Buckminster Fuller was especially reputed for his geodetic domes which can be observed as a part of civic buildings, exhibition attractions and military radar stations. Their construction is dependent on the extension of the basic principles of constructing simple structures such as octahedron, the close sphere package and tetrahedron. When built in such manner, they are extremely stable and lightweight. He won a patent for his geodesic domes in 1954 which was a part of his effort in the exploration of constructing principles of nature for finding design solutions. 

Previous to his world famous “geodesic dome” design, Fuller built and designed prototypes which he had hoped to be an aerodynamic and a safer Dymaxion car. In order to that effect, he tried out with a fundamentally new approach. Right from 1932, Fuller worked with professional colleagues over a period spanning three years. Based on the aircraft designs, the three prototype cars were all completely different from those in the market. The first point of difference was that each of these vehicles included three and not four vehicles. It included two wheels in the front and one at the rear for steering purposes. Even the engine was situated at the rear part of the vehicle.  

Both the body and the chassis were original designs. The tear-shaped and aerodynamic body was large enough for seating as much as 11 people. Somehow, it resembled the melding of a wingless light aircraft and a 1950s vintage Volkswagen van. In each of its three trial incarnations, the car was essentially a mini-bus. 

Other Significant Contributions: 

Also included in Fuller’s ideas was the Dymaxion map of alternative projection. It was designed for displaying the continents of the earth with minimum possible aberration while printed or projected on a flat surface. 

Although the low-cost and energy-efficient Dymaxion house managed to gather much interest, it never went into production. The term “Dymaxion” is used for signifying a light tensegrity and a radically strong structure”. 

His Dymaxion House is on display in Dearborn, Michigan at “The Henry Ford”. Developed and designed in the mid 1940’s, it is a round structure and has a shape of a flattened bell of jellyfish. In addition, it has numerous innovative features which comprises of a fine mist shower reducing water consumption and a revolving dresser drawers. 

Philosophical Views: 

Fuller was an early ecological activist. He was well aware of the earth’s finite resources and hence, advertised a principle of “ephemeralization” which essentially meant doing more with less. In addition, Fuller also inaugurated the term “synergetics” which is the language used for conveying experiences with the help of geometric concepts long before the term gained popularity. 

Also, Fuller was the first in disseminating “systematic worldview” and researched the principles of material efficiency and energy in the fields of engineering, architecture and design. He stated that the cost of petroleum from the point of view of replacement came to more than a million dollars. Hence, he was of the view that using petroleum as a transportation fuel would result in a huge net loss, when compared to the actual earnings of those people and the net profits of the firm who travel using gasoline. 

What can one person achieve? 

Lets go and find out. 

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Systemizing your business may be one of the most challenging technical problems that you may face while setting up a new business. To enhance success in business you have to build techniques and gather marketing knowledge in order to avoid time and money robbing missteps. All businesses are unique in their own specific ways; hence report building and the strategies also need to be different. That means you can’t take the tips of your brother who is in the automobile industry for your own business, which concerns pets. Systemizing a small business properly and effectively is the sure path to growth and success.  

Step 1: The first important lesson for the small business owner is that even though you don’t intend or have plans of expanding to multiple offices or other locations you should always prepare a well documented Business Operations Manual. It has multiple advantages like:

• It helps you focus on marketing and sales.
• Even hiring staff with a little experience may not be a problem as they can just keep working according to the tasks outlined in the Business Operations Manual.
• Management and growth becomes easier as focusing on the products and services is possible with the employees taking care of the regular needful tasks. 

Certain outlines can help you in creating your Business Operations Manual. They are:

1. It should with an introduction and a letter from the founder.
2. The second component should be an organizational chart.
3. Following it should be your description of the employee information, the protocol, contacts, etc.
4. The next point should be regarding the human resources- the hiring and firing processes, payroll, vacations and overtime.
5. Next you give the description of the products and services. The industry, its organization, the business management, daily operation procedures, end of ear procedures, all should be included in this point.
6. Then you should give a description of the sales policies and procedures.
7. Following this should obviously be customer services and procedures.
8. Next provide details on advertising and promotion.
9. Business reports, record keepings should also comprise a section.
10. Then provide a section on safety, security, mai
11. ntenance and repair. Last but not the least should be a detailed portion on the legal matters as well.

