B K Birla Group Company Kesoram Industries has embarked on a brand-building exercise that will help establish a connection between its clients and its various products, while maintaining a group identity.
Addressing journalists after the 94 annual general meeting of Kesoram, Chief Executive Officer Arvind Kumar Singh said that Grey, Singapore had been roped in to the job. “A corporate identity is being created, and we are working with Grey Group, Singapore to come up with a plan,” Mr Singh said.
Responding to a question on whether a timeline had been fixed for this exercise, Manjushree Khaitan, Executive Vice-Chairperson of Kesoram, said: “This will take time.”
Kesoram, in which the Birlas recently upped their stake from 27 per cent to 49 per cent through a rights issue, has three business verticals. The three verticals are: cement, tyres and rayon. The company said that while it made a pre-tax loss of Rs. 100 crore in the first quarter (ending June 30, 2013), it was positive on the outlook. Losses were lower by Rs. 10 crore, even as operational income dropped from Rs. 1,513 crore to Rs. 1,279 crore in the quarter under review.
The tyre vertical has the largest share in the turnover, and was also the single contributor to the company’s declining performance in the last few years. However, improvement in manufacturing operations and higher average sales realisation along with a changed product-mix helped to turn around the business, which turned EBIDTA positive in 2012-13.
