JSW Paints Goes Premium With Dulux Acquisition, Eyes Reverse Merger

JSW Paints Ltd., one of India's fastest-growing paint companies, is doubling down on scale and ambition with its acquisition of AkzoNobel's Dulux India operations.

JSW Paints Managing Director Parth Jindal, in a televised interaction with NDTV Profit on Tuesday, called the move a "natural partnership" and a strategic leap toward becoming a top-three player in the Indian paint industry.

Having entered the market in 2019, JSW Paints clocked over Rs 2,000 crore in revenue last fiscal. Now, with Dulux in the fold, Jindal said the company is acquiring not just a well-known brand but also "the heft, the might and the power" of Akzo Nobel's international expertise.

"Dulux has been one of our aspirations," Jindal said. "When Akzo Nobel announced this strategic opportunity last September, it was too good for us to not go for it."

The deal positions JSW Paints to unlock synergies across decorative and industrial segments. While the decorative market, which has been long growing at a 10–12% CAGR, has plateaued amid election-related government spending slowdown, the industrial paints segment continues to expand. "We have both engines of growth. In industrial, we are already the number two player," Jindal said.

With Dulux's metro presence complementing JSW Paint's Tier 2 and 3 stronghold, the post-deal integration will focus on rebuilding the architecture of both entities, said Jindal. "We will reinvest, dial up both Dulux and JSW Paints, and bring in Akzo Nobel's R&D capability to scale," he said.

A reverse merger of the entity with JSW Paints is on the cards once synergies are realised and approvals come through.

AkzoNobel Global CEO Gregoire Poux-Guillaume added that India remains a high-potential but highly competitive market. "Let the Indian paint market settle down — it will take about two to three years," he said. "Building the brand is tough, hence it is better to buy a brand that is already accomplished."

Despite industry-wide margin pressures, he noted that, "AkzoNobel has continued to hold up well in a market where others are under profit pressure."