Inventory
BERGER has divided their products in A, B, C category. For inventorying their
products BERGER is following some storing norms. Depending on this storing norms
company decides how long their product will stay in the market in accordance with
the existing sales trend of that particular product. This is how the firm can determine
when to order and how much to order.
Transportation
To ensure customer satisfaction BERGER uses modern and fastest going covered
van as transportation carrier while moving goods from depots to dealers. But when
they move goods from factory to depots they uses public transportation carriers such
as truck and railway as rental basis.
Distribution network
With Head Office in Kolkata the company manufactures and markets a range of
decorative & industrial paint products under various product brands and has it
operations spread throughout the length & breath of the country; with seven
manufacturing facilities in India and more than 85 depots, several regional & area
offices, besides four facilities overseas. It has a workforce of over 2500 employees
and a countrywide distribution network of 15000 plus dealers.

20
The orders are collected by the sales executives and passed on to the nearest
depot. The depots are fed by regional warehouses. These depots maintain a
minimum order quantity which is arrived at from the monthly demand forecast.
The material is dispatched from the depot in the name of the dealer. Generally, some
orders of the same region are clubbed together and dispatched in trucks. Finally, the
truck is unloaded and the small orders of the dealers are dispatched to them.

Manufacturing Unit Manufacturing Unit Manufacturing Unit

Depot Depot Depot Depot Depot

Dealer Dealer Dealer Dealer Dealer

Dealer Dealer

Fe BERGER
ed Pr
ba od
ck uct
Customer Retail
Fe Depots
ed
ba Pr
ck od
uct Feed back
Direct dealers

Feed back Customer Wholesale

21
Price: - In the paints industry price is the used only as a differentiator between the
various segments in the same product line. The prices of different brands in the
same segment remain more or less similar, with just a difference of 30 to 40 paise
per square feet. Some of the speciality products, which are not produced by all
brands, may be priced at a higher price.
Pricing decisions in the paint industry largely depend on the price of the inputs like
petro products, other raw materials, excise duties and taxes and the general
operating profits. Generally, increase or decrease of prices is effected across all
brands in the market. Most of the paint companies offer a 5% margin to the dealer.
Due to internal competition, the dealers pass on this advantage to the customers by
reducing their own margins to 2-3%. This is a cause of concern for the paint
companies because they have to keep a constant check on the prices offered in the
market. The dealers offer more of discounts and the companies are not able to firm
up the prices. Paint companies offer a lot of discounts like cash discounts, volume
discounts, seasonal discounts and allowances. The dealers take advantage of these
discounts to gather more business.
Promotion: - The paint industry until 1999 was concentrated mostly on increasing
sales by intensive trade promotion wherein the dealers, contractors and other
components of the supply chain. There was little emphasis on theme advertising
directed towards the customer. A recent trend that is emerging in the Indian paint
market is that the major brands have all identified the importance of reaching out to
the common man instead of just limiting themselves to the intermediaries.
Advertising strategy: BERGER follows different strategy for developing its strategy. It
depends on some characteristics that is product life time, brand etc. Media: Berger
used different media for advertising like- on-air advertisement, television, newspaper,
magazines. The dealers are educated with the company background, products and
service etc. The time to time selling incentive are given by company according to
performance of dealer and market demand. In-Store Displays: Point-of-Purchase,
Berger paints Banners, Demonstrations of colour on wall, etc. are provided by the
company. Temporary Price Reduction (TPR): They get margins plus some incentives
promotion scheme to maintain the dealer. Contests: Dealer to dealer contest is kept
to promote push strategy and best dealer gets the reward. Berger paints likes to do
the same within same geographic areas. Sampling: Allowing the dealer to
experience the product or service by providing free samples so as he can promote
word of mouth. Berger’s sales promotion consists of short-term incentives to
encourage the purchase of sale of a product or services. Berger Paint’s advertising
has created brand awareness, highlighted what the brand has to offer and has
consistently brought all of it top-of-the-mind for the customer. But the outreach effort
does not end there. Berger Paints has recognized the importance of communicating
to and involving key players who influence the final brand choice.
22
These include channel partners, contractors and painters, on whom Berger Paints
focuses by initiating and developing innovative activities and promotions. This helps
build the Berger Paints family so that customers get a high degree of personalized
service and professional guidance to facilitate their final decision.
Sales Promotion:
Sales Promotion is an important component of marketing communications mix. It
adds an extra value to the product and hence prompts the dealer or consumer to buy
the product. In a specific
sense, sales promotion includes those sales activities that supplement both personal
selling and advertising, and coordinate them and make them effective, such as
displays, shows, demonstrations and other non-recurrent selling efforts not in the
ordinary routine.
Sales promotion can be used:
For facilitating introduction of new products for overcoming unique competitive
situation for unloading accumulated inventory for overcoming seasonal slumps for
getting new accounts for retrieving lost accounts as a support and supplement to the
advertising effort as a support and supplement to the salesmen‟s effort for
persuading salesmen to sell the full line of product For persuading the dealer to buy
more or increase the size of order

