Carrier India aims 14-16% revenue growth

Carrier India is targeting a 14-16 per cent revenue growth this year over the $125 million garnered in calendar 2005, according to country head and managing director Vidu Kulkarni.

Having invested $1 million in setting up an advanced, flexible commercial refrigeration line at its Gurgaon manufacturing plant, the company has invested yet another $1 million in lining up a host of new products for launching, which include 15 variants of window and split airconditioners (ACs).

The next few months would also see the launch of 18 new variants of high-end ACs, including slimpacs and cassette ACs, from the stable of Toshiba Carrier, the joint venture with Toshiba, and new products in the transport-bus and truck- air conditioning and commercial refrigeration categories.

Despite prices of the soon-to-be launched residential ACs being about 10 per cent higher than the rival companies' products, Kulkarni is sure that the products would do well.

"We believe we can charge a premium for our products as they are reliable and energy efficient," he added.

Citing a different business model than other companies in the airconditioning and refrigeration market, with presence in categories like residential ACs (RACs), light commercial ACs- high wall split ACs, cassette ACs and ducted systems, commercial ACs chillers, transport airconditioning and commercial refrigeration-freezers and bottle coolers, Kulkarni said that the company wanted to gain highest mindshare of the consumer.

Having lost out to LG, Samsung and Voltas in the RAC category, Kulkarni admitted a loss of focus on the company's part, attributed to its focus on profitability provided by the categories.

Kulkarni added that the company would work to rectify that situation, beginning with more frequent product launches and stepping up the communication which would mean not only upping the advertising tempo, but also other marketing activities like promotional schemes.

Carrier India recently won an airconditioning order worth Rs 5 crore for Ambience Mall in Gurgaon. It is also working with leading retailers in the field of food retailing.

In India, 70 per cent of the company's sales are accounted for by domestic production, said Kulkarni. It imports transport airconditioning products and commercial ACs from its other factories.