Technical fibres are used across industries, with widespread applications. They are used in the shipping industry for cordage, in the fishing industry for fishing nets and aquaculture nets. They are also found in nets in sports like tennis, agriculture nets for greenhouses, safety nets in construction, geosynthetics in highway construction and coated fabrics such as tarpaulin, and in tents used across logistics, defence, etc. Technical textiles constitute 13% of India’s total textile and apparel market and India is the second largest producer of technical textiles next to China. The total domestic market for technical textiles is estimated at Rs 1,42,500 crore.

Garware Technical Fibres is the leader in the technical textiles industry in India, with 60% revenue from exports and a leader in the Indian fisheries segment. Garware Technical Fibres products use derivatives of crude oil i.e polyethylene, polypropylene, polyester and HDPE (High-density polyethylene) as raw material.

The company has been in business for more than 40 years and was earlier operating under the name ‘Garware Wall Ropes’. It was rebranded as Garware Technical Fibres in 2018. The last few years saw a turnaround in the company’s fortunes, when in FY2014 it shifted focus from commodity products to value-added products which contributed better margins. Value added products comprised 75% of the product mix in FY20 as compared to 35% in FY14, resulting in a 6X growth in annual profits. Once the turnaround story was entrenched, Garware Technical Fiber’s stock surged more than 10X in market capitalisation over the past five years.

Quick Takes

• The company saw highest ever annual revenue of Rs 1,069.2 crore and net profit of Rs 158.4 crore in FY21

• Value added products, particularly in aquaculture have made the company a world leader in salmon fishing nets

• Though well diversified with over 20,000 SKUs (stock keeping units), fishing industry products contribute to more than 50% of revenues in FY21.

• The company commands a leadership in export of sports nets and these nets are used in prestigious tournaments like the US Open grand slam.

Sustained demand in FY21 despite lockdowns

In FY21, one of the most challenging years across industries, Garware Technical Fibres stood out for its performance, posting its highest ever annual revenues. According to the management, though the fishing industry was badly hit in FY21, the company’s customers did not defer their spending on items like  fishing nets, which need periodic replacement. The demand for the company’s products came from fisheries as requirements remained constant despite lockdowns.

Garware Technical Fibers too was hit badly by the pandemic and lockdowns. It faced one of the worst quarters in Q1FY21. However, its fortunes started changing from Q2FY21 with every subsequent quarter registering higher revenues. In Q4FY21, the company delivered the highest revenues as well as operating profit in the last ten quarters. 

The profitability metrics also improved in FY21, with the annual operating profit margin, EBIT (earnings before income tax) margin  and net profit margin being the highest in the last five years. The EBIT for FY21 stood at Rs 212.6 crore, and the net profit margin stood at 15.3%. According to the management, significant efforts made to optimise operating costs have added close to Rs. 70 crore cash which has resulted in the improved profitability metrics.

One of the key reasons for the strong growth is the strategy for solution oriented products adopted by the company a few years ago. GTF switched focus from manufacturing commodity-level plain vanilla products to products that solved a problem at consumer end (e.g from plain fishing nets to nets that are stronger and less resistant to damage). The company is the leading supplier of fishing nets for trawlers in India, with a 60% market share. The foray into aquaculture, with value added products, particularly in salmon farming has been one of the biggest contributors to its growth. The company also became a global leader in salmon fishing nets when it switched from nylon to High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) a few years ago. This  shift was the key reason for gaining market share because nylon loses strength when in water while HDPE does not, making the nets more durable .

Norway and Chile are the top two salmon-fishing countries where Garware has 20% share of nets followed by Scotland and Canada, where the company accounts for 90% of the nets.

Salmon farming requires different types of nets to be cast in the sea over many months. Each net can be as large as 200 meters in circumference and the nets are laid to a depth of 35 meters in icy cold waters of the Atlantic. Garware Technical Fibres’ value addition focused on improving the properties of these nets by embedding them with micro copper particles making them last longer and less resistant to deposits and hence more efficient. The other problem that the company worked on was making nets which are resilient to attacks by seals and other predators. This has resulted in greater productivity with the salmon farmers with higher catches per net and lesser loss of fish due to predators.

While the company was initially strong in the fishing nets and ropes sector, Garware Technical Fibres has over the years diversified into other applications like aquaculture, agriculture, sports, infrastructure and other segments. The company is a leading supplier of sports nets such as nets for tennis, football, cricket, golf, basketball, beach volleyball and Ski nets for tournaments globally. It is the largest sports nets exporter from India. Along with diversification of products, the company has added value to these products, resulting in higher margins.

Unorganized players impact domestic growth momentum

Some of the key factors for growth are the continued market share in the global aquaculture industry. Segments like geo-synthetics are expected to grow given the increasedGovernment spending on infrastructure, where geo-synthetics are a key  product in highway construction. However the pace of growth of these segments will determine margins in the future.

While the company’s focus on solution based products for exports has yielded results, the domestic demand for key product segments has been stagnant. In the domestic market of fishing nets, despite being a leader, Garware Technical Fibres faces competition from fragmented unorganized players which leads to pricing pressures.

The company’s main raw materials are crude derivatives. The key raw materials used by the company include high density polyethylene, polypropylene, nylon, polyester yarn & G.I. wire. Any sustained raw material inflation due to higher crude prices or demand supply mismatch can have an impact on Garware Technical Fibres future performance.

Another threat that Garware Technical Fibres faces is competition from new players in global markets, which may impact revenue growth and margins. The market is fragmented and several international companies including Aqualine and Badinotti Group in the aquaculture space are vying for a greater market share.

While Garware Technical Fibres’ turnaround over the last few years is commendable, the challenge lies in the next phase of growth. While the management has indicated that they are looking at inorganic opportunities for growth, maintaining leadership in value added products holds the key. The future direction of the company will be determined by the sectors it casts its nets in, in FY22.