Step 2: The next step should be to determine how large do you want your business to grow. With a general idea of that create an organizational chart, which should give the details of the tasks that need to be performed on a daily basis.

 Step 3: The step that follows will be to create a detailed job description for individual lists of daily, weekly and monthly tasks. Also include the individual responsibilities and the personnel to be reported to.

Step 4: Once the organizational chart is ready you will know whom do you need to hire. By now you will also be able to determine their responsibilities. So now you can start hiring new staff. The organizational chart gives you the overall vision of how you want your company to eventually get structured and systemized. 

Systemizing a business may sound a real huge task but once you start doing it provided systematically, you are surely to get effective and quick results.

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Insights into the people of India from a business perspective

India is a country known to the world for its diversities and complexities. Now when you are planning to focus on this vast nation as a potential market to expand your business you may know that it is not that easy as doing business in other country in the world. For that first and foremost you need to understand this country very well and even more precisely its people. The entire population of India is surprisingly diverse. The Indian people reflect the rich glories of the past – the cultures, the traditions and the values that they own and cherish are relative to the geographical locations they dwell in. All these people belong to different religions and ethnic groups, they have numerous distinctive manners and food habits that have always and will remain truly Indian.

The Indian culture defines the fundamental beliefs according to which the Indians and in return the world works and forms ways in which to interact and communicate amongst each other and thereby establish and maintain relationships social, economical, cultural and business. Doing business in a particular nation requires a focus on a multi-dimensional understanding of its culture and its business practices. The key to be successful in this case is to recognize and understand those differences and adapt effectively to them.

Let me tell you India is a diverse and complex country and those of you who arrive there in ambitions of doing business you can be absolutely sure to discover that the path to success is not at all smooth.  You need to have a planned strategy in order to deal with the people, follow some specific business norms and practice them. In any other part of the world what is expected of you in business is efficiency, adhering to deadlines and other similar habits. But when it comes to India and the Indians you need to understand that you are dealing with people from a completely different cultural background. These people think and interact in ways that are completely different from the way you do. So the morale you draw here is that what seems reasonable and feasible in any other part of the world may not be the same in India and vice versa.

Then how do you proceed: what do you need to include?          

Now then the agenda remains as to what to do that will be a fit for the Indian business environment. Business is not really an easy job and you need to be focused and apt to expect a profit. But aggressiveness may be interpreted as a sign of disrespect precisely when you are doing business in India. This may lead to complete lack of motivation and communication on the part of the Indians i.e. your native counterparts. You need to take a lot of time to know them well and try to infer them as specific individuals so that you can develop the professional trust. Indians are very good hosts by nature and hence they may invite you quite often to their home and talk personal. This may seem weird to you as talking personal with business acquaintances may be a complete “no” in the western perspective. But remember in India all this sis very much a part of business, you are expected to accept the invitation gracefully and with a lot of delight. Further when you visit the particular place you may carry a box of chocolates or sweets or a bouquet of flowers, which is a gesture of welcome. Indians respect guests with honor and gratitude provided you too show respect to their families and that is something they cherish the most. Remember family is always a priority for the Indians even over work.

While you criticize a person’s ideas or his work do that cautiously and constructively without damaging the person’s self esteem. Indians are used to a system of hierarchy in the work place and they respect and obey their seniors. In the Indian context you need to work as a supervisor monitoring each and every individual’s work and shoulder the responsibility of meeting the deadlines. Therefore what is important and you need to do is double check and also keep the track of time. But there is a good side as well, the educated Indians have learnt the western methods of monitoring one’s own work and meet the deadlines and they have adapted to it quite well.

Meetings

Doing business primarily bases on building relationships. Indians only deal favorably with those they know well and can trust even at the expense of other lucrative deals. So when you are seeking a prospective partner in an Indian it is important that a good working relationship is founded. That is vital and should take place on a business level demonstrating the strong business acumen and also working at a personal level relating to the partner and exhibiting positive traits of honor and trustworthiness.

