Products made of the golden fibre of Kerala, coir, will soon be available through Walmart. The State-owned Coir Corporation has agreed with the US retail major and its membership-only retail warehouse club, Sam’s Club, to market its coir products.
Pratheesh G. Panicker, managing director, Kerala State Coir Corporation (KSCC) said that it hoped to make available various coir products on the online platforms of Walmart and Sam’s Club by next month.
“Coir Corporation is the first public sector undertaking (PSU) in the country to reach an agreement with Walmart. Our coir products will be launched online before being sold in Walmart stores worldwide. A team from Walmart will visit our factory soon,” said Mr. Panicker, adding that Walmart decided to collaborate with the corporation after completing a set of procedures, including stringent quality checks.
Following a declining demand in the export market, the corporation a few months ago signed a memorandum of understanding with the National Institute of Design (NID), Bhopal, to create new designs and products. Further to it, members of coir societies and workers have been trained to make innovative and market-oriented coir products. As part of diversifying the product range, the corporation is set to unveil multiple products with around 1,400 designs. Mr. Panicker said the corporation had already received orders for two lakh newly designed rope mats.
G. Venugopal, chairman, Kerala State Coir Corporation (KSCC), said the corporation had registered a profit of ₹82 lakh in the 2023-24 fiscal and the association with Walmart would help it to scale new heights. The corporation’s turnover increased to ₹148 crore from ₹134 crore a year ago.
Besides, Foam Mattings (India) Ltd, another PSU in the coir sector, also registered a profit after making loss for the past 18 years. Foam Mattings, which is set to be merged with Coir Corporation, reported a profit of ₹3 lakh. The Foam Mattings turnover increased to ₹14 crore in 2023-24 from ₹12 crore the previous year.
