With Tk600cr investment, Akij enters bathroomware market 

Akij Bathware, a subsidiary of Akij Group, on Tuesday launched stylish Rosa faucets and bathware products with an investment of Tk600 crore.

Manufacturers at the launching programme at a Dhaka hotel said that Akij will produce the items at its Trishal factory in Mymensingh. 

The factory will make 60,000 pieces of water taps, wash basins, showerheads and bathroom towel holders per month, according to officials, generating more than 500 jobs. 

The company will sell the bathware under the brand name Rosa of Akij Ceramics. Initially, the company is moving forward with the target of Tk200-Tk220 crore annual sales. It also plans to make water taps with sensors in the future.

At the launching, Akij Group Managing Director Sk Bashir Uddin said they always want to give the best products to the customers. 

"It took us almost 4 years to launch the bathroom accessories as we did research for one and a half years. We believe local customers deserve better than what is currently available in the market. We are working to give them the best," he added.

Stating that Akij is getting ready to export faucets to England, he said, "We hope to be the first to export this product from Bangladesh in the international market."

Md Khourshed Alam, director of Akij Building Materials, among others spoke at this opening ceremony; Shamsuddin Ahmed, deputy managing director of Akij Building Materials; Mostafijul Arefin, head of sales of Akij Bathware and Golam Rabbani, brand lead of Rosa.

Dealers of Akij Bathware and prominent architects also joined the event, as popular artistes including Fazlur Rahman Babu and Akhi Alamgir took part in cultural performances in the opening ceremony.

According to industry people, the local market for water taps (taps, wash basins and showerheads) and towel holders is around Tk1,500 crore with an annual growth of 15%.

However, the majority of this market is dominated by foreign brands as currently there are no major local brands manufacturing these items except for the RFL Group. As a result, substandard products are taking a piece of the pie.

Some 50 companies manufacture plastic, steel and metal faucets and showerheads in Bangladesh, traders say. Products of these companies include bib cock water taps, showers, water closet commodes, basin taps and squat toilet taps.

When it comes to modern apartments or expensive hotels and resorts, the sanitary essentials are imported from Italy, Germany, Korea, India, Thailand, China and Taiwan. Cheaper and substandard products are also imported from China. Overall, more than 50% of the total sanitary fittings sold in the country are foreign products.

In the local faucet market, Sharif Metal is the first company, which started operation back in 1973. The company produces more than 30 types of faucets and its market share is slightly below 10%.

According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, a faulty faucet leaking one drop per second wastes about 3,000 gallons of water a year, enough to take about 180 showers. Opting for a good faucet would be the ideal as it prevents water wastage other than elevating the look of the washroom.