PPG Sells Paints

In his role as director of marketing for PPG Industries' architectural coatings business in North America, Tom Dougherty tries to make sure the company's paints are in the shopping carts of do-it-yourselfers and professional contractors across the U.S. and Canada.

One of his biggest challenges, though, comes when he's socializing in and around Pittsburgh and has to explain that, yes, PPG sells paints in its headquarters' hometown.

Even when he mentions one of its major paints labels, Olympic Paints & Stains, which has wide distribution through the Lowe's home retail chain, many consumers don't connect the brand with PPG. The company's name and logo aren't displayed prominently on the cans. Adding to the confusion, PPG doesn't operate any of its company-owned stores in the Pittsburgh region.
But the issue of identifying PPG's paints and where to buy them may become easier in coming months, as the company works to integrate brands and stores acquired as part of its April purchase of AkzoNobel's North American decorative paints business.

The $1.05 billion deal to buy the Dutch paints maker's North American architectural unit added mega-brand Glidden to PPG's portfolio as well as Liquid Nails, Flood, Devoe, Dulux and Sikkens. The acquisition -- the second-largest in the company's history -- pushed PPG into the number-two market position among North American paint makers, behind Sherwin-Williams.

In addition to Olympic, PPG already had the Lucite, PPG Porter and Pittsburgh Paints brands