ICR is constantly in touch with cement dealers, who are the crucial, connecting link between the manufacturer and the consumer. Dealers know the pulse of market, beat by beat. So we asked them how their business was going and what were the problems they were beset with. Here is their response, in their voice.
Vip Raj Sales Bhagwan Vasudeo Shingre, Proprietor
I have been in the market since the last 40 years, trading in brands such as Birla, Vasavadatta Cement, Mangalam Cement etc. We send cement all over Maharashtra and at times have also catered to distant places in India. I have seen that the cement demand has subsided in the last seven or eight years and that continuing in this business is becoming more and more difficult for dealers.
The market is tough and the demand is low. Cement companies can`t do much to help dealers. I´m not taking any side here but it is a fact that the demand is low and will continue to be so for some time. Unless we see the government taking some aggressive steps to boost the infrastructure, the demand for cement will continue to remain low. I hope that things will get better in 2014, but am not expecting any sudden, drastic changes.