Since 1935, Haymes Paint from Ballarat in Victoria, has turned Australia a whiter shade of pale.

The Aussie company believes it is all about giving the nation what it wants. And when it comes to doing up our homes, around 70% of us gravitate to the lighter end of the colour spectrum, according to Haymes Paint Chief Executive Ofcer (CEO), Rod Walton.

The congenial, Ballarat-based executive and his wife, Belinda Haymes are “custodians” of the family run company that began in 1935 with Henry Haymes and a single store front in the iconic gold-rush town. Today the multi-award-winning brand is still manufactured in country Victoria.

Belinda and Rod Walton are the third generation of Australia’s first family of paint, since `Haymes’ is now the largest, 100 per cent locally made and owned paint manufacturer in Australia.

They’re  a  vital  part  of  the  $3.6  billion  paint  and  coatings manufacturing sector (market figures from IbisWorld). An impressive position, which has clearly been hard won by adherence to old fashioned family values, especially when it comes to getting to know their customers.

Haymes Paint won Canstar Blue’s “Most Satisfied Customers House Paint” Award for six years in a row. The company also prides itself on its vision that to make money, you have to spend it with a hefty investment in the future.

“Over the past five years we’ve invested 40 million dollars into the business, which has doubled our manufacturing capacity,” a proud Rod Walton, tells Australian Life Magazine. “We also have the world’s most modern paint manufacturing equipment.”

Walton wasn’t exactly born with the aroma of fresh paint in the air but he has known the Haymes family since school days.

“I grew up in a farm in Ballarat and attended the same local secondary school as Belinda. We have been together since Year 7 and started dating in Year 12,” he explains. (stuck like paint rather than glue perhaps?)

They both studied Commerce degrees at Melbourne University and joined graduate programs at Ernst & Young, working there for seven years before going overseas with the firm.

However, when the opportunity arose to join the Haymes family brand, they couldn’t pass it up, bringing all their experience, business acumen and marketing knowledge to the table.

“We knew that the core of our business is about how closely we relate to our customers,” Walton says. “So, we’ve invested into our distribution network. There’s currently 350 stockists across Australia, including 57 Haymes Paint Shops and 34 PaintRight stores. This helps us to remain close with our customer base. It also diferentiates us from our competitors. So, it’s about evolving the business and keeping up with our customers’ expectations as well.”

Those expectations include painting their homes with products that are eco-friendly to help counter the efects of global warming. So, as part of their

$40 million outlay, Haymes has invested heavily into Research & Development Programs (R&D) to create water-based paint solutions.

“We have now ceased making solvent-based products,” Walton says.

“Decking products and trim based products for houses are traditionally solvent-based but we have met expectations from our customers who want low Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) products in the atmosphere. Water-based solutions have zero VOC,” he explains.

As for those trends towards light coloured paints, ‘Haymes’ has hundreds of whites – from bright clean whites to more nuanced shades made with blacks, umbers and ochres. The Haymes Natural Series shows a colour graduation through seven strengths. And for those rebels, who want more colourful palettes, Walton says that warm earthy tones – the colour most often seen in nature are gaining a foothold, along with pale sage greens and stronger greens paired with rich clay reds.

He also sites another decorating trend for colour drenching by painting the room the same colour including walls, trims and ceilings.

“We do get excited about a pop of colour,” Walton points out. After all, the Olympic Room at the MCG was once decked out in shades of pink Haymes’ paint to support the Breast Cancer Network Australia’s Field of Women.

The Haymes family strongly believes in giving back to the community with involvements throughout the years in many such initiatives.

And of course, it’s also about continuing to please their customers. The brand still has 50 to 60 whites and a range of 1200 colours with access to over 32,000 formulas.

“Whatever you may want to present in your home, we will have a colour for you,” Walton points out.

With the next generation now coming along, Belinda and Rod tell their children that the most important thing is to follow their passions just as their parents did. Of course, this may also lead them back to Australia’s most loved paint brand.

In the meantime, there’s much excitement about the future and prepping for the 90th anniversary next year. There’s also the forthcoming centenary of Haymes Paint to consider. No doubt, as a tribute to their homeland, the Haymes family fully intend to paint the town green and gold.