DyStar is growing in China

Citation

(2004), "DyStar is growing in China", Pigment & Resin Technology, Vol. 33 No. 1. https://doi.org/10.1108/prt.2004.12933aab.009

DyStar is growing in China

DyStar is growing in China

DyStar – the world's leading textile dyes company – celebrated the official opening of a new company and modern service laboratory in Shanghai on 16 September 2003 with 200 customers, journalists and employees. The establishment of DyStar (Shanghai) Trading Co., Ltd means that DyStar currently has a presence in all major textile centres in China. In his opening speech, Dr Clemens Willée of DyStar's General Management stressed: “Our investment in China is part of our growth strategy in Asia. We have an excellent basis in this region and our aim now is to expand our market leadership.”

To achieve this goal, DyStar will be employing about 100 staff in sales and marketing, technical services including laboratory staff and administration in Shanghai. The new company brings DyStar closer to its customers in China because Shanghai has expanded its role as the “gateway to China” in recent years. Many retailers and manufacturers of brand-name goods have recognised the importance of this rapidly growing industrial centre and opened offices in Shanghai. Eric Hopmann, General Manager of Shanghai Trading said “Our new company in Shanghai improves our service to customers in China because it means they can now obtain dyes imported from our foreign production sites and products from our Wuxi facility out of the same hand.”

Extensive investment in this major growth market

DyStar is expanding its market presence in China in response to the growing demand for quality dyes and technical service. China's importance as a textile exporter has increased rapidly in recent years and it currently accounts for about 20 percent of global textile output, making it the world's largest textile producer. Since it has joined the World Trade Organization, it is expected to increase its share of the global textile market to 40 percent in the coming years. China is also DyStar's most important growth market. Last year, the company reported double-digit volume growth in China. It already has over 200 employees in China and is planning to increase its sales team over the next few months. DyStar currently has nine offices, three laboratories and one production site in China. It is planning to open further sales offices, including branches in the major textile areas of Zhejiang and Jiangsu. DyStar is also tripling production capacity at its site in Wuxi. Alongside the current range of Dianix^® disperse dyes and Remazol^® reactive dyes, this site is scheduled to start producing Indanthren^® vat dyes and Astrazon^® cationic dyes in 2004.

Clear benefits for customers

DyStar is investing in China to enable it to provide trained specialists, extensive service and high-quality products to help customers minimise costs and maximise quality. DyStar markets these benefits under the label of “Controlled Coloration/Color Confidence”. Controlled Coloration is targeted mainly at the needs of textile finishers: DyStar advises its customers on all aspects of their production processes and helps them improve the speed and reliability of textile dyeing and printing. The aim is to ensure right-first-time dyeings, increase productivity and reduce unit production costs.

DyStar also goes a step further: Color Confidence includes the quality and reliability of the dyed textiles when they reach the end- user. Increasingly stringent demands are being placed by global retailers on fastness properties, consistency of shade and ecological aspects. Together with its subsidiary Color Solutions International, DyStar maintains close contact with these leading retailers and manufacturers of brand-name goods such as Walmart, Adidas and Nike. This enables DyStar to identify emerging trends in the global textile industry and offer its customers suitable color standards and custom-tailored solutions.

Investing in the future

To make sure that it can continue to offer the right solutions in the future, DyStar invests 3-4 percent of sales in research and development every year. Currently, about 20 percent of sales are generated with products introduced in the past 5 years. Recent examples include the new Indigo Solution for the denim industry, Remazol^® Luminous Yellow FL, the world's first fluorescent reactive dye for cellulosics, and the new Jettex^® inks for digital textile printing. DyStar also works with leading textile machinery producers such as Thies, Monforts and Brazzoli on the development of dyeing and printing processes. Owing to its innovative products, technologies and services, DyStar is set to grow in China.