Now when you pronounce a meeting always arrange it well in advance. Do it in writing, send a letter as well as an email and also confirm the meeting over phone. Avoid meetings nay where near or on the national holidays like the Independence Day, either of the two Eids (e-e-d-s) or Diwali (d-e-e-w-a-h-l-e-e). India falls in the tropical zone so always try to avoid the intense heat and humidity of the summer by scheduling the meetings between October and March. Keep in mind, punctuality is expected. But being ten minutes late wouldn’t be much disastrous or catastrophic. Flexibility is an amount that is paramount in India. A prime reason for that being that family priorities take precedence over business and hence last minute cancellations are often possible and you have to keep an open mind for that. When you enter a meeting room always approach and greet the senior most person first. Believe me such gestures do count. When doing business in India, the meeting etiquette requires a handshake. However, Indians themselves use the “namaste” which an exclusive thing you will never find anywhere else in the world. This is where the palms are brought together at the chest level with a slight bow of the head. Using the “namaste” is a sign of your understanding of the Indian etiquette. One of the effects of the British colonialism in India is that English has remained the primary language in business and government, though accents and word usages differ from region to region. A few words to know are: "Ach-cha" which means fine, while "T.K." means okay. "Na-must-ay" means hello. Names speak volumes about an Indian’s background. Let me give a gist, this will surely helpful and its also quite interesting. For example, a Singh will always be a Sikh. The suffix "-jee (g-e-e)" (as in Banerjee {b-a-a-n-e-r-g-e-e}) is a sign of a high caste Bengali. "Kar (k-a-a-r-h)" (as in Chandraskar {c-h-a-n-d-r-a-a-s-k-a-a-r-h}) denotes that person is of Maharashtan high caste. Muslims will use Arabic sounding names. When addressing an Indian whom you know personally or have been introduced to recently, always use the appropriate formal title, whether it is Professor or Doctor, or Mr/Mrs or if you do not know their names then Sir or Madam will suffice.

 
When doing business in India, business cards should be exchanged at the first meeting. That will help to create a good impression. It is a good idea to have it translated on one side into Hindi, more as a sign of respect as opposed to the linguistic necessity. Be sure to receive and give with your right hand. Make sure the card is put away respectfully and not simply pushed into a trouser pocket.

 
Commence the meeting with some conversation; this is significant as it is a part of the knowing process.  Favorable topics of the conversation may be the latest business news, the fortunes of the Bombay Stock Exchange or cricket (that is a hot favorite). Avoid talking about personal matters and, if you are new to India, do not comment on the matters such as the poverty or the beggars.

If the business dealings and the meeting involves some negotiations then always keep it at the back of your mind that they may require some time and may require another couple of meetings as well.  The Indians do not base their business decisions solely on statistics or empirical data or exciting PowerPoint presentations. They also trust a lot on their sixth sense, they make use of intuition, feeling and faith to guide them. Always exercise patience, show good character and never exhibit frustration or anger.

What can you expect?

 There are certain things that are obvious and you can expect them for sure. Let me inform them to you before hand. You should concentrate entirely on building a rapport if you haven’t yet done that favorably. All the important business decisions are done by the highest officials at the top most level. So if you see that the owner or the director of the company is not present at the meeting then you can take it for sure that this meeting is just an early stage of the decision and it will take some more time to actually happen. While you negotiate avoid posing any pressure and never ever be confrontational that will only do you harm.

Always express your disagreements and criticisms in a very diplomatic kind of a way, be cautious about the language you use.  The Indian society has an aversion to saying "no" as it is considered to be rude due to the possibility of causing disappointment or offense. Listen carefully to their responses to your questions. If the terms such as "We’ll see", "I will try" or "possibly" are employed then the chances are that they are saying a ‘no’ so concentrate and pose a positive attitude that should send an air all through the room. Once the terms are finalized you are expected to respect and honor them and you can also expect that in return as well. You can crown the effect with a celebration party once the negotiations end successfully and that will continue the relation building process.

So now you know that the differences in culture and business practices and etiquette show how cross-cultural awareness can give you certain advantages, you just need to tailor your behavior and then approach to do business in India and that way you maximize the potential of your ambition and your purpose.

What are the differences in meeting and what would be the same?

The Indian business culture is hierarchical. The primary difference between the business culture in the West and that in India is that in the later even the business matters proceed in respect with honor for age and status and that affects all business relations. This is something that you can find in family businesses and sometimes even in the corporate culture. Decisions are made only after they have been sent up the chain of command and so you can never expect immediate answers. Everywhere in the corporate world there are definite positions of decision-making. You can never expect a lesser-ranked executive to give you any concrete answer. That way you may embarrass them in front of the entire group. Never use the first names for your business seniors as prevalent in the west, India prefers a more formal culture. Always invite the participants to contribute in a business meeting.   Never push for a final “yes” at a business meeting.

