Havells India is exploring options for a new factory to manufacture refrigerators. It is part of the company’s wider plan to make the Lloyd brand a full consumer durables brand. The company already produces air conditioners and washing machines in Rajasthan.
Speaking on the sidelines of an event organized by the Fan Manufacturers Association of India, Anil Rai Gupta, Chairman and Managing Director, Havells India said, “We are evaluating the establishment of a factory in Gilloth, Rajasthan to manufacture refrigerators. Currently, refrigerators are manufactured by Third-party partners. So before we finalize our plan, we are doing a feasibility study. We want Lloyd to be a full consumer durables brand.”
“We are in the early stages of selling refrigerators. We already have a full range of products on the market. In order to finally decide to go into our own manufacturing, we are conducting a feasibility study. We are therefore evaluating various aspects, including Lloyd’s The demand cycle for brands in this space. We are still assessing whether this is the right time to do this,” Gupta added.
“Hopeful for the holidays”
If it decides to go ahead, it will invest Rs 3.5 billion in a greenfield factory with a capacity of 1 million units, the company said in a filing with the BSE. This will help it integrate backwards and achieve economies of scale, it added.
In response to a query about the second half of the year, he said: “We do believe that the second half will be better. We look forward to the festive season.”
Gupta said the penetration rate of various consumer appliances is still low.
“There’s huge room for growth in all the categories we’re in,” he added.
“Rural demand has been affected by inflationary pressures. With lower raw material costs, we expect rural demand trends to improve if the monsoon continues to be good. With the electrification of entire villages, we believe eventually rural demand will grow at a faster rate ,” Gupta said.
Referring to the industry’s recent transition to selling celebrity fans, Gupta said, “the industry needs to work on education of consumers and the education of the trade channel that sells celebrity fans to consumers.”
