Interview: Great potential in the Indian market
India has been an interesting market for the international coatings and raw materials industry for years. Worlée-Chemie has been operating its own branch in Mumbai since 2007. We spoke with Annika Almstedt, who is responsible for the Indian market, about the potentials and challenges on the subcontinent.
Interview: Great potential in the Indian market. Image source: merklicht.de - stock.adobe.com
-How long has Worlée been active in India and what was the focus of the founding of a local branch?
Annika Almstedt: Worlée saw great potential in the Indian market early on and has been selling specialty additives in India since the 1990s. This was initially done by a partner, then these activities were strengthened by an Indian representative on site. The market demanded raw materials that had only been available in India in isolated cases until then. Worlée-Chemie India in Mumbai was founded in 2007 in order to be able to respond to customer requirements in a more targeted manner through the local branch office. Other reasons for setting up a branch office were also an increased market presence and faster response times. In addition, the know-how of Indian employees allows more attention to be paid to Indian specifics.
What potential do you see at the market in India?
Annika Almstedt
Export Manager, Worlée Chemie
Almstedt: On the one hand, we are observing generally high growth rates in the Indian market. In addition, the demand for innovative and high-quality industrial goods in India is constantly increasing. We have also observed that products “Made in Europe” are becoming increasingly popular. Worlée sees this as an opportunity to be successful through know-how and high quality products.
What challenges are there in the Indian market?
Almstedt: One challenge is the lower price level, which is also partly favoured by competition from other Asian nations. The Indian market is also characterised by higher administrative costs. In addition, there are also climatic extremes, which pose a challenge both for industrial applications and for comparison with our laboratory in Germany, especially in terms of comparability.
