AkzoNobel rebrands Indian ICI business

AkzoNobel’s integration activities following the acquisition of ICI have reached a significant landmark with the ICI India business now officially known as Akzo Nobel India Limited. ICI India, a separate listed company on the stock market, is one of the country’s leading decorative paints businesses.

Led by Managing Director Amit Jain under the same Board of Directors, the rebranded business will continue to play a pivotal role in the company’s strategic growth plans.

“We are delighted that ICI India has now officially taken on the AkzoNobel name,” said CEO Hans Wijers. “ India is a very important market for us and we are now well prepared to take full advantage of the world class capabilities of our Indian decorative paints organization and build on our promising market position.”

He added that AkzoNobel plans to make major investments in India during the next five years to boost the opportunities in this high-growth market. “The change in identity is just the beginning of a wave of strategic investments which we plan to make in people, practices, new ways of marketing, technology and research,” continued Wijers.

Commenting on the historic name change, Managing Director Amit Jain said: “This completes the transitional journey which we embarked upon two years ago. But it does not just mean a change in our visual identity, it also marks a strategic transformation in our company’s culture, people, processes and business practices, thereby aligning ourselves with the global best practices of AkzoNobel.”

He went on to explain that while the change of company name will be introduced across the country, the business will continue to use the ICI brand name and logo for a transitional period due to the long-standing relationship with customers in India.

India is undergoing an enormous economic development and has an increasingly prominent position on the world stage. Since the acquisition of ICI, AkzoNobel has become a major player on the Indian paint market. AkzoNobel employs around 1,500 people in India (including 900 at ICI India) with around €250 million revenue. Six production facilities, two research laboratories and about a dozen sales locations are located in the country across all coatings and chemicals businesses.