Commonly Used Tools and Techniques of Sales Promotion: Demonstrations Trade

Fairs and Exhibition Coupons, Premiums, Free offers, Price-offs, etc. Free samples
Joint Promotion Contests (consumer contests, dealer contests) Merchandising or
Display Sales promotion on the internet

The company has been concentrating more on sales promotion than on advertising.
On analysing the customer survey data, it becomes evident that since the customer
is returning to the store after an average of about three years it is better to
concentrate more on the dealers who are in the
business throughout the year. Keeping this in mind the company‟s decision of doing
more sales promotion than advertising stands justified. Sales promotion can broadly
be divided into two categories: 1) Customer promotion – this section includes all the
sales promotion activities directed towards the customers.

23
 Scratch cards that are provided with specific size of packages are examples. The
company comes out with many different sales promotion schemes during the festival
season, especially the durga puja festival in Orissa and West Bengal.

There are a number of gifts and schemes on the larger packs. Coupons and free
gifts are offered on packs of more than 10 kgs. The company also offers a large
number of services to the customers to assist them in their buying decisions. These
services are offered on the company‟s website to make it accessible to a very wide
range of customers. 2) Trade promotion – As part of the company‟s policy, huge
emphasis is given on trade promotion. The dealers and contractors who are a part of
the distribution chain are given special attention. The company comes up with
several incentive schemes for the dealers. The most popular schemes include cash
discounts, foreign trips and gifts such as refrigerators etc. for dealers who succeed in
meeting or exceeding pre-determined sales targets. The company also organizes
regional dealer meets regularly. Here the dealers are briefed about the company’s
new products and the technical details and application procedures of these products.
The company also aims at building and retaining dealer loyalty through these
meetings.

24
INTRODUCTION ON THE TOPIC

Why Organizations Focus on Customer Satisfaction

Businesses monitor customer satisfaction in order to determine how to increase their customer
base, customer loyalty, revenue, profits, market share and survival. Although greater profit is
the primary driver, exemplary businesses focus on the customer and his/her experience with
the organization. They work to make their customers happy and see customer satisfaction as

the key to survival and profit. Customer satisfaction in turn hinges on the quality and effects of
their experiences and the goods or services they receive.

Customer Satisfaction
The definition of customer satisfaction has been widely debated as organizations increasingly
attempt to measure it. Customer satisfaction can be experienced in a variety of situations and
connected to both goods and services. It is a highly personal assessment that is greatly affected
by customer expectations.

Satisfaction also is based on the customer’s experience of both contact with the organization
(the “moment of truth” as it is called in business literature) and personal outcomes. Some
researchers define a satisfied customer within the private sector as “one who receives
significant added value” to his/her bottom line—a definition that may apply just as well to
public services. Customer satisfaction differs depending on the situation and the product or
service. A customer may be satisfied with a product or service, an experience, a purchase
decision, a salesperson, store, service provider, or an attribute or any of these.

25
Some researchers completely avoid “satisfaction” as a measurement objective because it is “too
fuzzy an idea to serve as a meaningful benchmark.”4 Instead, they focus on the customer’s
entire experience with an organization or service contact and the detailed assessment of that
experience.

