It was literally a decade ago when autumn in Japan was referred to in an old Japanese saying as "The season when the skies are clear blue and the horses get fat." Now, it is more like the right time for eating. In fact, I tend to overeat during this season despite my concern about metabolic syndrome.
As announced on August 7, our negotiations with Rohm and Haas Company regarding our acquisition of 100% of the shares of Bee Chemical Company in the United States resulted in a final agreement as initially scheduled. As a result of this acquisition, new companies were established in Japan and the U.S on October 2, 2006. In Japan, Nippon Bee Chemical Co., Ltd. (NBC), previously a fifty-fifty joint venture, became a wholly owned subsidiary of Nippon Paint. In the U.S., a new company named NB Coatings, Inc. started operations. NB Coatings will comprehensively handle business targeting an integral client base that combines American clients, previously owned by Bee Chemical Company, and Japanese customers that Bee Chemical and Nippon Paint had formerly dealt with jointly.
Needless to say, the "N" of NB Coatings, Inc. stands for the "N" of Nippon Paint and also implies the "N" of New. We have also included "B" in the name as an expression of respect and gratitude for more than 40 years of Bee Chemical's association with us. As a matter of fact, we also incorporated our determination to "work as busily and diligently as a bee" in the name of the new company.
As October 2 was the first day of operations at new NB Coatings, Inc., I traveled to Chicago to attend the opening ceremony. Because there was no facility big enough to accommodate 300 people, it took place in a warehouse facility. It was a truly pleasant event filled with distinctive American cheerfulness.
"Where can I purchase Nippon Paint's stock, Mr. Matsuura?"br> "Well, hopefully, in the New York Stock Exchange in the near future. Let us all work hard to make that a reality!"
Please look forward to the continuing growth of the Nippon Paint Group with the addition of new Nippon Bee Chemical and NB Coatings.
