Business of bathing solutions

With a commitment to offer the best to the customers in bath and sanitary ware, Caroma Australia has recently made a foray in the Indian market. In a dialogue with Ekta Verma, CS Chen, Managing Director, Claytan Ceramic Australia, talks about Caroma’s expansion plans in India.

Tell us about Caroma.

As Australia’s leading bathroom solutions brand, Caroma helps to create a perfect bathroom. For more than 60 years Caroma has offered a strong local manufacturing presence, market leading product solutions, a commitment to sustainability, and much more. Now, Caroma has entered the Indian market via franchise route. Caroma is proud to be Australia’s only manufacturer of sanitary ware, operating state-of-the-art facilities in Wetherill Park (NSW) and Norwood (SA). Our facilities combine the latest technology and automated robotics to produce market-leading water-saving products. Reliable, continuous supply and the flexibility are just a few of the benefits Caroma offers.

What is the USP of Caroma?

Our USP is our water and energy saving products. Caroma is known for its focus on conservation, and its innovation is driven by the need for conservation. Caroma is at the forefront of product innovation, operating a state-of-the-art R&D centre focused on developing the latest water-saving technology. Since introducing the world’s first two-button dual flush toilet system, Caroma has continued to develop a world-class toilet suite, urinal and tap ware technology.

How competitive is the Indian market for Caroma? What are your strategies to beat the fierce competition in the Indian market?

We are only looking at the Middle to High End market in India and to be very sauvé there is not much competition in this segment at all and with our innovative designs and features, we will be able to make a presence felt in the next twelve months.

Kindly shed light on your expansion plans in India via franchise route.

We have started with Delhi first and then we plan to move on to the other major metros like Bengaluru, Mumbai, Chennai , Hyderabad, Kolkata in the next twelve months.

Do you see any difference in the international and Indian bath and sanitary industry? What steps have you devised to nullify the difference?

The Sanitary ware in the international market is a much organised sectorcompared to the Indian market. We would like to bring such franchisees on board who will represent Caroma at par with international standards. We will expand via statewide franchisees and district wise distribution.

What kind of support will be provided to the potential franchisees?

A Caroma franchisee will get complete support from our side. This will include complete design of the showroom with display subsidies. We will also offer technical and marketing support.