For example, reporting methods developed for health care patient surveys often ask customers
to rate their providers and experiences in response to detailed questions such as, “How well did
your physicians keep you informed?” These surveys provide “actionable” data that reveal
obvious steps for improvement. Customer satisfaction is a highly personal assessment that is
greatly influenced by individual expectations

Some definitions are based on the observation that customer satisfaction or dissatisfaction
results from either the confirmation or disconfirmation of individual expectations regarding a
service or product. To avoid difficulties stemming from the kaleidoscope of customer
expectations and differences, some experts urge companies to “concentrate on a goal that’s
more closely linked to customer equity.” Instead of asking whether customers are satisfied,
they encourage companies to determine how customers hold them accountable Customer
satisfaction, a business term, is a measure of how products and services supplied by a company
meet or surpass customer expectation. It is seen as a key performance indicator within business

Customer satisfaction depends on the product’s performance relative to a buyer’s expectation,

the customer is dissatisfied. If preference matches expectations, the customer is satisfied. If
preference is exceeds expectation, the customer is highly satisfied or delighted outstanding
marketing insurance companies go out of their way to keep their customer satisfied. Satisfied
customers make repeat purchases insurance products and tell other about their good
experiences with the product.

The key is to match customer expectations with company performance. Smart insurance
company’s aim to delight customers by promising only what they can deliver, then delivering
more than the promise.

26
 Consumers usually face a broad array of products and services that might satisfy a given need.
How do they choose among these many marketing makers offers? Consumers make choices
based on their perception of the value and satisfaction that various products and services
deliver.

Customer value is the difference between the values the customer gains from owning and using
a product and the costs of obtaining the products customers from expectations about the value
of various marketing offers and buy accordingly. How do buyers from their expectations?
Customer expectations are based on past buying experiences, the opinion of friends and
marketer and competitor information and promises.

Customer satisfaction with a purchase depends on how well the product’s performance lives
up to the customers’ expectations. Customer satisfaction is a key influence on future buying
behavior.

Satisfied customers buy again and tell others about their good experiences dies-satisfied
customers of ten switches to competitors and disparage the products to others. An insurance
provider opens only to active duty, retired and separated military members and their immediate
families and therefore not included in the rankings, achieved a satisfaction ranking equal to
that any insurance company.

In general, customer satisfaction with auto insurance providers decreased significantly, with
20 of the 21 companies surveyed decreasing in satisfaction from the previous year. Insurance
is the only carrier that did not experience a decline in satisfaction. Though consumers report
their insurance carriers are resolving their claims and problems faster. Businesses survive
because they have customers who are willing to buy their products or services. However, many
businesses fails to “check in” with their customers to determine whether they are happy or not
and what it will make to make or keep them happy.

27
According to U.S consumers’ affairs department, it costs five times more to gain a new
customer than to retain an existing one. Other studies have repeated that with just a five percent
increase in Customer retention’s a firm can raise its profitability customers spend salary at first,
but with succeeding years of good experience, they will spend increasingly more.

Depending on the industry and the nature of the bad experience, dissatisfied customers will
complain to 10 to 20 friends and acquaintances, which is three times more than those with good
experiences are. Hence, the negative information is influential, and consumers generally place
significant weight on it when making a decision. If that is not the reason enough, fierce
competitor is needed more and more to differentiate firms from one another. With technology
available to virtually everyone today, the traditional features and cost advantages are no longer
relevant. Still product and service quality provides an enormous opportunity to distinguish a
firm from the rest. The Japanese have recognized this and have though us to expect quality.
Today’s consumers do, and they know more about products and services than they ever did.

Customers are the best source of information. Whether to improve an existing product or
service or whether firms are planning to launch something new. There is no substitution for
“getting it from horse’s mouth” When you talk to your customer directly, to increase your odds
for achieving success you “mistake- proof” your decisions and work on what really matters.

Customer Satisfaction Measurement: -

A basic and effective base line customer satisfaction survey program should focus on
measuring customer perceptions of how will the company delivers on the critical success
factors and dimensions of the business as defined by the customers:

For example:

 Service Promptness
 Courtesy of Staff

28
  Responsiveness
 Understanding the customer problem, etc.

The findings of the company performance should be analyzed both with all customers and by
key segments of the customer population. The essential starting point for Customer Satisfaction
Measurement (CMS) is exploratory research. Since satisfaction is about an organization’s
ability. To meet customer requirement, one has to start by clarifying with customers exactly
what those requirements are. This is done through exploratory research using focus groups or
one to one depth interviews.

Two main factors determine the accuracy of CMS. The first is the asking the right question and
the second is the asking them to the right people sample of customers which accurately reflects
the customer base.

