View of industry and trade people on business scenario in covid 19 panedmic

Mr. Keshav Bhajanka, Executive Director, Century Plyboards India Ltd. These are some of the most trying times that most of us would have ever seen. In the middle of this chaos and volatility, I think the first thing that any company needs to look at is the cash flow management. Post COVID 19, India is going to witness a boom in the housing sector in medium to long term as those companies that can survive this crisis will have a bright future. At CenturyPly, we are focusing on doing the best possible for our team, customers, suppliers and all other stakeholders while ensuring our cash flows and liquidity at the same time.

Mr. Raj Patel, Director, Royale Touche Laminate Given the present global pandemic, the next couple of months are going to be a big question with regards to the market situation. People will focus on personal health and well- being of their loved ones. The real estate and surfacing industry will see a slight dip for the next 2 months but it will definitely bounce back quickly given that India will continue to grow because of its strong macro numbers. The best way forward is to take care of all our growth partners during this situation. This means we stand by our distributors, suppliers, employees and all channel partners during this difficult phase. We have always grown with them and when this situation blows over, we will grow again together. We have to be nimble and be ready to grab every opportunity that comes our way. Time is to remain aggressive and stay ahead in the race.

Mr. Rakesh Agarwal, Managing Director, Amulya Mica Each year 1st April, which marks the beginning of new Financial Year, is a matter of excitement for corporates, professionals & business community. We begin new FY with budgets, plans for new products and projects we propose to launch; and we seek your participation since without your support no corporate can succeed.

This year, current times are challenging but I feel that this phase will pass, and under the able leadership of our PM, we will overcome this period which shall become history. History has shown that after gloom, there is boom; let’s pray and in this phase work how can we take advantage of the boom.

Mr. Suresh Sah, Director, Timex Veneer The whole world has recently experienced the brutal blow due to COVID 19. Almost all sectors are affected adversely by the same. The humankind has witnessed such kind of distractions earlier also. And each time it has not only found the way, it has emerged out better and more powerful. This time is not different. I am personally impressed by this thought. "Even a small dot can stop big sentence, but a few more dots can give a continuity." Amazing but true! Isn't it ? Every ending can be a new beginning. So be ready while we pray to the almighty "tamaso ma jyotirgamaya" which means from darkness lead us to light.

Mr Naresh Tiwari, Chairman, AIPMA First of all I would like to pray to God to be everything all right in the country. After lockdown the industry will have to face labour issue as many of the stucked labour will first go their home to know their family members are alright? With the shops opening and retailing movement the industry will be back to their track. It will take at least six months. At present our main concern is to save lives of our labour and people of the nation. It’s a long battle and we can hope for the best and together come out of the crisis first.

Mr Devendra Chawla, President, AIPMA

We are directly connected to real estate and its function will decide the future of wood panel industry. If lockdown does not go ahead and that will be clear in the last week of lockdown situation only. We talked to authorities regarding wood like Eucalyptus which will become fire wood in some days due to lowering moisture content in that. This is in stock at many peeling units in large quantity. We also assured to the authorities that there will be no complaint from industry fraternity. Let us start at least peeling unit. But, there is no guideline issued by authorities even after one week when we had talked to them.

Mr Vikas Agarwal, President, ILMA ILMA has donated Rs. 31 lakhs to PM care fund as a donation. It is difficult time for entire industry, and we will come out with this. We all should cooperate to Govt. and each other. This scenario has given us an opporutunity to think and plan for better work management, suitable financial plans etc. Stay at home, be safe.

Mr. Vishal Dokania, Director, Cedar Laminates Looking at the current scenario it’s difficult to comment on the near future. With the number of cases rising at an accelerated pace things are not looking too positive. At this time all businesses need to check their preparedness on safety measures for when the operations resume. The virus will not vanish overnight once the lockdown is over. We all need to adapt our routine working to safeguard people in and around our businesses.

