Blue Star to foray into residential segment this summer

MUMBAI: Airconditioning and commercial refrigeration major, Blue Star, today announced its foray into the residential segment from the coming summer with a wide range of air-conditioners.

"The residential airconditioning market has been on a fast-growth path. We are confident that with our credentials and expertise, we will be able to garner a significant marketshare in this segment," Blue Star's President, Airconditioning & Refrigeration Products Group, B Thiagarajan told reporters here.

The room airconditioning segment is poised to grow to Rs 13,700-crore by FY 14 from the Rs 5,000-crore in FY 10, he said.

An expanding middle-class with disposable incomes, a growing number of Tier II and III cities and with fears of recession over, the room airconditioning segment is set for a robust growth, he said.

The company is introducing 35 models and also augmenting its dealership network to push its products, Thiagarajan said, adding the company's ad spend in FY 12 would be up from the present Rs 10-crore to around Rs 20-crore.

On sales, he said that while the FY 11 sales would be around 1,90,000 units, it would increase to 2,70,000 units in FY 12. "Of this, around 50 per cent will be from the residential part of the market, he said.

The company is aiming for a nine per cent marketshare in the residential segment in the first year itself, he said. Presently, its marketshare in this segment stands at four per cent.