Three things decide the accuracy of a sample. They are:

 It must be representative.
 It must be randomly selected.
 It must be adequate enough

Measuring customer satisfaction: -

Organizations need to retain existing customers while targeting non-customers. Measuring

customer satisfaction provides an indication of how successful the organization is at providing
products and/or services to the marketplace.

Customer satisfaction is an abstract concept and the actual manifestation of the state of
satisfaction will vary from person to person and product/service to product/service. The state
of satisfaction depends on a number of both psychological and physical variables which
correlate with satisfaction behaviours such as return and recommend rate. The level of
satisfaction can also vary depending on other factors the customer, such as other products
against which the customer can compare the organization's products.

29
Work done by Parasuraman, Zeithaml and Berry (Leonard L) between 1985 and 1988 delivered
SERVQUAL which provides the basis for the measurement of customer satisfaction with a
service by using the gap between the customer's expectation of performance and their perceived
experience of performance. This provides the researcher with a satisfaction "gap" which is
semi-quantitative in nature. Cronin and Taylor extended the disconfirmation theory by
combining the "gap" described by Parasuraman, Zenithal and Berry as two different measures
(perception and expectation) into a single measurement. performance relative to expectation.

The usual measures of customer satisfaction involve a survey with a set of statements using a
Linker Technique or scale. The customer is asked to evaluate each statement in terms of their
perception and expectation of performance of the service being measured.

Review of Literature

Product cost:

Berger makes it possible to bring the best painting solutions at affordable prices. They have
different category of product with different price. Product costing is defined as a process of
estimating the cost of a final product at design stage (Sheldon et al, 1991). Ulaga and Eggert
(2006) point out that manager identify direct product costs, i.e. the price charged by a supplier,
as the key relationship cost-driver. With regard to the effect of price on customer satisfaction
in the context of manufacturing firms, Fynes and Voss (2001) found both constructs to be
inversely related. On the other hand, we found no studies with a direct influence of price on
customer loyalty. Whitney (1987) pointed out the predominant percentage of manufacturing
cost of a product is determined at product design stage. Therefore, estimating cost at design
stage, i.e. product costing, is one of the vital enablers for accurate pricing in customer
negotiation. Moreover, product costing is able to discover the linkages between design
specifications and cost factors and then find the method to reduce cost at early stage. Product
costing aims at estimating the cost of a product without complete information of process plan
or other production data.

30
There are a number of research perspectives in industry and academia. Alexander et al, (2002)
narrowed these methods down to three categories: analogous method, statistical method and
analytical method. Analogous methods suggest that similar products have similar costs. These
methods describe similarity as the level of correspondence of relevant characteristics
(Alexander et al, 2002). The degree of similarity in function or geometry is computed as the
distance between two similar items. One of the drawbacks of analogous methods is the
limitation of the number of characteristics. In addition, the information provided to search for
a similar product at early design stage is insufficient and the values of some characteristics may
be missing. Moreover, part of overhead cost (like inventory cost) is not related with the
specifications of product. Therefore, analogous methods are only suitable to estimate the costs
related with product features.

Product quality:

Berger Paints Produces decorative, industrial, marine, coatings along with binders/different
polymers (for paints and textile industry). The factories employ modern technologies for the
purpose that includes automatic and semi-automatic production and filling lines. Production
and quality testing machine from famous makers in Asia, Europe and America ensures
precision of operations and enviable quality of the product. Raw materials of consistent quality
from renowned brands are being used and the best of the professionals in the industry oversee
the production and quality assurance operations. People, mostly engineers and chemists, who
are considered as the most valuable resources at Berger. Berger thus ensures manufacture of
the best quality products at most competitive cost employing green manufacturing techniques.
There are some studies that found a positive effect of product quality on customer satisfaction
(Selnes, 1993; Janda et al, 2002; Chumpitaz and Paparoidamis, 2004), whereas the effect on
customer loyalty clearly lacks empirical support in the business-to-business context. In
consumer-based studies the positive link between product quality and loyalty has mostly been
confirmed for behavioural loyalty (Devarajet al, 2001; Espejelet al, 2007). The transcendent
definition of quality is derived from philosophy and borrows heavily from Plato‟s discussion
of beauty. From this viewpoint, quality is both absolute and universally recognizable.

