India’s stationery landscape has undergone a dramatic shift over the past decade, with DOMS Industries emerging as the country’s largest stationery brand — unseating legacy names that once dominated classrooms across generations.
What began in 1973 as a modest pencil-making workshop in Umbergaon, Gujarat, has today become a success story of brand evolution and strategic growth. Originally producing wooden pencils for other firms, the business rebranded as DOMS Industries and gradually built its own portfolio of writing instruments, art materials, and school essentials.
Through the 2010s and early 2020s, DOMS steadily expanded market share. Strategic decisions, including focusing on affordable products like ₹5 pencils — a staple in most student kits — helped it penetrate price-sensitive segments effectively. Over time, DOMS also diversified its range to include crayons, sketch pens, combo kits, and other scholastic stationery, catering to broader classroom and creative needs.
A key factor in DOMS’s ascent was its partnership with Italy’s F.I.L.A. Group, which first took a minority stake in 2012 and later became the majority shareholder. This collaboration brought global expertise and design innovation that enhanced DOMS’s product quality and appeal, helping it connect with a new generation of young buyers.
Meanwhile, traditional rivals such as Camlin — once the dominant name in school supplies — saw their positions erode. After being acquired by Japan’s Kokuyo Group in 2011, Camlin struggled with slower product updates and less dynamic marketing, allowing DOMS to outpace it in relevance and reach.
DOMS’s success has translated into strong financial performance and investor confidence. Its IPO in December 2023 was oversubscribed many times over, and the stock has delivered robust gains, reflecting market optimism about continued demand for stationery products amid rising school enrollments and renewed focus on creative education.
Today, DOMS’s products are seen in classrooms, creative studios, offices, and homes across India, and its rise from a small pencil maker to the nation’s top stationery brand highlights the power of affordable pricing, product innovation, and strategic branding in a traditionally fragmented market.
