Negative results for coatings

Last year the Czech market for coatings forfeited 14 per cent of its volume in terms of both sales and quantity. The GfK rates this as positive compared to 2009, the year of crisis, when the fall was as much as 16 per cent. In the specialist sector coatings recorded a sales decline of 20 per cent. This contrasts with the mass-marketing channels and DIY stores, where the sales volume in this product category was up slightly, though sales were 2.0 per cent down by value. Nevertheless individual product groups saw much more positive development in this sector. For instance, varnish experienced 10 per cent growth in both quantity and price. Emulsion paint, which is the dominant product group, did similarly well. Since January 2010 GfK Retail and Technology has had a DIY panel in Slovakia as well. Here the researchers have ascertained that the market is similarly constituted. The most important product group is emulsion paint with a share of 72 per cent by volume and 42.5 per cent by value. However, one major difference between the Slovak and Czech markets lies in the significance of the channels of distribution: in 2010 the specialist trade in Slovakia had a high, stable market share of 92 per cent.