In the sideline of the recently concluded one-of-its-kinds show, Zak Doors & Windows Expo 2015, MGS Architecture met with the young and energetic Mr. Ankit Pandey, the newly-appointed Euradif's Area Business Manager for India market. Here are the excerpts of what he shared:
Euradif is present here for a couple of years now. What have you observed about Indian market?
Generally in India, we were used to the traditional wooden doors but the trend has drastically drop down and we are now adapting new materials like uPVC for their applications in doors. It could be a result of India going global. Though, some attributes of the new materials are, of course, different from the wood, but are economic to fit in budget and very stylish to match any type of interiors, besides being easy and fast to install. However, the first thing that hits my mind is that India being more of a brand-sensitive market, our focus is to bring in the best quality at the best competitive pricing.
What according to you is the trend when it comes to 'doors' in India?
For the last two years, we evaluated the market to know how to push our products. For all that, we first need to understand the market, which of course, requires an in-depth survey about the requirements and the people's reactions, all of which fortunately worked in our favour with lots of positivity to go ahead with and commercialise these avenues. Now, the time is right that we offer products keeping in view the local needs of India. Going forward, we have developed a product portfolio comprising 10 odd models of our products that has been chosen after having the feedback from specifers including architects, interior designers, project consultants, etc, in India. Six months down the line, we see to have a good market for our products.
What all do you have in your kitty now to offer to a market like India?
Doors, Door Panels, Quality products and Designs
We specialise in the production of entrance doors and door panels. The other advantage of Euradif is that we have a wide range of classical and contemporary designs, and most importantly 'French Quality'. As of now, we have exposed only 20-25 designs as we believe that people may get lost with numbers and options. However, it is not the limit because there are over 250 designs at Euradif, currently. These designs are pretty creative, and we keep adding new ones with time so as to be ready to serve the specific need of our valuable clients in voracity to fulfill the demand in bulk. For instance, there is a possibility that an architect might have projects of 200 or 250 villas. We would offer these designs to him and then if he wants us to further customise, we do it almost instantly, matching the specifics. Thanks to the in-house factory, equipped with the most modern fully automatic machines owing to a very strong infrastructure to help and support us to meet our clients' specific requirements. Even, we can push the production on our automatic set up, if so required to meet the increased demand at any point in time. And, as I said, the option of developing new designs is always present there.
What steps are you taking to establish the brand Euradif in India?
Seeing the opportunity, there is always a possibility of opening up of our franchise in India. And it is readily on the card, not ignored. Now that in the last couple of years, we have got a very good response to our doors here, we are looking forward to streamline business activities by appointing partners. People have shown their interest, and are interacting with us for business proposals. Once this is done, we do have plans to set up a sales office in order to support our operations here.
How do you see your association with uPVC profile manufacturers/fabricators?
When it comes to affordability, are you ready to take on opportunities like 'Housing for All' scheme that have been flagged-off by the Centre, recently?
We expect that soon there is a massive boom that is supposed to come, say by the year 2017. India is now on the wagon wheel of development and will keep on rolling for several years down the line, in turn, opening up a huge door of opportunities for players like us. Economy is in a vibrant mode wherein 'Housing for All' scheme is just one such step with a lot more to come in the way. It's a positive move, no doubt. We are adding momentum towards the same positive transition. We would be perfectly fit for this as well as for many such other schemes because what we are bringing is quality-driven products to provide with each section of the society. And, this is the objective that Euradif has set for a market like India. In short, we want to work along the market with the industry people.
