Premium Paint Manufacturer Meyer Plc has said it is currently working on strategies to help speed up its business transformation plans in 2020 in a bid to regain market leadership position although it is aware of the attendant threats posed by COVID-19 to its business operation.
The manufacturer at its 48th Annual General Meeting in Lagos on Thursday said part of its plans includes the introduction of Meyer point-of-sales outlet with the pilot phase in Lagos, revamping of its website to enable online transactions, the re-introduction of a low-end product under a new name.
“We are going to be working closely with the management to ensure we turn the trend of things,” said Kayode Falowo, Chairman of the Board, Meyer, noting that with the outbreak of COVID-19 the company has lost a significant part of the year and that the fruits of ongoing efforts might be realized post-2020 due to dampened economic outlook.
Meyer also said it hopes to make a distribution to shareholders from the balance of the sales of its property after it relocates its facility.
“We have been engaging our strategic business partners in Abuja and some parts of the north and that is going very well…we have a lot of market initiatives to encourage customers to buy from us,” said Rotimi Alashe, Acting MD Meyers. “We are doing well although not as much as without COVID.”
The paint maker said it has put in place several cost reduction initiatives to offset the negative COVID-19 impact on revenue.
In line with guidelines on social-distancing amid the coronavirus pandemic, proxies were used for the attendance of shareholders to limit the gathering and ensure participants kept the advised physical distance.
The meeting was also live-streamed on YouTube per the social distancing rules of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) and other regulatory bodies.
The General Meeting approved, amongst other resolutions, the individual Company, and consolidated financial statements for the fiscal year 2019.
At the AGM, members approved the re-election of Erelu Angela Adebayo and Tony Uponi as Non-Executive Directors.
The meeting further served to approve the election of members of the Statutory Audit Committee which include two shareholders.
Meyer in 2019 grew sales by 14 percent to N1.1 billion helped by a drastic change in channel development and transformation programme that also led to the addition of four new trade partners in Lagos, Ibadan and Ilorin.
Compared to 2018, the paint maker improved its sales in the Eastern and Northern region and its Private and Wholesale businesses strengthened in the year. The paint maker, however, made a loss in the 2019 business year.
Meyer manufactures and markets paints. The Company offers architectural, road lining, and wood paints, as well as provides auto refinishes, coatings, and adhesives.
