Banks on its P&T co-branding initiative to contain counterfeit in the market
March 2021: Jindal Stainless, India’s largest stainless steel manufacturer, is aiming for 10-12% sales growth in the decorative stainless steel pipe & tube market in western India in the next 2 years. For this, the Company is banking on the second phase of its nationwide pipe & tube (P&T) co-branding program, ‘Jindal Saathi 2.0’. The sale of counterfeit Pipe & Tube had seen a ~10% decline in the region until 2020 after the introduction of the Jindal Saathi campaign, which was kick-started first in 2019. The first phase of the campaign was launched in 6 major P&T cluster cities in the western region to address the burgeoning issue of counterfeiting in the stainless steel P&T market. It achieved all expected targets and benefits for the product category, thus becoming a success. Consequentially, the Company has now doubled the number of P&T cluster cities to 12, in the states of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli. Jindal Stainless currently holds a 39% market share in the western region. According to industry estimates, the current market size is approximately over INR 2,000 crore in the region. Along with this initiative, Jindal Stainless also intends to stand true to the cause of Atmanirbhar Bharat through sustained job creation efforts and support to Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSME) for securing growth; both of these aspects have been impacted due to the pandemic.
Commenting on this development, Director, Jindal Stainless, Mr Tarun Khulbe said, “The first phase of the co-branding initiative was significantly successful in terms of reducing counterfeit in the segment, as well as increasing our sales. This has inspired us to extend the initiative to more cities in the region. We are actively fighting against counterfeiting by collaborating with local pipe & tube manufacturers in the region and helping them rebuild capacities. We aim to create a positive ecosystem for local businesses to grow and allow better penetration of premium quality stainless steel in the market. The western region has approximately 18,000–20,000 fabricators. We are dedicated to train them under the Skill India mission.”
This year’s budget announcements have raised hopes for robust infrastructure development and better construction opportunities in the western region. As the fastest-growing region in the country, western India houses immense potential for stainless steel demand. Despite the pandemic and unwarranted import inflow, the Company has sustained its market share. ASB Tubes, Shrinathji Tube Industry, and Sita Ram Sales are some of the prominent MoU partners in the region.
Jindal Stainless introduced ‘Jindal Saathi’ in July 2019 with around 100 MoU partners on an all-India basis to guard the domestic market against counterfeit products and to ensure supply of quality decorative stainless steel P&T to end customers. As a part of the initiative, standardized seals feature the logos of Jindal Stainless and its MoU partners, the grade of stainless steel, and respective MoU numbers. India’s existing production capacity in the decorative P&T segment stands at over 6.5 lakh tonnes annually. In value terms, this translates to an annual market size of nearly Rs 7,000 crore.