Mr. Prashant Maheshwari, Director, Ventura International Pvt Ltd “Leadership is not about what you do; Leadership is also about what you believe in …” The reality of Life post COVID 19 has not fully sunk in yet, and its consequences for our businesses, organisations, economy and society will play out over the rest of 2020 and beyond. Right now we really need smart, value driven and focussed leadership. Remember the old adage, “Crises does not build character, it reveals it.”

The Plywood and Laminate is not an industry where “Work from home” really holds true. It’s an out and outfield based industry. Be it meeting Architects/ Designers, Dealers or visiting sites. Our trade depends on purely disposable income of the user and post COVID 19, the industry will face an uphill task to generate business. The biggest challenge would be to ensure cash flows are maintained to meet monthly expenses like Rents, salaries and basic office expenses.

That’s where LEADERSHIP comes into the picture. There is no playbook for leadership when the stakes are high and there’s certainly no playbook for what to do in the face of a 21st century pandemic. No matter how effective you were yesterday, you will find that today and tomorrow are likely to make new and different demands on you as a leader. If you fail to reinvent and adapt, you and your organisation will stall and fail.

Mr. Rajiv Daga, MD, Archidply Industries Ltd Covid19 Pandemic will impact all sections of the society worldwide. Our industry does not fall in essential Items so impact will be more severe than the other industries. During such times, one must reassess production volume and accordingly evaluate working capital and associated fixed cost more carefully. Markets are going to remain sluggish for a prolonged time both for domestic and export markets and only after vaccines for Covid19 is available we can expect business as usual.

Mr. Akhilesh Chitlangia, Director, Duro Disruption from Covid 19 is very frightening and I hope people are staying home and maintaining social distancing. In terms of business, the next few months are going to be the hardest that we have ever faced in the last 100 years. Such events are called the “Black Swan” moments. When business resumes one thing is sure that the world will not be the same anymore. We must learn to adapt, and be open to changing our business model swiftly. Opportunities will arise aplenty at the end of this crisis. It is just that the opportunity may come from unexpected corners. The most important thing today is to ensure that we stay safe and keep ourselves mentally sharp.

Mr. Saurabh Jain, Decora Kitchens I see this Covid-19 lockdown, as an economy lockdown as well. It will adversely affect the furniture & decorative products market for next few months. All manufacturers in any field, especially SMEs will be opting for pay-cuts (I hope they should not lay-off people though). Business payments cycle is also changing. Real estate which was already under recession for a long time, will be badly affected. Overall a cash crunch situation will be there among the general public as well. Most Indian people will like to spend on basic necessities, food, medicines & education first, rather than on furniture which is comparatively a luxury for many. People will postpone furniture buying or interior projects. So, demand for decorative surfaces will definitely be affected. And similar kinds of sentiments are there globally due to the Covid-19 pandemic. So even on export front demand will be slower or poor. But I still believe due to the large population of our country, we will overcome this bad phase in a short span of time only.

I see this lockdown as an opportunity to think & plan for the future, upgrade team's skills, development of product range, marketing tools, online marketing etc. All producers should plan & invest in these activities. Change in business strategies will be the need of the hour. Companies will need to cut unnecessary expenses, delay some events or expansion plans for some time to maintain cash flow. As a team all producers, distributors & retailers should workout on new credit policies & strictly adhere to that, so that a better cash flow is managed. This will help to bring the economy back on track rapidly. Cash & Carry model should be promoted by giving extra benefits. Businesses with secured payment mechanism will be able to grow during this phase.

I believe organized OEM's & Indian furniture market will definitely grow in both domestic & export markets. Domestic market will grow becaue due to lockdown labour/carpenters have migrated to their hometown or native places. Under different lockdown welfare schemes & Govt announcements they are supposed to get decent amount in their accounts. At the same time they are also uncertain about work contracts in near future. So, these unorganized carpenters will take longer to come back. So this is an opportunity for OEMs to grab big share from unorganized market. At the same time would advise all OEMs/Furniture manufacturers to adopt latest raw materials, Use more of prelam panels i.e. Melamine faced Chipboards, Acrylic Prelam panels etc, so that OEMs have an edge over the traditional carpentry raw materials such as mica or veneers. Also there are bigger size prelam boards available, which can be optimized best to reduce wastage i.e. savings. With more use of prelam panels OEMs TAT or lead-time will reduce & their processes will be less labour dependent. I believe OEMs with decent use of machinery setup & use of right materials should aim to deliver good quality & durable furniture at reasonable furniture. This will enhance faith of consumer in factory made furniture.