Bureaucracy is rampant problem in India, and it may appear to be real depressing to handle. Needless to say “bribing” is a very common issue, especially prevalent when dealing with the government and the government officials. Always try to follow up the meetings with a written overview, as that may be a fruitful part in your entire agenda. Something that may come to you as a complete shock being a western professional is the total lack of respect for labor. Nobody gives any importance, support or distinction to the skilled or unskilled labor forces.

Personal insights to relating in India

Now let us go into a deeper perspective in speculating the business terms. The creative industries in UK and India represent the fastest growing sectors of the economies in both these countries. They include everything from advertising, architecture, film, design, leisure software and even music TV and radio. Within an estimated middle class population of more than 300 million India still remains one of the least tapped entertainment markets in the world. Let me give you specifics from the perspective specific to UK. The IBPN has identified thirteen sectors exclusive to India where the most opportunity lies for UK including the small and medium sized business. These sectors are creative services, health care industries, financial services, biotechnology and pharmaceuticals, electronics, telecom, fuel and power, etc.  The financial sector in India is in a process of rapid transformation. Reforms are continuing as a part of the overall structural reforms aimed at improving the productivity and efficiency of the economy of the entire country.

Last year the UK exported over £14 billion of healthcare goods and services into the global market. In India, individual expectations are rising at a very fast pace and there is pressure to improve the services and facilities. There are other traditional services and basic product areas in addition to all these, opportunities, lie in highly sophisticated niches such as diagnostics, bio-device interfaces, informatics, laboratory technology, etc.

                                     Now if we consider the personal element loitering in your mind as to find out what exactly to do here is the help!!

 Do as much as much research possible before you start, you will need a business partner in India for sure. You may need some help while choosing the right partner, for that part you can contact the UK Trade and Investment and they will introduce you to the potential partners. They will help you with everything from passport, the Overseas Market Introduction Services or the Export Scheme. As India is a huge, massive and complex country take ample amount of time to understand the market, the competition and the regional differences. A detailed paperwork is important, make sure it is accurate to avoid problems. Sort out all the details in advance such as contracts, payment terms and intellectual property rights. Understanding the business culture is important, make sure you read and understand the etiquette of language, dress, religion, meetings and entertaining from the outset. In recent years, the dress code in Indian business settings has been changing, for instance. It is always best to check in advance as it varies considerably across regions and the difference is quite significant.

A little background entertaining from the business perspective

India is a country of wonders, it is a wonderfully colorful rich with it traditions and heritage which even the entire world gazes at with awe and appreciation.

                   According to five thousand years of recorded history, India has been invaded by armies, traders and immigrants who brought with them their own habits, faiths, practices and observances which have all contributed to the making of this rich texture of the Indian life and living. India has an outstanding relief and characterizes very rare physical features. From the eternal snows of the Himalayas in the north to the cultivated peninsula of the far South, from the deserts of the West to the humid deltas of the East, from the dry heat and cold of the Central Plateau to the cool forest foothills, Indian lifestyles clearly glorify the geography. 

     The food, clothing and habits of an Indian differ in accordance to the place of their origin. You will be surprised to know that deep-rooted family values still continue to exist in the Indian families. The surname of an Indian is based on his caste or place of origin or his family occupation. Patriarchy is still practiced in full swing, considering that men are still accepted, honored and respected as the head of a family and are consulted for all decisions though they no longer continue to be the single breadwinner. An Indian wife will always serve her husband before she eats. Parents are looked upon with respect and regard. The parents support their children financially throughout the period of their education.  Isn’t that amazing??

