Go-to-Market Planning and Channel Partner-Sourcing, Axalta Coating Systems

About Axalta Coating Systems

Axalta (NYSE:AXTA) is the only leading global coatings company dedicated solely to the development, manufacture, and sale of liquid and powder coatings.

 

Headquartered in Philadelphia, PA (USA), Axalta serves customers in the automotive, transportation, general industrial, and architectural and decorative sectors.

 

Axalta does business in 130 countries, has nearly 13,000 employees, and has more than 100,000 customers.

 

Executive Summary

  • Industry: Chemicals & Industrial Goods.

 

  • Axalta’s Business Goals: Engaged kpakpakpa to assist with the local understanding of the refinish market structure in Nigeria and to provide access to an efficient distribution network for sales of its products.

 

  • Results: In-depth and comprehensive market report that provided insights for Axalta to build a robust market-entry strategy and face-to-face introductions to credible business partners and distributors in the Nigerian market.

Challenge

Axalta Coating System’s Automotive segment was looking to expand its business presence across Africa and entry into the Nigerian market, Africa’s largest economy, was a top priority.

 

Axalta initially employed the use of the commercial service arm at the U.S consulate in Lagos, Nigeria to assist with introductions to potential distributors and resellers in Nigeria.

 

During their planned visit to Nigeria, Axalta’s representatives soon realized the level of complexity for their products in the Nigerian market. They were also unsatisfied with the quality of prospects presented to them as potential partners. They knew they had to rethink their market-entry strategy.

 

After the initial disappointment faced with its initial market-entry attempt, Axalta chose kpakpakpa to guide its entry and expansion into the refinish market in Nigeria.

 

Solution

Kpakpakpa arranged a month-long comprehensive and thorough market study of the refinish market in Nigeria to help Axalta understand the market structure of its products in Nigeria.

 

The market intelligence that involved compiling quantitative data and qualitative insights gathered through interviews with industry experts, customers and suppliers in the refinish market provided Axalta with:

 

  • Overview of the refinish market in Nigeria.
  • Competitive landscape analysis.
  • An in-depth understanding of the needs of their target customer base.
  • Supply chain analysis to understand the distribution network – major distributors and resellers – in Nigeria.
  • Pricing research to understand competitive pricing and assist with pricing strategies in a price-sensitive market.
  • Regulatory overview and possible barriers to entry.
  • Shortlist of vetted distributors and resellers for partnership.

 

During the entire project, kpakpakpa’s dedicated client engagement manager provided strategic advice and actionable insights for Axalta’s team to act on as they built their market-entry strategy for their products.

 

From the list of potential partners presented in the market study report, kpakpakpa’s client engagement manager then facilitated introductions between these credible business partners and Axalta’s representatives through phone calls and face-to-face meetings during Axalta’s trip to Lagos Nigeria.

 

Outcome

  • Local Market Insights to Build the Right Strategy
    Axalta received a proper understanding of the structure of the refinish market that allowed them to build a robust strategy to penetrate the Nigerian market. With the customized market insights that matched Axalta’s business needs, Axalta’s team could design a plan to prioritize their portfolio products for their prospective customer base in the Nigerian market.

 

  • Commercial Relationship with Trustworthy Partners
    From the list of vetted business partners presented to Axalta based on Axalta’s vetting criteria, Axalta is closely exploring commercial relationships with two of our recommended partners to import and distribute their products within Nigeria. This includes commercial visits by the recommended partners from Nigeria to Axalta’s facility in Germany and Belgium, facilitating an on-going trusted relationship for both parties.

 

Delighted Client

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Johannes Fischermann Business Manager RSA & Sub-Sahara

Highly professional and outstanding support!

kpakpakpa delivered outstanding support to our team. The market study prepared regarding the NIGERIAN refinish market was very comprehensive and helped us to define the right strategy for our products. We highly appreciated the way the project was handled, especially the very close follow up and the way our engagement manager adjusted the study based on up-coming requests. Also the contacts and potential partners found were highly professional.

 

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