Breaking into a new market is never easy, especially when it’s a new region and a new product. But for GC, a chemical company eager to enter the competitive coatings space in Asia Pacific – finding the right partner made all the difference. And that partner was Caldic.
“Venturing into a new market can be an uphill task,” says Dr. Nurudin Budiman, Regional Senior Director, Marketing and Innovation, who led the expansion project at Caldic APAC. “But with the right combination of market insight and technical expertise, we knew we could turn that challenge into an opportunity.”
GC came to Caldic with a bold goal: introduce a bio-based, zero-VOC chemical additive into an already crowded marketplace. The stakes were high, and the margins for error were slim. But for Nurudin and his team, it was a challenge worth taking on.
“We immediately pulled together our market specialists and technical teams. The key was to first understand how to position the product: not just what it does, but what makes it different, and why that matters in the APAC market.”
Backed by our state-of-the-art laboratories, the team got to work. Samples were tested, performance metrics evaluated, and potential applications explored. “Our labs gave us the clarity we needed,” Nurudin explains. “This wasn’t just another additive, it had real advantages: it was high-performing, eco-friendlier, and offered longer open time. We knew we had something valuable on our hands.”
The team's assessment resulted in a clear, confident go-to-market strategy that put GC’s product front and center – first in Indonesia, Bangladesh, and China, and soon across several other APAC countries.
This was not simply a one-time launch. It was the start of something bigger. Not only did we enter a market together but also unlocked a new region of possibilities.
“Initial traction came fast,” Nurudin says, “but what made it sustainable was the foundation we laid through deep technical validation, smart positioning, and constant collaboration with GC. That’s how we work. We go beyond distribution; we’re strategic partners.” Looking back, the success of the project wasn’t just about product chemistry, it was about connection.
Innovation in coatings and construction drives high-performance and sustainability. With Caldic, customers have access to raw materials, labs, and insight to solve tough formulation challenges. We co-create durable, compliant, and future-ready solutions across industries.
