“Although demand for paper in Thailand has dropped as most corporates have a paperless policy, demand for copy paper overseas, especially in Asean countries such as Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam and Myanmar, is still exhibiting double-digit growth. This means the [overall] demand for copy paper will grow again this year,” he said.

Last year, the company reported revenue of Bt22 billion, up 5 per cent from 2014. About 81 per cent of its revenue was from its export markets, which total 130 countries worldwide, and the rest from the domestic market.

Double A has set aside a marketing budget of about Bt700 million to maintain its revenue growth at 5 per cent this year, Bt200 million of total expenditure to promote its products in the domestic market, and the rest for its overseas markets, he said.

Currently, the company has production capacity of 1 million tonnes of paper a year. About 700,000 tonnes is produced at its three plants in Prachin Buri province, and the rest at the plant in France in which it acquired a major stake in 2013.

Charnvit said that thanks to the French plant, Double A’s production capacity was sufficient to cover the demand both domestically and overseas. Having the plant also reduces its logistical costs for delivering its paper products to European markets.

Meanwhile, the company is pursuing its policy to maintain a sustainable supply of raw materials by encouraging Thai communities to grow eucalyptus trees.

It is launching a marketing campaign in Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and South Korea, where customers can download an application called “One Dream One Tree” if they buy one package of paper and send in the receipt. For each purchase, Double A will allocate funding for the planting of trees at the edges of rice fields.

Customers can use the app to see where the trees are planted.

Double A has budgeted Bt20 million for this campaign, which runs from now until the end of September, and targets the planting of a million trees as a result.

“We aim to boost the number of communities growing papermaking trees from 300 to 500 communities in three years,” he said.