Chennai: Orient Electric executive vice president Atul Jain has said that Tamilnadu is one of the biggest markets for fans in the country and the demand for both ceiling fan and TPW categories, is growing at a healthy rate in the State due to the increase in temperature in the last few years.
In an interview with News Today, Atul Jain shares insight about the fan industry and the future plans of the company.
How Orient Electric caters to the needs of those in Tamilnadu?
There is a huge demand for fans with high-thrust air delivery in Tamilnadu especially because of the hot and humid weather. Driven by this insight, we have just introduced our new Falcon 425 ceiling fan which is India’s fastest in the 1200 mm category with 425 RPM (rotations per minute).
How has the company’s strategy changed due to the coronavirus pandemic?
We have continued to invest in R&D and introduce new products in our fans portfolios while keeping the safety of our employees and partners as a top priority. All new product introductions have been backed by focused marketing efforts with increased spending on digital mediums. Capitalising on the robust demand coming in from Tier 3 and 4 markets and rural parts of the country, we have strengthened our product mix in the entry-level segment and introduced many new models of high-speed ceiling and portable fans.
Impact of increasing commodity prices and input costs.
Prices have increased on the account of rising costs of key input materials. We have absorbed the price hike as much as possible, but it was imperative to pass on some impact to customers through
a price increase.
What are the future plans of the company?
Our focus will remain on driving sustainable competitiveness through innovation, while addressing the consumer need gaps. We will continue to expand our fan range with new, innovative, and consumer-centric products. We have a strong pan India presence, and we are now aggressively working on ramping up our presence and penetration in the Southern markets.