Coatings World - March 2011

Guangdong Carpoly

Carpoly Quick Facts

• 1993, “Carpoly” brand was created in Shunde.

• In 1999, Xinhui Carpoly Chemical Co., Ltd., was established in Jiangmen.

• End of 2002, Carpoly Group was formally established, with four regional companies in Guangdong, Sichuan, Shanghai and Hebei provinces.

• In 2010, Carpoly Group integrated Fabrico Chemical Co., Ltd. and Guangdong Zhenggao Industrial Co., Ltd. for IPO, and expanded the area of business ranging from paint to ink and packing areas.

• Carpoly Group employees: 2052

• Carpoly distributors: 1,250

• Carpoly retail stores/counter space: 12,179

• 2010 coatings sales: ~$300 million
•Partners/suppliers: Sinopec, Evonik, Rohm and Haas, Mitsui
Chemicals, BYK Additives and Instruments, Nuplex Resins, Kerr
McGee, DuPont, BASF, Sanmu Group and Yip’s Chemical.

• Markets served: Wood coatings, architectural coatings and industrial coatings.

• Sample projects: 2007 The Nest, Beijing; 2009 CCTV building, Beijing.

• In 2009, the latest World Brand Lab report ranked Carpoly paint number 298, and its value increased to 3 billion.

• From 2006-2009, Carpoly has been named one of Forbes Top 100 Companies in China.

tablished four regional companies—Guangdong Carpoly, Sichuan Carpoly, Shanghai Carpoly and Hebei Carpoly. Shangahi Carpoly just recently began production while Hebei Carpoly is under construction and will begin production next year. With these four bases of operation Carpoly can cover Eastern and Western China.

CW: What are the current important trends in the Chinese paint and coatings industry both positive and negative? Shuchao: China has more than 7,000 paint companies, tens of thousands of paint brands, but only 10 paint brands own a majority of the market share. The total market share and sales revenue of most brands in China is very limited. Over the next 10 years, at least 50 percent of the market share will focus on the small group of major brands. The emergence of news brand will be very limited. Because everyone is fighting for such limited space in the market, competition in the industry will become more intense.

CW: What is the situation in China in terms of raw material
availability? Do you source raw materials from within China,
from domestic or foreign firms?

Shuchao: Most of our raw materials come from domestic enterprises as well as some top-end materials come from well-known foreign companies. These raw materials are much more expensive but higher quality.

into the automotive coatings market as well. We hope to form cooperation through an acquisition or merger in the near future.

CW: How does Carpoly give back to the community? Shuchao: In addition to conducting business, Carpoly is also heavily focused on social responsibility in order to create a “green” living environment and a harmonious social environment. Since 2004, we have helped provide education to children who cannot afford it. Through this project Carpoly has supported more than 5,300 students in 27 provinces at a cost of $13 million.

CW: What is the key to grow market share?

Shuchao: The number of stores, store image, brand awareness and public praise are the four major elements for increasing market share. However, the most important element for increasing market share is the total number of stores in the market. Carpoly is represented in approximately 12,000 stores in China. The more stores we deliver our products from the greater the number of people we reach.

CW: How has Carpoly been affected by the global recession? Shuchao: We were not significantly affected by the global recession. Domestic demand did not decrease due to governmental policy. Carpoly’s main sales markets are concentrated in secondary and tertiary markets, which reduced the impact. During the global financial crisis of 2008 and 2009, Carpoly recorded 17 percent and 24 percent sales growth. However, due to weakness in the price of bulk raw materials, finished product prices have not changed too much.

CW: What is the one thing you worry most about Carpoly’s future in the Chinese paint and coatings industry? Shuchao: On one hand, we are worried about the high-end competition in the market, because as everyone knows the development of China’s coatings industry is in its infancy. We have to face the competition of the major international companies. On the other hand, we are concerned about our lack of skilled personnel, as well as the enhancement of human capacity needed to keep up with the development of enterprises. Human resources is the core competition of Carpoly Chemical Group.

CW: Where can we expect to see future investment from Carpoly
in terms of infrastructure expansion?

Shuchao: Carpoly’s external expansion started in 2008. We es-

CW: What is the one thing you look most forward to in terms of
future business?

Shuchao: What I look forward to the most is for Carpoly to be the leading company that creates environmentally friendly, healthy products for consumer. Leading the Chinese coating industry in this direction would be a great achievement. We also wish to cooperate with the major international coatings companies to produce high quality products that help contribute to a healthy living environment all over the world. CW