Jones Blair Company (JBC) is a regional paint manufacturer mainly operating in the Dallas-Fort Worth area in Texas, USA and the surrounding counties. As the paint industry is considered to be a mature market, with little market growth (estimated at 1-2% per annum) and relatively steady prices, adjusted only by inflation levels, JBC faces the problem of maintaining needed growth and profit margins.
The US paint industry generally divides in three segments, which are the architectural coat segment, original equipment manufacturing and special purpose coatings segment.
The first segment, architectural coating consists of general purpose paints, which are used mainly for home and industrial constructions – and is the area in which JBC concentrates its efforts. This is the largest segment out of the total market turnover.
The U.S. paint industry sales in 1995 were approximately 13 billion, where the architectural coats bring about 10 billion and more. Demands for this products reflect the levels of house redecorating and repair as well as the sales of existing homes, rather then the newly build homes. Two other factors also play its role on the general turnover of these products- firstly, the alternative materials on the market which can act as substitutes and secondly, the higher quality of the products, which reduces the amounts needed.
Areas of distribution for these products are typically the warehouse-home-centers, lumberyards, hardware stores, specialty stores and membership clubs (department stores) and the contractors directly. Data shows that the do-ii-yourself outlets grow in importance as distribution channels.
2. Jones Blair market area segmentation
Jones Blair Company is a regional player in the architectural coat segment of paints and sundry products. The paint industry typically divides within the architectural coat segment, in do-it-yourself customers (retail) and professional...