A story of an Incredible Man of Indian Business world-Ratan Tata

"Success is not a Long jump nor a High jump, it’s a Marathon of Steps"- Mr.Ratan Tata

Nobody disputes that, during his lifetime, JRD Tata was the most respected — and probably the most admired — businessman in India. One feels even more proud when someone sees Mr.Ratan Tata- his great grandson and is struck by a sudden thought: Mr.Ratan Tata has inherited JRD's title. He is clearly the most respected and admired businessman in India today. 

When the Tatas struggled to reinvent themselves in the post-JRD era, One thinks of how Mr.Ratan Tata was perceived then: awkward, untalented, unworthy of the job, out of his depth and full of vindictive anger against many of the satraps of the JRD regime. It was a time of change. New groups were springing up out of nowhere. The certainties of the old protectionist economy and the license-permit- quota had collapsed. Reliance had made the transition from being seen as a ‘Parvenu’ to being regarded as an ‘Industrial Behemoth’. The Infosys legend, personified by Narayan Murthy's personal simplicity and marked by the world-class skills of his high-tech partners, had just begun. 

At Tata headquarters, however, the crises mounted: record losses at Tata Motors, the much-derided plan to launch the Indica, criminal charges over Tata Tea's alleged links with Assam militants, allegations of foolishness in the sale of Tata Oil Mills' assets, a plan to launch a domestic airline with Singapore Airlines that was scuttled and more. And many of us wondered if we were watching India’s greatest industrial group diminish before our very eyes. 

The house that JRD had built was crumbling. Poor, shy, inept Mr.Ratan Tata seemed unable to cope. 

And yet, a mere decade later, here was the same Mr. Ratan Tata being feted by the world's media as the man who reinvented, if not the wheel, then certainly the motorcar. A man who did what no global car-maker believed was possible: to build a car that looked this good and drove so well for so low a price. And here was a new Mr.Ratan Tata, his legendary shyness temporarily in remission, as he joked about calling the car the 'Pachauri' (after the environmentalist who chose to attack the Nano as a pollution threat, a charge that the Nano has easily beaten). 

The following day, the Nano managed the impossible: there was not one negative review of note and the raves kept coming. To the chagrin of his rivals, Mr.Ratan Tata even kept to the price commitment. Though input costs had gone up, he said, the Tata's would still price the basic Nano at Rs.One  lakh because "a promise is a promise". And even as Mr.Ratan Tata was unveiling the world's cheapest car, the Tatas were on the verge of clinching the purchase of Jaguar, one of the world's great luxury cars. 

 He recognized that the old feudal, paternalistic structure that had worked so well in the JRD era. He professionalized the Tatas, democratized the management, abandoned the feudalism and made the group adopt a low-key, matter-of-fact, get-things-done style that had no room for satraps and stars. 

He saw the wisdom of embracing the future. Hence, the focus on TCS. And hence the determination to go global: we talk about Corus, the Pierre, Tetley etc, but the big successes are only the tip of the iceberg. Mr.Ratan Tata told that he was determined to use Indian managerial ability and Tata capital to globalize the group. In 2000, this seemed overly ambitious and grandiose. But he has grabbed the opportunities for globalization like no other Indian industrialist has. 

At the same time, he put his faith in young India. The team behind the Nano is young — the top guy is 35 — and overwhelmingly Indian. So it was with the Indica, a truly Indian car. One of the dichotomies of Mr.Ratan Tata's personality is that while he can be shy and reticent in social situations, he is warm, outgoing and able to motivate teams at work. 

It was his heart that told him to build the Nano. He would see families of four on a single scooter. The father would keep his son in front and the mother would hold on to her baby. He wondered why it was not possible to give such families a car where they could be safe and comfortable for the same price. Plus, they would keep their dignity. There are many reasons for building a car. But this, I think, is the best one of all. And finally, I think, India caught up with the Tatas. Over the last decade the middle class came of age, tired of the crony capitalism of the old Baniya class, was inspired by engineering success stories like Infosys and began to wonder why it wasn't possible for everyone to do business honestly. 

