Lavish hardware

Guwahati, Nov. 4: After living rooms and kitchens, there’s luxury in bathrooms as well.

Preference for products with a mix of visual appeal and unique functions is giving a new dimension to bathrooms in the Northeast, with people investing up to a whopping Rs 18 lakh in a single bathroom.

As a result, the volumes have shot up and though just a fragment of the countrywide turnover of Rs 4,000 crore (organised and unorganised sector), bath fittings and sanitaryware market in the region is valued at about Rs 40 crore, thanks to companies such as Hindware, Jaquar and Grohe, among others, offering what they call “complete bathing solutions”. The sanitaryware market is dominated by the organised sector, including manufacturers and importers. Companies here are constantly innovating and launching new products with new designs and features.

In sync with this trend, apparent over the past year or so, leading bathroom solutions provider Hindware has catered to the premium segment by unveiling the Italian collection. Under the range are products such as water closets ranging from Rs 10, 000 to Rs 2 lakh, apart from bathtubs and basins.

“The luxury factor is apparent and, after living rooms and kitchens, people are investing big to do up their bathrooms. To cite one example, under the Italian range launched last year, we have a European water closet called Auto-mate, which is equipped with auto-washing mechanism comprising a nozzle to splash water on the body. All the functions of Auto-mate are controlled by a remote,” said Shubham Roy, territory manager (Northeast), Hindware.

Along with a range of stylish products such as faucets, the company has of late introduced LED showers as well.

“We have introduced LED showers which have a unique function of colour change in accordance with varying temperatures of water. Then again, there are five-flow and three-flow showers, where there are basically five to three different water flow patterns,” Roy said. “The price range of our showers vary between Rs 7,000 and Rs 8,000.”

Hindware, which has a share of 50-60 per cent in sanitary ware, is eyeing a turnover of Rs 15 crore in the region by March. “We are the market leaders in sanitary ware, with Parryware being our main competitor here,” the official said.

Market leader in bath fittings, Jaquar, too, has been offering a range of solutions for a unique experience in a bathroom. From taps and faucets to showers and cisterns, the company, which has a 70 per cent share in the region, is laying stress on design and innovation. “People now are investing upto Rs 18 lakh in a bathroom. Given the trend, we have set Rs 30 crore as our target by the end of this fiscal,” said Bikash Kumar Choudhury, area sales manager (Northeast) of Jaquar.

Over the years, the company with a turnover of Rs 17 crore in the Northeast, has diversified into various bath verticals such as sanitaryware, shower enclosures, water heaters, concealed cisterns, wellness range of products like whirlpool, shower panels, showers, steam cabin and spa. “In the premium segment, Jaquar has faucets ranging from Rs 5,000 to Rs 50,000, showers ranging from Rs 1,500 to Rs 1.5 lakh. But of late, the company has catered to the middle class as well with concealed cisterns coming for as low as Rs 3,000,” a source from a frontline Jaquar dealership said.

Currently, second in the bath fittings segment with a market share of 10 per cent, German multinational Grohe is eyeing 25 per cent by the end of 2013.

“The Northeast is an evolving market,” Tapash Ghosh, assistant manager (Northeast), Grohe, said.

All Grohe faucets, showers and sanitary fittings meet the premium quality standard, irrespective of where they are manufactured. “We have products to cater to the upscale and the mass market as well. In the premium segment, we have thermostatic shower mixers in the range of Rs 13,500 to Rs 55,000. The Bau series with showers ranging from Rs 6,500 to Rs 9,000 was unveiled to compete with products in the mass premium category. Then again, showers and hand-showers under the Power & Soul range are available from Rs 5,500 to Rs 45,000,” Ghosh said.

While others such as Parryware and Marc, too, have made their presence felt in the Northeast market and competing well, local brands such as Sona, Agmeco, Plumber, et al, are operating in their own space as well.