Secondly I strongly believe after this Corona virus episode ends, the emerging new world will be in favor of India. Global market is looking for alternatives to China in order to meet demands & Indian Furniture OEMs should grab the opportunity. I personally believe, we should invest in global marketing now, increase our production capacities, offer world class Made in India furniture to world. With the positive approach & right quality products, India can definitely replace lots of Chinese supplier globally. In coming years, Indian furniture producers are set to grow.

Mr. J. L. Ahuja, AICA Laminates India Pvt Ltd The Laminate Industry is part of the total Building Infrastructure and the Premium Sector depends on batch production. Small and medium players would face new challenges after the lockdown period when the Government gives their permission for start of production.

Raw materials, labour, logistics and cash flow will all have their own implications. However, Companies having larger content of Imports, in terms of their raw materials, will have additional challenges. Nevertheless, the Industry has survived in the most difficult and adverse conditions because of severe competition, both within the country and outside. I feel that it will overcome the challenge within 6 to 8 weeks, with special relief packages being considered for MSME Units all over the country and majority of the laminate industry in the country falls in this category.

Mr. JK, I DÉCOR, China We have returned to our regular functioning & are in a position to accept & fulfil orders. Keeping in mind the crisis that many countries are continuing to face, we along with Shinto Corporation, extend our full support and commit to work tirelessly to make sure orders are executed on top priority.

Miffy, Wuxi Shengda Press Plate, China Wuxi Shengda is ready for accepting orders. It is a difficult time for our world & we realise the need of coming together to sustain & strengthen businesses. We, along with Shinto Corporation commit & extend full support to our buyers and commit to deliver speedily.

Mr. Sandeep Kedia, Shinto Corporation India & the world at both level we are facing a crisis. However, together we can overcome the threat that has brought our lives and business to a standstill. To ensure speedy recovery of our Industry, we at Shinto Corporation have ensured that our Indian buyers are accorded ‘SPECIAL PRIORITY STATUS’ by the companies that we represent in China.

Orders received from some of our proactive buyers have already been executed swiftly. The material is either in production / being shipped / has arrived at India ports to be cleared immediately once the lock down is opened. We request all our buyers to join us in our endeavor to bring our industry to normalcy, as swiftly as possible. lease use this interim time to place your orders so that we can pursue & get them fulfilled at the earliest. We stand committed in solidarity during these troubled times with all in the Trade & Industry.

Mr Sanjay Garg, Chairman, SRG Group After lockdown removal we can start production with stock materials and till all these will be exhausted the further supply will be smooth lined. The major issue will be labour and due to that the production will be stuck to its lower position. Secondly, the market demand will not be there. I would like to say that industry players should keep patience in this tough time. Everything will be good with time ahead, so keep patience and hope for the best.

Mr. Bhaven Mathia, TOPPAN TOPPAN (Production / QC / Packing / Logistic) have measures in screening and protection against COVID-19 and operating as usual. Current print lead time is 4 weeks. All printing lines continue to work as routine. We expect no real supply related issues for our customers and we continue to be servicing our customers as always.

We look forward to assisting our customers in meeting their supply requirements from Toppan. India representative, IMPRESS Impress facilities at Poland continue to operate as normal with print lead time of 4 weeks presently. Impress Spain goes into Easter holidays and start operations again beginning April 14th. Impress continues to be at the service of their customers in these difficult times and work them to overcome any issues that the customer would have. We wish the best for all and hope that all stay safe.

Mr Mukesh Gupta, Head Marketing, Action TESA This is the right time to introspect our activities in spare time and must make a future plan also for the new financial year. Those who are coming up with new products should make a strategy, planning and must decide the target for that and accordingly move ahead. So, initially it may take one or two months to resume everything and streamline the situation. The labour availability, production, supply, and payments flow will take time because there are many ancillary units also who are dependent on one another. The company’s profitability will be affected, but that can be overcome in coming times once everything gets streamlined.

