Walton Lift Chief Business Officer Eng. Jenan Ul Islam (JUI) shares insights with your author (SSP) on the Bangladesh company’s USP and vision.
SSP: What aspects make your company or brand an ideal source of VT and related components? What is its Unique Selling Proposition (USP)?
JUI: The USP of Walton Lift is its safety, considering it is the first local manufacturer of lifts in Bangladesh. Walton Lift maintains 100% European safety standards. The norms of all safety features have been followed strictly in design, production and installation (as well as service) by Walton’s own dedicated team throughout the country. It is Walton that made the bold venture, for the first time, to invest at the manufacturing level to change the lift industry in Bangladesh. Thanks to us, people can now get a taste of durability, reliability and availability at a very affordable price.
SSP: How would you describe the company’s journey, evolution and progress since its inception?
JUI: One of the five brothers of Walton once dreamed of manufacturing a world-class elevator at its own facility in Bangladesh. To realize this long-term vision and to make itself more visible, Walton made its first investment back in 2014 in the Bangladesh cities of Chandra, Kaliakoir and Gazipur—creating its own super manufacturing hub. During that period, work was confined to strengthening its R&D and design to only meet in-house demand with a prototype. After five years of sleepless nights and tireless work on the part of our bright engineers and technicians, Walton introduced its first lift to the market at the end of 2018. With a focus on trust and love for the people of Bangladesh, Walton has not looked back since. Now, in 2024, Walton is capable of producing thousands of elevators per year, covering 18% of the present market share of the country in this industry.
“Walton is capable of producing thousands of elevators per year, covering 18% of the present market share of the country in this industry.”
— Walton Lift CBO Eng. Jenan Ul Islam
SSP: How would you describe your portfolio of offerings for the VT industry? Which key offerings are in demand, and what are the key market drivers?
JUI: In the Bangladesh market, for every building — whether it is three or four stories tall or in a city or a small village — users always consider incorporating a lift. No one can imagine a building in the 21st century that lacks a lift. Even owners of some old buildings are now making the necessary modifications to allocate space for lift construction. Yet, due to the recent development of factories/industries, as well as massive urbanization, a lift is no longer a luxury item, but something viewed as essential by everyone. So, to meet the various demands from every corner of the country, Walton provides a wide range of solutions, including passenger lifts, cargo lifts, service lifts, home lifts, escalators and hydraulic lifts with a wide range of capacity. Currently Walton has a range of capacity from 300 kg to 5000kg. People choose Walton because of its custom solutions based on individual requests, short delivery times and high-quality installation and after-sales service. Flexible payment systems can also be noted as one of the main factors for massive customer demand. Walton is the first in this industry to offer an affordable installment payment plan for up to five years. This points to our strong financial capability, as well as the quality of our components and service.
SSP: To which geographical areas do you cater? What advantages are gained by customers who select products from your portfolio?
JUI: As the first lift manufacturer in Bangladesh, currently we are focusing on capturing the local market share only which is 18% roughly and we are very much hopeful that in the next few years, it will be around 30%-40%. Though we have some requirements for the international market too, right now we are preparing ourselves to keep that in coming years. Walton Lift provides a set of advantages to customers. One of the major advantages is 24/7 service maintenance support. We have dedicated service experts assigned in every corner of Bangladesh. Besides that, we offer shorter delivery and installation times than any other competitor in the local market.
SSP: Which real estate and infrastructure segments or categories drive VT demand in Bangladesh from a macro perspective?
JUI: As Bangladesh is a developing country, it has a huge number of infrastructure projects and high-rise construction sites. In Bangladesh, demand for VT can be segmented into two major categories, i.e., government projects and non-government/private projects. Non-government/private projects include privately owned homes, developer companies, autonomous institutions and factories.
SSP: How would you describe the Bangladesh market scope and size for VT going forward?
JUI: As we all know, Bangladesh is a quickly developing country, so massive urbanization is only a matter of time now. Areas such as Purbacahal, Bashundhara, Kolpolok and Jolshiri Abashon are seeing a remarkable surge in construction work. Every year, the country is developing more and more. The Bangladesh market is going to be ideal for the lift industry in coming years. Statistics show there is demand for approximately 40,000 elevators in only part of Bangladesh in the next 10 years. This only promises to grow. So, not a single or even multiple organizations can fulfill this upcoming demand unless we invest more in this industry at the manufacturing level to strengthen technology and production.
SSP: What are your growth strategies for 2024 and beyond? Any plans to expand horizons or explore new markets?
JUI: Lifts are a product where it is essential to ensure instant service and commitment to grow market share. Thus, every single customer of Walton Lift becomes a brand ambassador. So, maintaining our commitment to high-quality products and service is the main strategy of Walton. Besides this, there is an opportunity to provide VT solutions for government projects on a very large scale. Walton is preparing itself for this market by building its own dedicated test tower and earning various certifications that attests to its technology and quality.
SSP: What VT trends and demand patterns are being witnessed in Bangladesh?
JUI: There are very positive trends for this sector in Bangladesh. The growth rate of this industry is at least 8% to 10% every year. Even during COVID, the demand pattern didn’t have as much impact as we expected.
SSP: Describe your vision for playing a key role in the VT industry’s development in this country going forward.
JUI: Walton’s vision is to make the country self-dependent in the elevator sector, avoiding dependency on imports. That’s why Walton is investing more and more to strengthen its R&D and technology to meet the country’s massive upcoming demands. Our strong, countrywide sales and distribution network will ensure our products’ response in every corner. We dream of a time when every home will have a Walton Lift, like they have our refrigerators.
About Jenan Ul Islam
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