Godrej Appliances plans to reach full production capacity from August; sales already at pre-Covid level

KOLKATA: Home grown white goods maker Godrej Appliances is hopeful to reach full production capacity from August onwards as it prepares for the festive season and demand is already reaching pre-Covid level. The company is also working on finding out alternatives to China including domestic sourcing of components, said business head Kamal Nandi.

Addressing a virtual press meet on Friday, Nandi said the plants of Godrej Appliances are currently operating at 60% as compared to 20% in May. “We will reach 80% capacity in July and full capacity from August,” said Nandi.

Godrej Appliances said sales in May were at 35-40% of last year, while in June it is already at last year level. “Industry too has reached 90% of pre-Covid level sales. We expect sales will improve from July onwards and will be better than pre-Covid till the festive season,” said Nandi.

However, the lockdown in April and May will have an impact on sales. Nandi said sales in these two months were a washout considering they contribute 25% to annual business.

“However, the way sales have recovered we expect industry de-growth in sales will be much lower than earlier estimates of 20-30% to 15-20%. For Godrej the impact will be lower since we are seeing better traction in sales,” he said.

Nandi said the company has plans to expand into newer categories for products which are in demand right now as a substitute for services which people used to get at home. He, however, said there will be no immediate price hike since commodity prices are stable or little low and hence the impact from weak rupee is cushioned. “But any duty changes by the government will have an impact,” he said.

Nandi said the company has planned various plans and strategies depending on the pandemic and how it unfolds. Godrej Appliances on Friday launched a new range of refrigerators and washing machines.