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Our Bureau

Ahmedabad, July 11 Unilin Flooring BVBA, a Belgian major providing flooring solutions, plans to increase the number of its multi-product outlets in India from the present 38 to 50 by 2009. The company opened one of its flagship stores in India called ‘Space Option’ here on Friday.

The Indian flooring market is Rs 100 crore with a current requirement of nearly 100 million square metres an annum. The company sold products worth Rs 6 crore last year, and commands a 2 per cent market share. Its main Belgian product, made of high-density fibre (HDF), the core material of laminate flooring and an environment-friendly alternative to wooden flooring, is made of fibres obtained primarily from pine and also from agro-based plants like cotton and other seasonal trees, Mr Sunil Gopinath, Country Head, told reporters.

However, he admitted that products imported from China and South-East Asian countries like Malaysia are 50 to 60 per cent cheaper than their Belgian counterparts.

“Excluding the 50 per cent import and other duties, our price range is competitive with other Indian products, at nearly Rs 120-300 a sq ft. But the products from China and other countries come priced between Rs 40 and 140.”

Quick Step is a part of the Unilin Group and market leader with presence in 113 countries. In India it offers 146 products in laminates. The consolidated turnover of the Group in 2006 was $1.6 billion. Since 2005, the Unilin Group has formed part of the US-based Mohawk Industries Inc, listed on the New York Stock Exchange and having a turnover of $11.4 billion.

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