An overview of paints & coatings in the UK in 2001
Keywords: Paint, Coatings, UK
Information Research Limited (IRL) has turned its attention to the UK with a new report entitled An Overview of Paints and Coatings in the UK in 2001.This provides a comprehensive picture of both major and smaller paint companies in the UK, their activities, market shares and various factors that are becoming important facets of the industry, such as use of the Internet and environmental matters (Table I).
The UK lays claim to Western Europe's most concentrated paint industry with just 67 major producers, its second-largest paint industry in tenns of employment (over 15,000 employees) and its third-largest market at an estimated 708,000 tonnes in 2001. The top five companies – all multinationals– corner two-thirds of the overall market in volume terms at 67 per cent:
Table I Market Share of the Top Five Paint Companies in the UK, 2001 (per cent)
Decorative paints – some 90 per cent in the hands of the top three companies – show the overall volume picture, a polarisation heightened by the decline in many industrial segments. Decorative paints represent almost 60 per cent of demand (Table II).
Numerous industrial segments – industrial wood finishes and general industrial coatings among them – are in the throes of contraction, echoing the erosion of industries such as carpentry, manufacturing and engineering as mass-produced goods and imports make flurther inroads into the UK market. Not all industries are in decline however, televisions remain a highly active market as people replace more traditional sets with digital and wide-screen technologies, while glossy-style coatings for plastics and increased product customisation are major areas for targeting the young, style conscious UK consumer.
Foreign trade in paints with the UK is growing. Paint imports more than doubled throughout the 1990s from 57,400 tonnes in 1990 to over 119,000 tonnes in 2000, with 90 per cent arriving from the EU. Paint exports have also increased over the same period, from 143,000 tonnes in 1990 to almost 207,000 tonnes in 2000. Exports of water- based paints from the UK to the EU doubled over the whole decade.
Table II Share of the Top Five Paint Sectors by Application, 2001 (per cent)
Internet use has become a key marketing tool, especially in the decorative sector where a host of practical advice, colourful inspiration and advice are to be found. The UK is one of Europe's leading on-line shopping nations. Local e-commerce schemes for the paint professional are already in operation and with almost 8 million UK homes having Internet access, the potential for DIY- based e-commerce is an opportunity waiting to be grasped. An estimated 37 million litres of paint lie unused in garden sheds across the UK and with increased attention to the environment, the UK has focused on re-distribution of paint rather than recycling it. Community Re>paint is the largest such scheme. The recycling of paint packaging provides still more of a challenge for the industry, providing opportunities for innovation and clever marketing, in what has become a secondary battleground for the major decorative paint companies.
Details available from: Information Research Limited (IRL). Tel: +44 (0) 20 8832 7830; Fax: +44 (0) 20 8566 4931; E-mail: terryknowles@brg.co.uk ; Website: http://www.informationresearch.co.uk
