Plascon
South African paint manufacturer
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Plascon (officially Kansai Plascon Africa Ltd) is a major South African paint manufacturer. Based in Krugersdorp[3], the company is a subsidiary of Japanese corporation Kansai Paints, which is one of the world's 10 largest paint manufacturers.[4]
Parthenon Paints
| |
 Plascon paint swatches in a Cape Town home improvement store | |
| Industry | Paint manufacturing and retail |
|---|---|
| Predecessor | Herbert Evans & Co Parthenon Paints |
| Founded | 1889 |
| Headquarters | Krugersdorp, South Africa |
Area served | Africa |
Key people | Takashi Tomioka (Chairman) Prejay Lalla (CEO)[1] |
| Brands | Double Velvet Velvaglo Polvin Wall & All NuRoof Cashmere |
Number of employees | 3,000+ (2025)[2] |
| Parent | Kansai Paints |
| Website | plascon |
The company was founded in 1889 as Herbert Evans & Co, and was acquired by Kansai in 2011. Plascon is a prominent brand in the African paint market, competing primarily with Dulux and Duram.
History
Plascon was founded in 1889[5], when Herbert Evans started a paint manufacturing company in Johannesburg, South Africa. The company was originally called Herbert Evans & Co.[3]
In 1915, the company trademarked Parthenon Paints, and in 1949, joined with Chrome Chemicals to form Plascon.[3]
In 1970, Barloworld (then called Barlo Rand) acquired Plascon.[3] At the time, Plascon was producing 100 million liters of paint a year, making it one of the world's 20 largest paint manufacturers.[6]
In 2007, when Barloworld unbundled, Freeworld Coatings was formed, which owned Plascon.[3]
In 2011, major Japanese paint manufacturer Kansai Paints acquired Plascon, and the following year, the latter's name was changed to Kansai Plascon Africa.[3]
In 2015, the company set up a joint venture in Nigeria, incorporated as Kansai Plascon Nigeria Limited.[3]
The company appointed Farid Masood as its new CEO in 2017. In the same year, Plascon announced its African expansion strategy.[7]
In November 2022, the South African Competition Commission blocked a proposed acquisition of Plascon by AkzoNobel, the Netherlands-based owner of Dulux paint, a major Plascon competitor. The Commission stated that merging South Africa's largest and second-largest paint manufacturers would create a firm that was too dominant in the local market, resulting in a reduction in consumer choice in the paint sector.[8]
Operations
Plascon manufactures and sells paint for indoor, outdoor, decorative, industrial, and automotive use.[9]
The company sells its products via independent paint stores , as well as home improvement retail chains, such as Builders Warehouse, Mica, BUCO, and Leroy Merlin in South Africa, and does business across numerous other African countries.[10]