Korea's ZIC goes for 20%

ZIC, a well-known lubricant brand from South Korea-based SK Corporation, wants to penetrate the Bt20-billion motor-oil market in Thailand aggressively, targeting growth of 20 per cent annually.
The company has allocated more than Bt10 million for a year-end promotional campaign and a ZIC 2012 calendar.
Seaksun Srisupha-olarn, managing director of Oranoss, a subsidiary of KM Group, said the company was appointed by SK Lubricants as Thailand’s sole distributor for ZIC, which is the No 1 engine-oil brand in South Korea, in 2006.
According to a report on auto sales in Thailand in August, the total number of vehicles reached 79,043, up by 20.3 per cent over the same month of last year. The number of passenger cars reached 35,545 units, up by 26.4 per cent, while the number of commercial vehicles totalled 43,498 units, up 15.7 per cent.
Many carmakers have announced plans to raise their manufacturing capacity to serve greater demand. This results in the growth of the local lubricant market, which is worth more than Bt20 billion. Over the past years, the local lubricant market has posted 3-5 per cent annual growth.
“This year, we expect the overall lubricant market to grow about 5 per cent. However, we expect the sales of our ZIC lubricants to increase by 20 per cent every year,” Seaksun said.
For its year-end campaigns, the company will focus on marketing activities that help enhance a positive image and awareness of ZIC motor oil in Thailand. Most recently, the company began introducing the sexy ZIC 2012 calendar as a special gift to loyal customers.
The company yesterday launched its premium-grade motor oils into the Thai market, consisting of ZIC OW-30 and ZIC A+5W-20, which claim to save fuel, and ZIC RV 10W-30, a fully synthetic engine oil. The target customers for fully synthetic lubricants are new-generation drivers of both petrol and diesel vehicles.