The Tatas had gone through good times and bad times. But they had always given nearly all of their profits to charity. They had consistently refused to break the law and encourage corruption. Older generations of businessmen thought they were silly and shortsighted to do so considering that everybody else played the game. 

But now India has changed. We finally have a strong and vocal middle class that prizes honesty above all else and that has contempt for the sleazy politicians and the crony capitalists of old. Businessmen should learn what is Corporate Social Responsibility from the Tatas.

When we see Mr.Ratan Tata refusing to pay bribes and refusing to bend the rules — and still taking the Tatas from strength to strength, still buying the world's best companies, and still reinventing the rules of the car industry — well then, we know that there is a better way. 

It's possible to be honest and principled. And still beat the rest of the world. 

That's the strength of the new India. 

Jatra- The essence of Indian entrepreneurship at rural level

The Station Road usually remains calm, quiet and somewhat deserted, for most of the day; filled with the sound of scattering feet and hushed (and sometimes, rather loud) voices during the morning peak hours. That day, as I was walking down the very same road, I felt as though I'd taken a wrong turn. I looked around, that is, past the crowds (teeming crowds, actually), and yes, I was still at the Station road; the annual 'jatra' or fair is happening, and as it has been for so many years, it is always set up at the Station road. 

This is nothing new for Indians- who have been attending fairs or Jatras or Melas since they were children. So what I would be writing in this article won’t be as difficult for anyone to understand and relate. When we speak of business, we usually end up thinking about corporate enterprises. Yet there are many innumerable people who set up their own business, although not big but enough for them to sustain. These people move around all over the place to carry on their business.

Every year on the auspicious occasion of Mahashivrati- there is an annual fair, better known as Jatra held in Ambarnath. I have attending this jatra since childhood and have distinct memories of this Mela. But the most intriguing fact that always arouses my interest is that- Where do these people come from? How do they manage to come every year? And moreover how is the business for them during the Jatra?

So when you enter the main place- you are almost bombarded by their shouting voices. The men, their wives, and their children shout at the top of their voices.

“Teen baar khelo, Das rupaye me”! “Bangadi, chudi, necklace- tees rupaye se shuru!!!”

“Magic Show - bees rupaye me”!!!

And you are almost deafened by the entire cacophony of their voices. But what is surprising is that even in the middle of a strong competition, they manage to survive. And amazingly the cost is affordable for the common man!!! They manage to thrive on the meager income well. They also are aware of the different strategies that modern business world adopts, only that they don’t know their English terms. Also, one finds lots of Spider-man stuff, Ben-10 and Transform-Robots. Globalization has reached well beyond the proverbial shores.

It shows that whether a business man is big or small, he is capable of achieving his success in his life!!

A Hair Raising Business

Recently I had been to Tirupati with my family to visit the 1,200-year-old Sri Venkateswara Temple in Andhra Pradesh. There is this custom of offering your hair to the deity for granting a wish. The tradition of offering hair is a symbol of religious devotion and surrender of the ego. Many men and women shave off their hair in respect to offer to the deity. Most of them are women. So what pricked my curiosity was- What do they do of so much of Hair??? Well, here is the answer!!!

Many Indian women offer their hair to deities in Hindu temples in a show of respect and gratitude. Few realize the offerings can wind up in a lucrative export market serving China and Hollywood.

Yes, you read the right thing. I asked one of my relative the same question. He works in the Tirupati Tirumala Devasthanam (TTD) - the trust that looks after the temple and the premises. He revealed that the hair thus collected is exported to China and other countries for a lucrative amount. It is further revealed that a great deal of women's hair collected at temples winds up as hair extensions for Hollywood film actors who pay as much as $3,000 for the final product. Wow, never thought that a thing like HAIR could earn so much!!  Also this hair goes to German and Italian pharmaceutical and cosmetic companies for Rs. 7000 per kilo.