31
According to Pirsing (1992, p.73), defining quality as excellence means that it is understood
“ahead of dimension as a direct experience independent of and prior to intellectual abstractions.
The product based approach has its roots in economics. Differences in the quantity of someone
ingredient or attribute possessed by the product are considered to reflect difference in quality
(Garvin, 1984). For example, better quality lines have a higher thread count. This view of
quality, based on a measurable characteristic of the product rather than on preferences, enables
a more objective assessment of quality. The manufacturing based approach has its roots in
operations and production management. Here quality is defined as conformance to specious
(Crosby, 1979). Quality of conformance relates to the degree to which a product meets certain
design standards. This definition has an internal focus, in contrast to the external focus of the
user based approach, and quality is considered as outcome of engineering and manufacturing
practices. It is the basis for statistical quality control. Deviation from design specifications
results in inferior quality, and consequently increased cost due to scrap, rework or product
failure. This definition allows for the precise and objective measurement of quality, although
it has limited applicability for service.

Delivery performance:

Berger always maintains proper delivery performance to meet customer demand. Because the
consumers don't care if a supplier or distributor had a problem. "If something goes wrong in
the supply chain, it ruins things for the consumer/end user". Their product delivery is always
accurate. Berger has a strong distribution channel and logistic support all over the country to
maintain proper delivery. Delivery performance, encompasses suppliers‟ ability to “meet
delivery schedules (on-time delivery), adjust to changes in delivery schedules (flexibility) and
consistently deliver the right parts (accuracy)” (Ulaga, 2003, p. 684). Compared to product
quality, empirical support for delivery performance as an antecedent of satisfaction and loyalty
is even more modest. The order-to-delivery (OTD) process is one of the most important
processes to manage. It can be defined as consisting of four sub-processes; customer‟s
ordering, supplier‟s delivery, logistics service provider‟s (LSP‟s) transportation, and
customer‟s goods receipt sub-process (Mattsson, 2004).

32
The performance of an OTD process concerns traditionally lead time and on-time delivery. In
a logistics context, lead time is typically defined as the elapsed time between recognition of the
need to order and the receipt of goods (Blackstone and Cox, 2005). On-time delivery is the
extent to which the lead time, and as a consequence the delivery date and the delivered quantity
corresponds to what has been confirmed (e.g. Forslundand Jonsson, 2007; Kallio et al, 2000).
There are, however, other performance dimensions that in order-by-order environments also
may be important: lead time variability, lead time adaptability and lead time flexibility. The
external view considers that the internal perspective is insufficient to develop all the company‟s
capabilities since some of them are created and strengthened by inter organizational
relationships with other firms in the same network. This analysis perspective suggests that a
company‟s critical resources can be expanded or constructed beyond the confines of the firm,
and be integrated in inter-business routines and processes (Dyer and Singh, 1998), by being
jointly directed at greater customer satisfaction (Zhao and Stank, 2003). In this context,
outsourcing finds new theoretical support by being developed from a strategic perspective, that
is, with the aim of obtaining a sustained competitive advantage. That requires relationships to
be maintained within a framework of long-term cooperation, with suppliers considered to be
partners (Pfohl and Buse, 2000).

Supplier:

A consumer products company remains profitable only if it has the right product at the right
price in the right place at the right time. However, getting these stars to line up only happens
when "the entire supply chain works as one. When BERGER places its logo on a product, the
logo represents "a seal of quality." Protecting that quality makes BERGER responsible for its
entire supply chain. Ulaga and Eggert (2006) identify supplier know-how and its capacity to
improve the timeto-market as two benefit dimensions in the area of “customer operations”.
Supplier performance has been positively linked to manufacturing firm performance (Shin et
al, 2000). If performance is affected by the quality of the relationship, then in order to sustain
performance, the relationship must be sustained. Fundamentally, the on-going relationship
between manufacturer and supplier is not important for its own sake.

