- After making a name for itself as a pencil-maker, Doms is expanding to become a one-stop shop for children’s needs
- To do that, it is getting deeper into different categories, including paper stationery where ITC’s Classmate brand is the market leader
- With more than 10 product launches each month, Doms’ strategy is to diversify and conquer
- But ITC isn’t easy to beat, especially since it has end-to-end control on manufacturing and making paper
Enter your email address to receive a daily summary of all our stories.
There’s a plucky rival nipping at ITC’s heels. Not in cigarettes, its money spinner, or in its sprawling fast-moving consumer goods empire. The challenger is in stationery. Pens, pencils, and paper. The least glamorous corner of the conglomerate’s portfolio might just become its most threatened.
When Gujarat-based Doms Industries went public in 2023, the stationery maker’s annual sales were around Rs 1,200 crore or half that of Classmate and Paperkraft, ITC’s stationery brands. Cut to FY25, and Doms’ sales have grown to Rs 1,900 crore—two thirds that of ITC.
The company is trading at 3X its IPO issue price, with a market value of Rs 15,500 crore.
Who knew pencils could be so lucrative? Doms did—right from 2006, when it shifted from manufacturing pencils for competitors to making its own. Pencils are its top seller, making up 30% of the company’s revenue.
It’s now looking to make inroads in paper, too, which is Classmate’s leading category. Notebooks make up almost 90% of Classmate’s revenue.
In May, Doms
Visual Stories
Share this article with your network
Send the article link to friends or colleagues who might find this story interesting or insightful.
Send the article link to friends or colleagues who might find this story interesting or insightful.