 Indians believe in sharing their happiness and sorrow equally. A festival or a celebration is never constrained to a family or a home. The whole community or neighborhood is involved in bringing liveliness to an occasion and everybody from the oldest to the youngest in the community or the village; enjoy it together holding each other’s hand in delight. Festivals like Diwali, Holi, Id, Christmas, Mahaveer Jayanthi are all celebrated by sharing sweets and pleasantries with family, neighbors and friends. Indians practice the habit of preparing specific dishes and delicacies for specific occasions like the mughlai delicacy “biriyani” is a must on the Id on the other hand a host of different sweets and desserts characterize the Rakhi and the Holi. An Indian wedding is an occasion that calls for participation of the family and friends. Similarly, neighbors and friends always help out a family in times of need. Though ethnically the Indians speak different languages and follow different religions, eat the most diverse varieties of food; there is still a richness in Indian arts and culture which is unparalleled anywhere else in the world. And that is what ties all of them together they are quintessential. The beauty of the Indian people lies in their spirit of tolerance, the attitude to give-and-take and a composition of cultures that can be compared to a garden of flowers of various colors and shades of which, while maintaining their own entity, lend harmony and beauty to the garden - India! India is truly a land of unity in diversity

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Chapter 1 

The potential for doing business in India

India is growing at a super fast speed to attain the status of one of the world’s leading centers for the development in the field of software, as an outsourcing center for IT, biotech, R&D, designing, customer contact and all other sorts of knowledge based products and services not leaving out the most significant sector of services related to knowledge process outsourcing. This huge subcontinent characterizes a rapidly expanding middle class that also represents a promising new market. 

As a result it has started to attract the attention and interest of a number of international companies including some globally acclaimed business labyrinths like the Virgin Group who visualize in India a very strong and potentially rich market. According to the Virgin maestro Richard Branson “ India is an exciting and developing market, it offers an enormous potential for two-way trade and every UK business should seriously consider being involved and investing in the Indian market.” Personally the Virgin Atlantic has campaigned for several years to be able to operate its award-winning services to India, and despite numerous hurdles and setbacks; they have got there eventually and it was well worth the effort. 

  Now an obvious question that you may ask in this context is that why should one invest in India, what are the positive sides? Let me tell you a little bit from amongst a lot of very valid reasons. First and foremost India is the seventh largest country in the world in terms of its size and as its neighbors it shares borders with countries like Pakistan, China, Bangladesh, Burma, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Bhutan. The country has no barriers to the entry of foreigners and believe it or not it is real easy to get a visa to enter India. 

The next reason is that it is a really young nation with 54% of its population below the age of 25. It has one of the largest populations of qualified professionals, including doctors, engineers and scientists. Isn’t that brilliant? 

Now that is not yet over!! 

  This country has one of the fastest growing economies in the world and with a GDP of

US$665 billion (IMF) India compares it favorably with the rest of Asia. Over the last decade the Indian economy has enjoyed an average annual GDP growth of 6.1% without any of the boom-and-bust cycles that are found in many other developing economies. No wonder India is the UK's 15th largest export market. Even the volume of bilateral trade in goods between India and the UK in 2004 was £6.3 billion. India has 23 stock exchanges with nearly 10,000 listed companies and its investor base is the third largest in the world. 

And it is such a huge market precisely because it is the second most populous country in the world. People belonging to all the major religions and ethnic groups dwell here, Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs and Christians. So a country, which has that amount of population, that amount of knowledge and that amount of potential, isn’t it quite obvious that without a second thought any multinational company should show interest in investing in the Indian market? 

Dollar   

I know even the sound is so lucrative!! They are spread through the length and breath of the global market but they are not much available for you to buy. Holding dollars or high forex reserves is like holding an excess of food stocks and securing your well being. Now this contemporary hype for forex reserves is the consequence of a currency manipulation. Dollars are on a high demand and every economy needs it for infrastructure funding but that can soon lead to inflation. 

Now let me tell you why are they so important. Powerful foreign exchange reserves like dollars are needed for the central bank of all nations to determine the exchange rate. This is of utmost importance as these days there is a global regime fast being created in which exchange rates are market determined. Are you confused? Okay let me simplify it a little bit more. Think of the central bank as a trader who buys and sells on the foreign exchange market to influence the demand and supply of domestic versus foreign currency. The Reserve Bank of India determines it to be specific in the case of India. When the RBI believes that the rupee should be made weaker it can increase its supply by selling rupees and buying dollars in the forex market. 

                                                       Now a significant question may be disturbing you and that is to know exactly when does a bank know that it has adequate amount of forex reserves? That is quite simple. Earlier in order to say whether reserves are adequate it was required to look at how many months of import cover they provided and a three or four months would be considered adequate. But then some confusions arose, people became worried that while there may be enough to cover for a few months of imports, this may not be enough at a moment of crisis because then the hot money, which is the money that can be taken out easily, will leave the country very fast and very easy. So then it was decided that the reserves should be adequate even after that money has left. Such money includes foreign portfolio investment and NRI deposits. Still others were worried that India should hold enough reserves to be able to repay all her debt if no one was willing to lend money to India. This measure required holding additional dollars to avoid possible inflation. 

