Reaffirming JAT Holdings PLC’s position as the market leader for wood coatings in Sri Lanka, the Conglomerate was recognized and honoured at the recently concluded South Asian Partnership Summit (SAPS) and Business Excellence Awards 2022, with 2 major awards. Accordingly, JAT Holdings was presented with the SAPS Business Excellence Award 2022 for “Best Paint and Coating Manufacturer (Large)” and Best Paint and Coating Exporter (Large)”, at the SAPS Business Excellence Awards Ceremony 2022, held recently in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The awards were accepted on behalf of JAT Holdings PLC by CEO/Executive Director, Nishal Ferdinando, together with Wasantha Gunaratne, Director – Sales and Technical, Ranga Abayakoon, Country Head – Bangladesh, and Dilshan Rodrigo, General Manager – Marketing.
Expressing pleasure at the accomplishment, CEO Nishal Ferdinando said, “These accolades attest to our financial stability, agility and resilience in the face of a barrage of challenges, from the global pandemic, to the present economic and energy crises. During the period considered by the awarding body, we have expanded our manufacturing capacity and capabilities to create and bring to market new brands such as WHITE by JAT, Masters All-In-One Wood Coating and All-In-One Ceiling Coating, alongside maintaining and growing our established brands such as Sayerlack, J Chem and Brush Master. Our focus on backward vertical integration has allowed us to offer more competitive products and engage in sustainable brand building. These efforts, alongside many others, have been recognized by the SAPS Business Excellence Awards 2022, and we are proud to have been able to deliver the results necessary to have earned these accolades.”
WHITE by JAT, despite being a relatively new brand for the Conglomerate, has seen massive growth, emerging as JAT’s flagship brand. A premium quality brilliant white paint, WHITE by JAT was able to disrupt a multinational-dominated paint market in Sri Lanka through a unique marketing strategy, which involved a pioneering and very effective use of online marketing and sales, for the first time in the industry. JAT has also been continuously improving its range of Harris brushes, with the introduction of an innovative blend of synthetic filaments, with natural filaments, which have greatly enhanced the quality and coating efficiency of these brushes, while also contributing positively towards the brand’s eco-footprint and sustainability efforts.
The capital raised by JAT Holdings PLC, at its IPO last year, was used to fund the Group’s global expansion efforts, particularly with regard to its regional presence in Bangladesh and Africa. The Group’s strategic global expansion has enabled it to ensure strong financial stability and emerge as a leading conglomerate in the region, further empowering it to ensure business continuity and sustainability throughout the challenging business environment that it has been operating in recently, effectively defending its position as the market leader. As a result, JAT Holdings PLC was also able to report healthy growth in its export operations, with an expanding presence in Bangladesh, the Maldives, India and Africa. The Group has also launched specific products for the Maldivian market in the form of Masters All-In-One Wood and Ceiling Coatings, manufactured entirely in Sri Lanka. The Group expects the present growth momentum to continue unabated in the near to medium term.
The South Asian Business Excellence Awards honours organizations of all types and sizes whilst celebrating the people behind their successes. The programme was introduced to acknowledge and reward the exceptional work and results delivered by trailblazers across industries in an increasingly competitive market. The South Asian Business Excellence Awards are presented by the South Asian Partnership Summit.