Mr. Shankar Kanoi, Director, ACE Mica

This is really a challenging phase, ut I believe that it will be short out very soon as China has come to the track our country will also be the quick survivor of this tough time. It may be possible that we will resume work with 25 % capacity after a week with nearby labours. Gradually move ahead and in the next week to 50% that would be enough for the present condition of the market because there are also payments on hold. To revive the entire network it will take a month or two till then we should keep patience and follow the government guidelines.

Mr. Ashok Agarwal, President, Uttarpradesh Plywood Manufacturers Welfare Association The industry will have to face tough time and recession in termers of production as well as the demand from the consumers because with this stand still economy in the country there must be an economic slowdown. The product manufactured by wood panel industry is not essential goods, so the government attention will be secondary for wood panel industry. In my opinion by June first week the industry will be on track because there would be labour shortage, payment delay, etc. The industry was already in situation, so I am not able seeing a bright future of wood panel industry in near future. In this situation the industry players should be patient, alert and confident. Besides, they should not move aggressively and spread their goods on credit without any observation.

Mr Pratik Patel, Director, Sayaji Laminates Once the lockdown is removed the industry will take time to resume its work because availability of labour will be an issue in the beginning. The government is supportive to everyone and the stagnant situation is for everyone. We will reboot together and confidently move ahead together. People should be with positive mindset and ready for the future plans.

Mr Jai Garg, Director, E3 Group In my opinion for any industry it will take at least six months to come back on track and well functioning condition. The construction industry or wood panel decorative industry would be among them which will be less affected and come on track quickly. But, the biggest challenge before us will to face the scarcity of workers. We will have to bring them back to the industry units. If they come to us still we will have to face the challenge to check, whether they are infected of COVID 19 or not before starting production or labour oriented activity. We will have issue of payment also as if we are not able to sell our goods we will not be able to pay our suppliers. So, this is going to be a long battle for the industry as well as the people of the nations.

Mr Ajay Sardana, General Secretary, UP Plywood Manufacturers Welfare Association There will be payment issue and the picture of demand would not be good also, so in my opinion there will be set back for at least six months. But, if we want to sustain we will have to restrict our production and move according to the demand from the market. With relief on restriction for industry there is no possibility to start production of wood panel products because wood transport is restricted despite being agri-based. All the industries like chemical, timber, and many others are interconnected so with even one restricted the industry is not in position to run. So, it will definitely take at least three months to come to normal position after lockdown is removed.

Mr Pankaj Chandak of Praveedh Decor Wood panel industry may take a couple of months to fully stabilize after the end of the lockdown because it is a discretionary product. The overall economy will take a beating. Because of job losses and salary cuts the disposable income may be reduced. Thus, customers will rationalize their purchases.

As it is said that necessity is the mother of invention. Thus this lock down is an opportunity for the modular furniture industry to improve upon some of the indiscipline practices which have stunted the growth of the industry. For instance fiscal prudence and financial management is extremely crucial for the health of the business, however its not been religiously followed in the modular industry. All the participants in the modular furniture ecosystem should adhere to strict discipline of clearing their dues during the committed period. This would help everybody in improving their capital utilization and thus will lead to reduction in the price of the products.

Secondly, we should focus on specialization. Not everybody should do everything and not everybody is capable of doing everything. Focus is very important to produce good quality products and to increase the scale of the business. For example, a shutter manufacturer should devote their entire resources and bandwidth in producing the best quality shutters and not diluting their energies in non core business. If we have to capitalize upon the global resentment which has been fomenting against China, then its very important for all of us to identify our core competency and build upon it. The reason Germany, Italy, China etc. have exceptional product companies or low cost producers is because the manufacturers there are focused in what they do.