The Indian story began in 1991. It was then that India used to operate a fixed exchange rate and that innately required a lot of reserves. Soon India found itself with barely two weeks worth of exchange rate and hence the imports were to be shortly cut. All this led the economy to face a recession. The country spent the first half of the nineties learning how to have a flexible exchange rate. It was busy collecting and gathering and piling up dollars so that the country would never get to such a humiliating and degraded position again. The entire country got together and worked very hard, the result was that it had gathered a reserve of over US$ 40 billion by the year 2000. 

The expansion

The entry of dollars in the form of forex reserves in India was the result of the interest of the International companies to enter the Indian business market as a hugely potential market in itself. Soon it became an obvious element as to which it became the RBI’s objective to buy dollars in order to keep the fluctuations in the vale of rupee low. Did you get it? When the RBI sensed a huge pressure on the rupee it decided to do something very interesting, it chose to prevent the sharp and frequent movements in the rupee-dollar rate by buying more dollars. The step was partially successfully. Though it slowed down the process but the pressure did remain, the rupee started to gain strength but very slowly. RBI kept on buying dollars for the next entire year. The entire strategy was carried out in such a way that in the entire global foreign exchange market the free market price of the dollar never moved more than 10 paisa per day. Hence within one year US$30 billion were added to the reserves India had.   

           So did you get the actual strategy that was working? The strategy was quite well sorted and proved to be counter-productive. Its simple if you converted your dollars to rupees, then held the rupees for a month, following that converted them back into dollars, you would take back more dollars than you had brought in. That way the inflow of hot money increased sharply. In the process RBI bought up the additional dollars that came in and helped pushing up the reserves to their present level of US $ 122 billion. Isn’t that noteworthy? 

                                                                   But then even the expansion can lead to some problems like the excess forex reserves can be similar to the problem of excess food stocks faced by India in the past. If you sell the product whose large stocks you happen to hold, the market price of the product would decline. And that way the Indian Sensex is put at a stake. Dollars are not sold in the rupee-dollar market because off-loading dollars would bring down the price of dollars and make the rupee stronger. In both the cases since it is tried to make a choice how prices would move, the market experts are in a quagmire. They are stuck with the consequences of the past mistakes, in both cases the government tries to think of ways in which they can save the market out of the mess. 

Reebok: How successful has this American company been in India

The Managing Director for Reebok in India is Mr. Sukhbinder Singh Prem. According to him breakthrough efforts are needed to acquire breakthrough results. In the initial stage when Reebok was just introduced into the Indian subcontinent and its products were just launched their brand’s primary focus was on the products that catered to the male customers. But what was there at the back of their mind was the realization that a large part of the population comprised of the females who did live an active lifestyle as well. 

                            So their next step was to attract the women to their brand and the products they offered. Although they started it small but they played the percentage game well. Soon they adapted the format of their stores and introduced the women’s section, which picked up real fast and constituted a 15% of the main business. Their main credit was that they studied the Indian market very well, for example, based on their market research they found out that most women wore their husbands' T-shirts and track pants or salwar-kameez for walking, and as a result they launched a sports salwar-kameez in knit fabric. But there was the other side as well. Though they had the credentials but the opportunity had neither been funded nor supported well in its fullest form in order to   stand up to be counted. The brand’s commitment to the women consumers was also following the percentage game, which was a 15 per cent focus. Naturally it resulted in the customers not taking any note of Reebok’s initiative, nobody paid any attention to the trend that was growing so slow. But the conditions did change, they changed their line of focus and thought of the size of a market their brand could create by putting their r3sources behind creating a category. 

They changed the décor and the style of their stores completely. As an obvious result    over 200 SKUs in apparel and footwear were sold and the promotions in the store were laid out keeping the mindset and buying behavior of the Indian segment of customers. Today, their women's business is a strategic business unit of its own, which sustains its own distribution stores and touches its audience in a sensitive and special manner. They could have been happy with the incremental results of yesterday and continued with the percentage treatment but instead they challenged the paradigm and experimented with a more focused and positive approach. And the result is its huge success in one of the biggest markets in the world…India. 