33
Rather, a healthy relationship is important because it encourages more information sharing,
better communication, and more trust, each of which can improve planning, coordination,
problem solving, and adaptation (Fynes et al, 2005), and thus manufacturing firm performance.
It is important to understand how manufacturers react to supply failures and recoveries because
these reactions may be the antecedents to significant costs. A supply failure may induce the
manufacturing firm to invest in improving supplier capability up to required levels because
supply failures increase transaction costs (Forker, 1997; Krause, 1999). Lacking trust in
supplier reliability the manufacturing firm may expend resources and monies to identify back-
up suppliers, or add slack (e.g. inventory, longer lead times) to the system. A critical supply
failure, or a series of failures, can lead to potential relationship disintegration (Ellram, 1991;
Bowersox and Closs, 1996).

Time-to-market:

Maintaining liaison with nationwide dealers and also ensuring that Berger products are
available everywhere in the country. Marketing Department communicates internally on how
to bring new product and innovative painting solutions to meet the needs of various wants.
Linking consumers' needs with the capacity of fulfilling them, the marketing department
supervises Home Decor centers throughout the country. So Berger‟s products are available in
the market.

Time-to-market is the strategy of focusing on reducing the time to introduce new products to
market. According to Whitney, (1990), the process is self-contained with little if no outside
interference. The absence of manufacturing involvement, even in writing the manufacturing
process plan, increases the possibilities for redundant activities and reduces the chances for
getting the optimal design in shorter time. It has been found that 80-90 per cent of the time-
tomarket equation is absorbed in the design phase. Reducing this time is central to getting
products earlier to market. Further, 80per cent of a product‟s cost is committed during the
design phase, whereas design only absorbs 8 per cent of incurred costs.

34
The benefits of bringing products to market quicker than competitions are extra sales revenue
and earlier breakeven, extended sales life, premium price giving bonus profits from being first,
early introduction means “hooking” customers before competition and thus developing their
loyalty, and leading to increased market share.

Service support:

Berger has online customer support system to get advice from experts about their product. They
have care line to get direct support and any information regrinding their product. Customer
service is the ability to provide a service or product in the way that it has been
promised. Gronroos (200, p.46) defined service as, “A service is a process consisting of a series
of more or less intangible activities that normally, but not necessarily always take place
in interactions between the customer and service employees or physical resources or goods
and/or systems of the company, which are provided as solutions to customer problems”.
Customer service is the provision of service to customer before, during and after a
purchase. According to Turban et al. (2002), “Customer service is a series of activities designed
to enhance the level of customer satisfaction-that is, the feeling that a product or service
has met the customer expectation.” From the point of view of an overall sales process
engineering effort, customer service plays an important role in an organization‟s ability
to generate income and revenue (Paul H December 1998). From that perspective, customer
service should be included as part of an overall approach to systematic improvement. A
customer service experience can change the entire perception a customer has of the
organization. Customer service is a system of activities of a company or organization that
comprises customer support

system, complaint processing, speed of complaint processing, ease of reporting complaint

and friendliness when reporting complaint (Kim, park and jeong, 2004).

Personal Interaction:

Berger maintains a very good relationship with their customers and dealers.

35
Marketing department co-ordinates various events and activities as part of Berger‟s Corporate
Social Responsibilities.

For the last two years, Berger has been contributing to the welfare of autistic and differently
challenged children of Bangladesh. In addition to that, the department is also involved in
organizing BAEA (Berger Award for Excellence in Architecture), BASAB (Berger Award for
the Students of Architecture, BUET), BYPAC (Berger Young Painters‟ Art Competition),
Scholarship Program for the students of Architecture, Khulna University etc. The personal
interaction is acknowledged to represent one of the key issues in business and industrial
marketing, both in terms of practice and theory. Organizational relationships are always a result
of the actions of the individuals representing the organizations (Granovetter, 1985) and social
relationships form the channel for doing business (Halinen and To¨ rnroos, 1998). Personal
interaction was defined as a key element of interaction between organizations already in the
interaction approach (Ha kansson, 1982). Later research has defined basic and complex
functions for social relationships, with positive and possibly negative influences on business
relationships (Halinen and Salmi, 2001).The variety of the personal interaction in project
business relationships has been recognized at the community level in terms of relevant actors
in the project marketing milieu, a concept introduced by Cova et al (1996). Accordingly,
themilieu refers to the nature of the context in which project business firms operate. Within the
milieu, project business firms have to generate or maintain credibility and to be a part of
informational and social networks through personal interaction by individuals representing
them. Cova and Salle (2000) emphasize community level rituals in the interaction during the
sleeping relationship phase.