--By Bhawani Timilsina 

 

Being one of the popular local brands ‘Heritage’ mattresses is the favourite choice among the consumers. And, if all goes well, the brand is going to be available in also carpet and furnishing products in near future.

 

“Heritage, by its name, reflects that the product is classic. And that we are also exploring business opportunities in carpet and furnishing goods,” says, Hemraj Dhakal, Director of the Balaji Coir Industries Pvt Ltd (BCIPL).

 

The mattress segment is the key component of the BCIPL. The product was introduced in 2004. “With almost a decade long experience, the company has become successful to surpass all other international brands. We have been attempting to assess quality and comfort through heritage mattress, he says. The company imports raw materials from India, Malaysia, China, Bangladesh, Thailand etc. “We design our products according to the requirements and demand of the consumers,” Dhakal said.

 

 

The company used to import mattresses from India in initial phase. Later the company had to face numerous problems and they decided to start their own production in Nepal. The major raw materials are coconut fiber and latex that adds natural quality to the product. They follow an international technology during manufacturing process to ensure quality. “We have a lab testing facility and with its inception we have surpassed all the other imported products. Nepalis consumers prefer our brand as it assures both quality and comfort,” he claims.

 

The company has been manufacturing four types of mattresses called silver, gold, diamond and platinum (including super platinum). The company claims to have occupied 20-30 percent share of the total market, with product guarantee of five years.

 

The company has 90 outlets across the country. It also supplies its product to Tibet.  The price of the mattresses ranges between Rs 3,500-Rs 25,000. “We have set the price with a view to make it affordable to the people of all classes,” Dhakal said.

 

While sharing the success factors of the brand, he says, “Our marketing strategy plays an important role to achieve success in this field. Our consumers know how to choose the best products on the basis of quality and durability. We can assure that our product is of best quality, giving high comfort.”

 

He also mentions the business advantage of the growing sense in the consumers about the advantages and drawbacks of using mattresses. With the tagline ‘all season mattresses’, the product is suitable to use during all seasons, says Dhakal. The carpet market has been slowly and gradually growing in Nepal.

 

“At a time while the Indian products were flooding the Nepali market, our brand helped reduce the import quantity,” he claims. According to Dhakal, around Rs 100 million has been invested in the company. “Though the competition is not tough, it is very essential to adopt changes in the demand. As the market has been growing it becomes very necessary to deal with quality of product.” he said

 

He feels that the consumers will be benefitted from using Nepalis brands that offer guarantee and warrantee services. As per a market survey, nearly 60 per cent market has been occupied by the local product, whereas 40 percent by the international brands.