TESCO: what about this British company?

TESCO is a British company that was founded by Jack Cohen in London’s East End. The TESCO brand first appeared in 1924. During the 1950s and 1960s the company grew organically. Presently the company is in talk with India’s biggest mobile phone company over a joint venture worth 750 million pounds. They want to set up a super market chain in the subcontinent. TESCO is eyeing expansion abroad and India is in the prime focus. TESCO is ready to take a 49% stake in the operation, since under a new Indian government policy TESCO can take a stake in a domestic retailer without seeking permission. It is a very bright opportunity for this UK based brand to garb the largely spread Indian market and add the profits from the huge potential profits. Isn’t that a great chance?   

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Strategies of the Virgin group are unique. The Chairman and CEO Richard Branson became an integral part to this expansion as he focussed on the values of the Virgin brand which there on played significant part in the groups forray into many different businesses. The group also had to face criticism for allegedly diluting the equity of the brand through reckless brand extensions. The story of the Virgin brand, one of United Kingdom’s most globally popular brand and its evolution into the most stretched brand ever in the history of the corporate world had become a famous and common story in the global market by the end of the 1990s.

Richard Branson played the role of the man behind the brand. He built the unconventional publicity stunts, and the result was an immense amount of media coverage that the group and Branson had generated. It was quite impressive. In fact it became the brand that was the answer to all those who often claimed that one brand could never be everything to everyone.

From the very beginning the Virgin Record Company was a success with artists and groups such as Mike Oldfield, Phil Collins, Peter Gabriel, Paula Abdul, Janet Jackson, The Rolling Stones, Culture Club, Simple Minds, Genesis, etc. Virgin never licensed its music products to other companies in various countries like the other brands in the industry. Instead it set up its own outfit to handle its own industry and hence the company retained its independence. And its story of expansion and succes continued:

Richard Branson played the role of the man behind the brand. He built the unconventional publicity stunts, and the result was an immense amount of media coverage that the group and Branson had generated. It was quite impressive. In fact it became the brand that was the answer to all those who often claimed that one brand could never be everything to everyone.

From the very beginning the Virgin Record Company was a success with artists and groups such as Mike Oldfield, Phil Collins, Peter Gabriel, Paula Abdul, Janet Jackson, The Rolling Stones, Culture Club, Simple Minds, Genesis, etc. Virgin never licensed its music products to other companies in various countries like the other brands in the industry. Instead it set up its own outfit to handle its own industry and hence the company retained its independence. And its story of expansion and succes continued:

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Starbucks is one of the most admired and successful companies today, which has grown from a single coffee shop in Seattle, 33 years ago to a $4.1 billion dollar international company. From tasty beverages to propriety whole bean coffee blends to strategic small businesses have loads to learn from Starbucks.

Cup by cup Starbucks has changed the way people drink coffee in different continents, the company has successfully transformed from a pedestrian commodity to a high-end accessory. It has created a lifestyle that more people continue to embrace in the United States and abroad.

More than the taste of its coffee there are a number of factors that has propelled it to the forefront. It started as a company that was small, which dreamt big and grew to be a gigantic global corporation.

So just have a look to the ways in which it trailed to real, truly real success. Have a glance and I am sure you will want to learn some of them at the first shot, just follow:

•  The first step that Starbucks talks of is to start of with a good business concept! Starbucks had a tremendous success but the success capitalized on a concept that no one had had before “to make the coffee house into a gathering place.” It is not just a place where you get a steaming and refreshing cup of coffee but also a place for socializing and intellectual discussion among young urban professionals and particularly students. It created a unique offering that was differentiated and relevant, which had turned a humble and ordinary product into an extraordinary experience that they customers fell in love with.

•  Starbucks talks of thinking big! Starbucks opened its first store in 1971 in Seattle’s Pike Place Market. Though it started small from the very initial days it had big plans. It became public almost a decade after it started, in 1982. The company presently holds 40% of the specialty coffee market and the anticipated growth is going to open up considerable opportunities for the company for expansion in future. It appears as if Starbucks is in the early stage of colonizing the globe. But its success is certainly not an overnight success; it is the result of slow but sure approach to business growth. Perseverance, patience, financial expertise and management are at the secret of their global presence. If Starbucks could do it then surely all other small businesses will be able to do it.