Because of lock down, there will be economical consequences which will affect our industry that are beyond our control. For example, the rupee has depreciated substantially against USD and EUR. Even today, a substantial portion of raw materials used in woodworking industry is imported. Thus, this depreciation may lead to cost escalation. A long term solution and hedge against such uncontrollable factors is to foster an environment to produce good quality products at a competitive price locally in India.
I believe we have to maintain a realistically optimistic view of the situation and take one day at a time with a laser sharp focus on coming out as unscathed as possible from this pandemic.

Mr Ravi Nemani, Director, Bareilly Plywood Pvt Ltd. The wood panel industry runs at its fullest capacity from April 1st every year and it’s called its peak time for production because everything comes in favour to it like yield of timber, weather conditions for production, less cost of energy and fuel, labour availability in plenty. And in this peak time the epidemic crisis of Covid 19 appeared and everything is under crisis of lockdown.

Local authorities did not allow to even restricted operation within industry premises, so that the available raw material like timber, resin, chemicals which were ready to use in production can be saved. Only I have nearly 5000 quintal Eucalyptus. In this situation the local authorities are not in position to take any decision due to the higher authorities’ guidelines. The labour crisis will also at its peak in history. They will not move towards industries as in this cropping season the wheat cropping is delayed due to recent rain and weather condition and Covid 19 crisis, the labour have gone to their home. Those who are stuck in cities due strictness and administrative efforts will first go to their home, so industry is going to face unprecedented labour crisis.

Mr Bimal Chopra, Metro Group, Yamunanagar In this condition the industry scenario is bad in condition because the raw material and timber is getting damaged due to inactivity of industrial operations under total lockdown. The timber is getting dry, the wait core is getting stick with one another, face and veneer have stuck in transit that are also getting damaged. Operating lines are stuck in running condition which is another setback to clean it first and check if these are operational or not. The industry players have all burdens like labour payment, electricity bill, bank loan interest etc, besides that payment have stucked into market. Eighty percent units are facing the constraint of material damage. In the beginning there will be payment issue. The weaker traders will hold the payment for long time. The government guidelines for labour issue to make payment and manage them with food and shelter are another burden on the industry players with no movement and recovery of payment from the market.

Mr Mukesh Goyal, Director, Savitri Woods India Pvt Ltd Just after opening lockdown the labour which is within industry or have stuck down in different cities will first go to their native place and later if the situation of this endemic comes under control they will come back after ensuring if there is no fear of disease and again lockdown scenario. The market will not be stable initially because there are no carpenters in the cities. After opening slowly they will come. We are going start production by at least 50% after lockdown which was earlier at 100%. Because there is no used of starting the unit below this capacity initially. If there is trouble in the market we will reduce the capacity later I would like to say the industry people and channel partners to keep patience and cover up the money for these three months as this is tough time for industry, because the market condition is getting tougher in this period. There may be restricted relief from lockdown and we should take a careful move in every aspect.

Mr Rajiv Agarwal, Ideal Laminates We are in secondary goods industry, so the government priority would also not towards us. People will focus to attain necessary goods like food, medicine and health related issues. The labour has gone to their home, next two-three months will be much trouble some for their availability due to fear of this endemic. The month of May – June are already considered as slow generally. So, there will be payment issue also. I would like to say people should not go for over production and move according to the demand in the market. Secondly, trade practices should be strictly based on current payment or max to the period of 30 days credit only on the basis of trust factor to the particular party.

Mr Janak Vyas, Cedar Laminates Most of the labour has gone to their home due to this crisis. So, industry players will have to take them into confidence and bring them back first by convincing that now there is no fear of COVID 19. We are in processing of products and we require support from our supplying industries like Kraft paper, Design paper etc, so first they will have to get input, then only we can move ahead. Secondly, people should have sufficient finance to invest into making of furniture that will drive the market and then industry. The industry players should stand together and do not go into price war and over production. If supply exceeds the undercutting and price war starts. The players have to bear their fixed expenses like labour costs, electricity etc. Also their assets like plant, machinery, raw material, etc are un-utilised, so if even their return will come or not is uncertain, so its cost will also increase.