Moreover they have neatly categorized the type of hair that gets the best deals. Women's hair is usually long, dark and silky, and is most prized by merchants and wig-makers. Hair from men is usually used for coat linings and to extract L-Cystein, a protein used as raw material for a range of products including baby food and doughnuts. And if you thought your dyed hair looked good, here's news. Grey hair fetches the highest amount of Rs 11,000 much higher than what a woman's thick braid would, which is just about Rs 6,000. Every year hair worth about $136 million is shipped from India, one of the largest exporters of human hair, to factories in China. There, Chinese hair is mixed with Indian hair to make wigs and hair extensions for Western markets. So in a way the Devasthanam collects hair worth of Rs. 33 crores per annum!!!

There are annual auctions of this hair and now they have even started e-auction for easy access. The Brand name ‘Tirupati Hair’ is becoming a rage in the foreign hair markets. The time isn’t far when this Tirupati Hair will be like wearing a fendi Bag or a Gucci Bag!

The Quintessential Indian Shopaholic

Is your closet overflowing with never-worn clothing, the price tags still waving in the breeze? Is your attic bulging with boxes and boxes of shoes that have never touched pavement? Do you buy new makeup weekly? You might be a shopaholic like Rebecca Bloomwood!!! 

Shopping is an indulgence done by many and enjoyed like a deadly sin. But indulgence is mirth to those who can afford it. Girls in India who are on tight budget still manage to do the shopping and have the fun. So how do they manage?? Inspite of the pressure from their parents to spend money thriftily, they seem to be in a perfect balance when it comes to their indulgence in shopping and also looking after the tight budget they have been allotted!!! Isn’t this a management- more of money management and at the same time fulfilling their deep-bound indulgence in shopping? 

I am not so much into shopping. I purchase only those stuff which I really need (well, my friends do call me miser...but that’s what I am I guess!!!). I always was interested in knowing how girls in India actually managed to do the shopping with their parents always around the corners to warn them about their too much spending. So what is better than asking your own friends for the answers…?

So when I asked one of my close friends- whether she is a shopaholic? Her answer was- NO!!! (Although I knew she was lying). She then slowly emphasized that - She is a Bharatiya Shopaholic.  So when I asked her what exactly does this mean? She explained, “People like me, who are on a limited budget, can hardly call ourselves shopaholics, but we are shopaholics of a different kind. A kind that works on limited budget & gets maximum benefits!!” Ha!!!! That a new one, right??? 

Truly I have seen my friends employing new and innovative strategies to lure their parents into buying they (as in my friends) like. Poor Parents!! There is another friend who is a “brand fetish”-as she calls herself. Right from her clothes to her accessories, she believes in purchasing branded goods. She says, “I am given only a limited amount a month (in her case Rs. 2500) which I have to use the entire month. It’s a tough task,” she laments. Within that amount she goes on to buy her accessories to anything that catches her eyes. Luckily her mom allows her to purchase more clothes if needed. But finally she has to be reminded that there is not enough space in the wardrobe to dump all the clothes.

The Bharatiya Shopaholic has another dangerous yet always rewarding strategy in her mind. “When I go shopping, I often ensure that I'm going with my mother as she is the one who provides me the “liquidity” to shop! If I want something, I always say “Oh, this is so amazing/great/pretty *insert other adjectives* but leave it, it’s too expensive!” And that does it! Mom says, buy it if you like it and don’t worry about the cost!! *Yeayiee*”. Well if your acting skills are pretty good, then I think you can easily follow Miss. Bharatiya Shopaholic’s advice!!!

What most of them do is they manage to get their demands fulfilled by visiting Linking Road or Crawford Market, places in Mumbai where you get all things at a very convenient price. If the prices don’t work out to the way you want it, call in the Bargain strategy. Now I know how come all Indian women are so perfectly skilled in this particular area of expertise- Bargaining. We may be wondering the way Finance Ministers across the world look after their country’s budget, but here is the Quintessential Indian Girl who knowing the fact that she is on tight budget manages to cover all the expenses- and mostly without Deficit!!! Although controlling your instincts for shopping, girls manage it very well.

