GLIDDEN Paint Brings Better Color to a Store Near You

PITTSBURGH, June 3, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- GLIDDEN® paint, a product of PPG Industries (NYSE: PPG) announced today that the brand will reveal its anticipated new palette at The Home Depot locations across the nation starting June 1. The brand optimized the palette based on consumer preferences and behaviors, as well as trending colors to give DIYers the best hues for their painting projects.

To view the multimedia assets associated with this release, please click: http://www.multivu.com/mnr/7239251-glidden-paint-announces-new-optimized-palette-at-the-home-depot-june-1

"We found in our research that while consumers are generally confident about what color family they want, most experience a great deal of difficulty in selecting the exact shade to put on the wall," said Rob Horton, PPG director of marketing, architectural coatings. "The new color palette for Glidden paint was thoroughly researched to make color selection less daunting and to help consumers clearly visualize how each color will work in their homes."

To arrive at the 488-color palette, the Glidden paint color team extensively researched what customers really want and how they process color. They sorted through tint sales data, reviewed website traffic, and studied color sample movement throughout the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico to assess customers' purchasing habits. For example, the team found that the neutral color family accounted for 60 percent of Glidden paint sales and so ensured that it had a starring role in the new color palette.

The Glidden color team also scoured social media websites such as Pinterest, home and decorating publications such as House Beautiful, Elle Decor and Veranda, and catalogs from retailers such as Crate & Barrel, IKEA, and J.Crew to get a sense of trending styles and the different ways people are incorporating color into their homes. They created an inspiration board for eight featured color families and filled them with magazine and catalog clippings that helped evolve and shape the new color palette. As these inspiration boards are a reflection of the Glidden paint customer, the color team was able to make direct connections to how customers actually use color in their lives.

According to Barbara Richardson, PPG manager of color marketing, "All of these connections allow us to truly understand the way people incorporate color into their homes and the reasoning behind their color choices. Our customers are very important to us, so the insights we gather from our research are used directly to build our color program."

In addition, a new retail display will feature the eight color families, divided into three groups to provide simple navigation toward the perfect color selection. The Glidden paint color chips have also been revamped to help consumers with the color selection process.

Each chip displays a photograph of a room in the featured color to help customers visualize what the paint would look like in their home; a "step up" and a "step down" hue to help consumers pick just the right shade; and recommendations for coordinating colors.

The Better Color Palette:

• Magenta & Red: The Glidden paint team found that hues in this color family are some of its best-selling colors, as they are shades that can be incorporated throughout the entire home. They are especially strong when painted on furniture, front doors and accent walls. The new better color palette features more resonant reds, as well as shades that provide consumers with a deeper and earthier selection.
• Orange & Copper: This color group is influenced by desert and Southwestern colorations, which translate well in the home. The Glidden team found that earthy color selections relate well to the environment and rustic nature, so they added more terra cotta and copper hues to the palette, in addition to deeper shades, which are growing in popularity.
• Yellow & Gold: As yellow is now being seen in every area of the home, the new palette expands Glidden paint's collection with warmer, buttery hues. These colors are perfect for children's spaces and are increasingly being paired with gray and black. Gold tones are also increasing in popularity, reflecting retro and vintage looks.
• Sage & Green: Green colors continue to create a strong connection to nature. The Glidden team found that sage tones resonate with consumers, as they evoke a high level of comfort due to earthy connections. Additionally, cooler mint shades are showing up in home decor elements. The comprehensive new Glidden paint palette covers popular sage hues through "true greens," as this color family represents a strong, key growth area in color interest from customers.
• Teal & Blue: The Glidden team identified an explosion of teal in recent research, from light to dark and from subtle to strong. They found that teals are important to homeowners as the color conveys serenity. As teal continues to be a popular shade and important to customers, an increased assortment is reflected in the new palette.
• Indigo & Violet: The Glidden team has expanded this selection to include more blue and indigo hues. They found that navy and periwinkle tones are increasingly popular, and that red-based violets are better accepted by consumers in home decor.
• Beige & Brown: Per recent research and sales data, this neutral portion of the Glidden paint palette remains a focus for customers. The Glidden team incorporated more whites in this area to help clarify color tones. They found that many customers are pairing neutral tones with a pop of color in their homes.
• Gray & Charcoal: Cooler neutrals are also capturing consumer interest and charcoal tones are growing in importance, according to the Glidden team's research. Charcoal and gray tones typically perform best in this color family, but there is an increased demand for the gray palette, as many consumers are incorporating stainless steel appliances and metals into their homes.

Each color family is organized into three groups to further simplify color selection for consumers:

• Bright & Clean
• Soft & Calm
• Muted & Natural

Horton noted, "We've given the new Glidden paint color palette a great deal of thought, and we are confident that this will really help consumers' color selection process and give them the colors they'll love living with."

Glidden paint is available throughout the U.S. and Canada at The Home Depot, Walmart, company-owned stores and other fine retailers. To learn more about Glidden paint, please visit www.Glidden.com.

About Glidden Paint

The Glidden paint brand offers a rich tradition of innovation and color inspiration, having consistently embodied quality and performance for generations of customers. From the first latex paints that were developed and marketed under the Glidden brand decades ago, to today's broad assortment of versatile paints, Glidden paint makes it easy for consumers and paint contractors alike to turn inspiration into action and add color to people's lives. Available throughout the U.S. and Canada at The Home Depot, Walmart, company-owned stores and other fine retailers, Glidden paint is a brand of PPG Industries, the world's leading paint and coatings company.

About PPG's North American Architectural Coatings Business

PPG Architectural Coatings is a respected paint industry leader, providing interior and exterior paints and stains as well as caulks and adhesives for homeowners and professionals across North America. PPG's line-up of residential, commercial and industrial paint brands offers a wide range of choices to meet the varying needs of consumers, interior designers, painting contractors, property managers, developers and architects. Backed by PPG Industries, the world's leading coatings and specialty products company, PPG Architectural Coatings manufactures and sells its products through home centers, independent dealers and a network of company-owned stores across North America, including Puerto Rico. For more information, visit PPGAC.com.

PPG: Bringing innovation to the surface.(TM)

PPG Industries' vision is to continue to be the world's leading coatings and specialty materials company. Through leadership in innovation, sustainability and color, PPG helps customers in industrial, transportation, consumer products, and construction markets and aftermarkets to enhance more surfaces in more ways than does any other company. Founded in 1883, PPG has global headquarters in Pittsburgh and operates in nearly 70 countries around the world. Net sales in 2013 were $15.1 billion. PPG shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange (symbol:PPG). For more information, visit www.ppg.com and follow @PPGIndustries on Twitter.

Bringing innovation to the surface is a trademark and the PPG Logo is a registered trademark of PPG Industries Ohio, Inc. Glidden is a registered trademark of the PPG Group of Companies.

— 140603bettercolor —

To view the multimedia assets associated with this release, please click: http://www.multivu.com/mnr/7239251-glidden-paint-announces-new-optimized-palette-at-the-home-depot-june-1

SOURCE PPG