Mr Kailash Chand, Narayni Plywood, Ranchi We will have trouble for at least three months as most of the people will focus on the priority goods first. The factory will also not run comfortably due to labour issue. There will be restricted demand in the market because people will think twice before spending for these items, secondly they will be in fear of disease, so they will be willing to take service of carpenters and contractors till the endemic is not get over completely. We are in dealers based trading and for existing dealers there is no issue, but for new dealers we will have to be very careful. All traders should practice cash dealing, so that cash flow can be maintained in the industry and with money rotation we will come out of the crisis easily.

Mr Sunil Nahata, Shiv Shakti Laminates Later the market will improve but for at least three months there will be troublesome situation. In my opinion the non-performing distributor will be seeking some clue to return the good to the manufacturers when they will be asked for payment. If there is liquidity flow with consolidated efforts of the industry, channel partners and traders everyone will be benefited. This is the need of the hour to cope-up with this situation quickly. The dealers should also try to sell in their goods in quick payment basis. Today this industry is surrounded by trouble from every side, so everyone should stand together.

चेतन पटेल, (भोपाल प्लाइवुड - हार्डवेर व्यापारी एसोसीएसन) भोपाल  हम व्यापारियों के सामने सबसे कठिन संक्रमण काल है। जिसका हमे सामना करना है। न तो बिजनेस पहले जैसा है और न ही जिंदगी पहले जैसी है। हम एक दुनिया मे सोते है और अगले दिन बिल्कुल ही अलग दुनिया मे उठते है। हम यह भी नही जानते है कि हमारे पास इसका माधान है भी की नही।

मैं यह मानता हूं कि इन सभी स्थितियो में व्यापारी वर्ग और विशेष कर उद्यमी र्ग जो इतना सब कुछ होते हुए भी इस दुनिया को आगे ले जाने की ताकत रखते है। अपना धैर्य विवेक सहनशीलता और ज्ञान के साथ इस फैली हुई नकारात्मकता और कुछ के लिए जिंदगी और मौत जैसी स्थिति के बावजूद सभी को पुर्वानुसार सामान्य कर देंगे। हो सकता है कि परिस्थितियों को सामान्य करने में कुछ समय (1 वर्ष तक ) लग जाये। याद रहे कि भविष्य में वो ही व्यापार कर सकेगा जिसकी नीतियां और व्यवहार स्पष्ट होगा। अपनी स्वयं की ईमानदारी ही आपके व्यापार को जीवित रख सकेगी। में सामान्य भाषा मे अपने विचार रखता हूं निर्माता या फैक्ट्रीवाले व्होलसेलर को माल देते है और व्होलसेलर रिटेलर को, रिटेलर उपभोक्ताओं को माल विक्रय करते है। यह व्यापार की चेन एक विश्वास पर टिकी हुई है। यह विश्वास को बनाये रखना हम सभी के लिए अति आवश्यक है। लेकिन विश्वास भी मर्यादा में हो इसका भी ख्याल रखे। वर्तमान व्यापार परिवर्तन या बंद करने से चुनोतियाँ कम नही होगी क्योंकि दूसरे व्यापार में भी परिस्थितिया समान ही है। वर्तमान व्यापार को सही ढंग से प्लान करे और जीवित रखने का प्रयास करे। क्योंकि स्थितिया आज खराब है लेकिन ३ माह, 6माह या १ साल बाद सुधरेंगी ही। आज जल्दबाजी में कोई भी निर्णय न लेवे। सोंचे, समझे और धैर्य रखकर आगे बढ़े।

विजय पटेल, अध्यक्ष, रायपुर प्लाइवुड ट्रेडर एसोसीएसन वर्तमान परिस्थितियों के चलते भले ही हमारा व्यापार प्रभावित हुआ हो लेकिन इन परिस्थिति से हमें घबराना नहीं है। क्योंकि बड़े बुजुर्गों का कहना है कि जहाँ अंधेरा होता है वहाँ उजाला जल्द ही होता है। अतः हमें इन परिस्थितियों से न डरकर फिर से एकबार उठेंगे ऐसा विश्वास हमें मन में लेकर चलना है।