As Miss. Bharatiya Shopaholic aptly puts in “Shopping comes easy to me, but control is the hardest!”

A newspaper Venture-Sandeep Rawool's story

Everyday when I go to the railway station to go to college, I see him working along with his assistants. He sits on the platform besides his wheeler stall and swiftly arranges the newspapers in the stall. His brother helps him in arranging the newspapers and his minions help him by properly separating the newspapers as per requirement. So what is so special about this man who sells newspapers as many others do in the city?? When I spoke to him about the business I came to many things which I didn’t even have the faintest idea of!!

Sandeep Kaka-as everyone call him-at work

Mr.Sandeep Rawool, proprietor of ‘Rawool Newspaper Mart’ may seem as some ordinary newspaper vendor if you judge him by his looks. But as the saying goes ‘Looks are deceptive’, same is the case here. Oh doesn’t it sound to clichéd? Yes! But when you go ahead and speak to him about his business, you will be shocked! Here is a man who knows all the modern terms about business.

So I ask him why he started this business- wherein the profit isn’t as much as it is considered in other business. He replies that this is a family business which his grandfather started. He has been in the newspaper selling business for around 27 years and all these years he has seen a vast change in the newspaper industry!! He says that he didn’t really have to start from the scrap as everything was set. But a very important change came into his life when he and his family decided to shift to Ambarnath from Andheri. Here he had to establish contacts and see to it that everything for his business is set perfectly. When everything was set, he was again ready sail off (I mean into his business). But there was a question that was troubling in my mind, why didn’t go for some other business? He casually replies, “This is a business which will never end. People will always cherish the habit of reading newspaper and at the same time the newspaper industry will never shut down”. Hmm very true!! Isn’t it??

A typical day in Sandeep Uncle’s life:

3.00 am- gets up

3.30 am- goes to the main road near the station to collect the newspapers that come by the press vans.

4.00 am- carries all the newspapers with the help of his assistants to the stall and separate in two parts- One for the home subscription and for the sale on the stall itself.

He is there in the stall till evening 9.30/ 10.30 pm and then retires for the day.

I ask the most important question- about money!!! How does he manage to cover up the transport cost, paying the rent for the wheeler, worker wage, buying newspaper and magazines etc…and finally earn profit? He replies, “Although initially I was worried how I manage the entire process would and this fear would force me to work alone with my brother. But as the workload increased, I had to hire assistants. The cost of the newspapers to be paid to the newspaper office is fixed and the payment is paid on a monthly basis. Every month we go to the respective newspaper’s head office and pay the monthly subscription fees.”

He also delivers newspapers at home- a venture he started when he sensed the fierce competition in this particular area. His assistants distribute it among themselves and everyone is allotted a specific area. The profit he gains from these home subscriptions is fairly well.  When I ask him about the new discount subscriptions that the newspapers give to their customers, he replies that although this is not a profitable venture, he can’t deny the newspapers and also the customers about this. He adds that he gets some commission from this entire venture.

Speaking of the transport cost, he says it is NIL. Initially, the newspaper vendor had to go to the printing press and get the newspapers (his grandfather did the same thing), but now-a-days thanks to the better transport facilities available the vendors don’t have to go anywhere. Their stock comes to their doorstep.

When I ask him what is the best thing about this business? Pat comes the reply, “There is no bargaining. The prices for all the newspapers and hence there is no customers’ haggle like other business. This business is never going to stop!!! So I don’t really have to worry about it,” he smiles. And the Not-so-good fact about this business- “We hardly get time to relax, to be with our family. The only days we are with our family are those days when the newspapers don’t come”. (Pretty bad, eh?)

When I am ready to leave his stall, he is busy arranging the newspapers which were not sold to return them to the press. The press vehicle comes once a week. Any future plans? He is planning to open a book shop!!

Well, I never thought that for a simple newspaper to reach my house- so many people take the efforts. Phew!!!

