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Business Reporter
Entrepreneur and Ledger Paints chief executive officer (CEO) Phillip Bapiro, is this year’s Northern Region CEO of the year after winning the top prize at a recent Megafest Business Awards ceremony.
Ledger Paints has been on a growth trajectory, having increased its capacity utilisation by 15 percent this year to 70 percent from driven by product rebranding and growth in individual home construction.
Mr Bapiro attributed the award to the effort his company has dedicated towards product excellence and enhanced customer service.
The company has been growing its footprint in the country and is looking forward to opening shops in many other towns dotted around the country with immediate focus directed on opening a showroom in Masasa.
The company supplies specialised coatings, automotive, carpentry and decorative paints and paint accessories like bitumen putty, body filler, car wax, polishing cream, spotty putty, rubbing compound, and other paint accessories.
The company has grown to other areas after venturing into the manufacture of a diverse range of chemicals including solvents, resins, powders, pigments, pastes, and detergents.
In an interview with The Herald Finance and Business, Ledger paints chief executive officer Mr Bapiro attributed the recognition to improved focus on product quality and improvement and better customer relations.
“The focus was more on product quality and good customer service. As a company, we made sure to extend excellent customer service that involved meeting and surpassing client expectations.
“The objective was to show our customers how important they are to us because one bad customer service experience can tarnish customers’ opinion of a product or brand indefinitely,” said Mr Bapiro.
As the case with other construction industry-related sectors Ledger paints said 2021 was a good year as reflected by good sales of the company’s products due to growth in individual home building and renovations which grew extremely in 2020.
On the flip side, the Government went a gear up in construction projects including the construction of schools, clinics, dams, roads, and general infrastructure, which helped stimulate products uptake from local manufacturers.
“…there has been an increase in sales from decorative paints and we can safely relate it to the boom in the construction industry despite the Covid-19 pandemic,” he said.
Going forward according to Mr Bapiro, the company intends to widen its distribution network with the immediate aim of establishing a showroom in the Masasa industrial area.
The company’s contribution to employment in the country is slowly gathering momentum as the company now significantly employs locals and also offers training opportunities to students from colleges and universities around Zimbabwe.
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