|
Paper and packaging major JK Paper plans to sustain its market leadership in the copier paper segment in the Northeast through adoption of newer technologies and expansion of its distribution network.
“We perceive the Northeast as an important market for our brands. As a matter of fact, we have been consistently focusing our attention on the region’s market in the past 18 years. The region will be key to JK Paper’s marketing strategy, particularly after commissioning of a new paper machine at our Odisha unit,” A.K. Ghosh, vice-president (marketing and sales) of the company told The Telegraph.
The company enjoys a 60 per cent market share in the Northeast and according to company sources, the plan is to take it beyond 70 per cent in the next three years. “Our total volume of sales in the region is estimated at 650 million tonnes per month,” the official said.
The total copier paper market in India is of the size of 5.4 lakh million tonnes. “JK Paper enjoys 28 per cent market share in the country, which will increase to aro-und 32 per cent after commissioning of the Odisha unit in the first quarter of 2013-14,” Ghosh said.
The company is also looking at strengthening its distribution network. “We have 15 dealers in the region and plan to add another seven to eight in the next two years,” a company source said.
“After the start of production from our new plant in Odisha, we will be making efforts to fill up the gaps that exist in the Northeast market. This, we believe, will strengthen our distribution network,” Ghosh said.
The paper major is eyeing augmentation of sales after being the only Indian company to secure ColorLok technology for producing high-quality paper from Hewlett Packard.
“Colorlok paper is easy to recycle as the ink is firmly put up on the surface of the paper and therefore consumes lower energy and less amount of water. The paper can also be de-inked for recycling. The technology facilitates superior print quality and enables reduction in operational costs for end-users such as photocopy shops, private and government offices and hospitals, among others,” he said.
Superiority of the technology in digital equipment makes it extremely necessary for the paper companies to meet their requirements. “From the perspective of future trends in paper usage, most paper mills would have to make necessary changes in their manufacturing process and adopt new technologies like Colorlok,” the official said.
| 