Investment- A family Activity

Anjali wants to know what her Papa is discussing with some random bank uncle over the phone. She goes to her mom expecting an answer, while her mom is busy in the kitchen. She asks her mom, “Mommy, what is Papa talking on the phone?”  Her mom ignores her inquisitiveness and answers her, “Beta, Papa is talking to his friend.” But little Anjali startles her by asking her the next question: “Then why he is talking about so much money with his friend. I never talk to Rhea about Paisa. We talk about playing with Barbies and dresses!!!!” Her mother is surprised to hear such a statement from a 5-year old girl. Now she is at loss of words on how to explain her concept of INVESTMENT.

  

  So what is Investment??

Investment is putting money into something with the expectation of profit. Speaking in financial terms, investment is the commitment of money or capital to the purchase of financial instruments or other assets so as to gain profitable returns in the form of interest, income (dividends), or appreciation (capital gains) of the value of the instrument. 

Making an Investment for a lifetime

Although investment is usually done by the elders of a family, it should be a Family Activity. As the children become more aware of money and other financial concepts, it is vital that the parents arm them with some important investment knowledge.

Teaching children about Investment is of utmost importance. When I asked some parents how do they intend to make their children understand, some said that they are not sure but some said they have consciously thought about it and have devised a plan. They give their tips:

Investing Should Be a Family Activity

Some parents are guilty of not discussing personal finance with their children; almost all parents are guilty of not discussing investing with their children. Investing should be a family activity. Children mature at different rates, so it may take some time before your child is ready to tackle concepts like portfolio creation and asset allocation; however, the basics of investing can be taught quite young.

        Risk and Reward                                                                                    

       It is important to make the children understand the risk that involves in investment and also the rewards that the investment brings. Risk is the possibility that an investment will lose some or all of its value. Reward is the percentage of gain that your investment experiences over time - the return on investment (ROI).

            

            Easy Ideas to Tell Your Kids About: Stocks                                                            

      Stocks are variable risk, variable return investments. On the whole, they are categorized as high risk and high return. One should make it clear to their kids that all the risks involved in the stock markets can't be predicted. They should be made understood that although stocks yield maximum returns, they are highly unpredictable.                       

      

      Easy Ideas to Tell Your Kids About: Debt Securities

     A bond is a low-risk, low-return investment. Typically, bonds pay only a small amount over the prime interest rate because they are backed by stable institutions (usually banks or governments). You can buy bonds from unstable regions of the world that offer better returns, but these countries often have unstable governments, so you can't necessarily count on getting that return down the road. 

     Therefore, it may be best start your child with stocks and explain that bonds become more important as you age and need guaranteed investments. Your child will probably not have enough money to make bonds worthwhile, and may actually lose money to inflation.

Getting Your Child's Attention
When you are checking your stocks, show your child the companies of which you own a small part. If you own any exciting companies that might be of interest to the kids - like video game companies like Sony and Disney characters.

Then you can ask your child what company he or she would like to buy. Children have favorites even if they are not aware of them. For example, Nike, Sony and Disney are popular with most children.

Buying and Tracking

Once you have introduced your child to some basic concepts, you can sit down together allow him or her to select a company. If you have the money, you can buy the stock and track it with your child.

If you are able to pick stocks together and track them when your children are young, they will get a sense of the up-and-down cycles that stocks go through. This understanding will prepare them for riding out market fluctuations and making informed decisions when others panic.

During all this, you want to allow your child to make real decisions and take real risks. Yes, your child may lose money, but the purpose of this exercise is to familiarize your child with investing. Part of this exercise is learning that any investment has advantages and disadvantages. Your child may not make a fortune, but the experience of gaining and losing money is almost as valuable.

Mullah Matters…

Folks…that money is "THE" most important point of existence cant be denied…..

So instead of finding ways to change this fact; lets find ways to deal with it…

After all- We cannot change the cards we are dealt, it is important just how we play the hand.

Here it is- to help you with selling and purchasing, mutual funds.., bonds...and many more...!!!!

So buck up and get ready to face the Bull....after Mullah Matters friends..!!!! :)