Japan-based Kansai Paint, a leading paint and coatings manufacturer, has announced plans to open about 50 new distribution centres across the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar by 2018.

Having grown to more than 1,000 employees in the Middle East, the globally recognised Japanese company is set to tap into the $3.6-billion coatings industry in the region, said a statement from the company.

Its key markets in the GCC are Saudi Arabia, which accounts for 35 per cent of its business in the region, and the UAE (23 per cent), with its primary business segments being architecture coatings (68 per cent) and protective coatings (34 per cent), it stated.

Hiroshi Ishino, president and representative director, Kansai Paint, said: “Our company is seeking to build its position in key strategic markets in the years to come, which includes the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) and Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) markets.”

“We are committed to investing what is needed in order to achieve that ambition,” observed Ishino.

In the UAE, Kansai Paint has also refurbished its Umm Suqeim Design Centre and has set up a new paint store in Al Ain, UAE.

The store is part of a pilot phase to be scaled up by 2018 across the region, said Ishino.

“We aspire to become a truly global company that competes and thrives on the world stage. The Mena and CIS region has tremendous potential, and with our strong presence already in the market, we will work hard to contribute to society by providing products and services that satisfy the high expectations of our customers in the region,” he added.-TradeArabia News Service