Saint Gobain, a French construction materials company, has set up plans for India to see its top line triple in ten years to Rs 30,000 crore, owing to a surge in demand for low-carbon building materials.
Plasterboards, building chemicals used as additives in ready-mix concrete, fasad, insulators, and ceilings from Saint Gobain are in high demand.
“With 46% of the population in top 7 cities spending more than Rs 90 lakh on their homes, the need is to offer solutions rather than sell products,” B Santhanam, CEO of Saint Gobain, Asia-Pacific, said.
Saint Gobain is divided into building materials and abrasives, ceramics, and refractories. While construction materials account for 85% of global revenue, the rest comes from other sources.
“In India, 70% comes from construction materials. This is growing at a fast pace,” he added. The French major’s Indian arm is increasing its focus on the B2C segment to meet the objectives. It gained a strategic stake in LivSpace, a home interior and refurbishment firm that will market its products to consumers.
“There are many acquisitions that we are working on. The focus is clear,” Santhanam added.
As part of its sustainable materials projects, Saint Gobain has partnered with two enterprises in Delhi and Chennai.
“Our focus is to build products that are fully recyclable. We will never launch anything which cannot be fully recycled. We want to create a circular economy and towards this we are looking for companies and agencies who will help in recycling construction debris. He said it was a taboo to think that ecologically sensitive construction materials were expensive. “It isn’t, the cost equation remains the same. And shaping the ecosystem will be at the heart of what we do,” he added.
