Editors’ note: The European Council of the Paint, Printing Ink and Artists‘ Colours Industry (CEPE) represents the interests of about 1,100 paint, 75 printing ink and over 20 artists’ colors companies at the European level. It has 23 member associations and four affiliated associations in 21 countries, 14 company members as well as affiliated paint manufacturers in Poland, Romania, Russia and Turkey. Since the coatings industry has become so global, the discussions and concerns voiced at CEPE are also relative to coating concerns in the Americas.
Many of the participants were drawn to the CEPE’s AGM in Nice by a need for direction. They gave accounts of national associations, such as those in Ireland and Italy, that were once highly cohesive but whose strong presence had fallen victim to a fragmented market. These companies believed that the weakening of individual national federations was the domination of most national markets by major multinationals. The remaining national competitors were swapping less information as a result and were focusing only on their own business activities.