•  Starbucks asks you to think outside the box! Its strength lies in its ability to spot opportunities even if that meant debunking accepted retail trends. Starbucks went against the accepted norm and pursued clustering location stores nearby and successfully used this strategy to increase total revenue and market share.

•  Their next trump card is smart partnership! According to them even a large company needs help to achieve its goals, a key reason for its success is the strategic business initiatives. It was able to achieve its objectives, break new markets and increase its bottom line by entering into strategic alliances with the right companies. For your small business to succeed you need to realize that you alone cannot feel the gap in serving the needs of your target market, you will need the help of another entrepreneur and share the financial risks.

So just follow the steps and you will be on your way to enhance your marketplace and keep pace with the changing technological innovations just like Starbucks.

Read About John Cassidy-Rice

You pick up an ordinary looking bulb, which only cost you pennies. Yet this simple little tulip bulb excited so much lunacy in the 1600’s.

Tulips had first come from Turkey, for years these exotic plants were too expensive for any but the richest, soon however less expensive varieties were in reach of the common person.

Then in 1630,   BANG,   tulip mania exploded, bulbs become a national craze, perceived less a flower and more of an investment

In the book, the rich and how they got that way by Cynthia Crossen take up the story:

At the peak of the boom, family fortunes were squandered on single bulbs. People traded land, houses, furniture, horses, sheep, and cheese anything for a tulip. In France, the entire dowry of one bride consisted of a rare tulip bulb. Eventually, sellers sold bulbs they did not have, to buyers who did not have money to buy them. Neither party intended to deliver anything: they were simply betting on the future price of bulbs. In early 1637, bulb prices were almost doubling every day. A tulip grower was said to have committed suicide when a cow ate his entire stock.

Later that year, the bubble burst for no obvious reason except rumours circulating about a shortage of buyers.

Detached from rational value, tulips perceived value become a run away fad; some hoping to get rich quick were left with hand full of bulbs and large mortgages.

Once planted your tulip will brighten up your garden,

This could not happen today right? .com bubble

Read About John Cassidy-Rice

Can you believe that it was not until 1827 that we had a safe way to make fire? John Walker a chemist preparing a mixture had an accident and scraped a mixing stick on a hearth, which caught fire.

He added the mixture to matches and called them Sulphurata Hyperoxygenata Frict and sold the first box to a solicitor called Mr Hixon on 7th April. Later that year he changed the name to ‘Friction Lights’

We know this because John Walker kept good records; in fact, the details were so good that we know it was 7 September 1827 that he changed the name of his matches and the first person to buy the matches under the new name was Mr Fenwick. John sold medicines that were often made out of mercury compounds, cosmetics and ingredients for cooking.

John was so confident in his future that he did not patent his matches even though non-other than Michael Faraday encouraged him to do so. John said, “I doubt not it will be a benefit to the public, let them have it. I shall always be able to obtain sufficient for myself”

Records and numbers tell a story, what do your books say about you?

Read About John Cassidy-Rice

Grace started as a temporary secretary in the new firm in 1921. The product was an idea brought back by Colonel Disney, a British army office working in the United States.

Grace got to work straight away; no job was too small or too big. Bounding with energy, she made sure every one who could possibly benefit from this product heard about it. Grace was so passionate about the product that she used it herself and a good thing she did.

December 30th 1940 she went to work as normal only to find the whole building destroyed in the Second World War bombing raid. Everything lost, this could be the end. Not so, Grace Scurr reached into her handbag and pulled out the product that she had re-named “Filofax” in 1925, which contained all the companies’ records.

Finding offices within days but could not get a telephone line for 3 months. The temporary secretary becomes the company chairperson.

Grace retired in the 1950’s, today Filofax is a household name in business circles, when the company was floated on the stock exchange in 1987 it was worth £17 million. Grace a remarkable woman the original driving force behind the company.

Who is the champion behind your company? 

Read About John Cassidy-Rice

Edmund heard about an automation chess-player being exhibited in London. The machine known as the Turk was built in Vienna in 1769, it created tremendous excitement when it took on all challenges and won.

Edmund had just seen Richard Arkwright and his amazing cotton spinning mill at Cromford. Realizing that there would be more cotton thread than the weavers could cope with.
He said to himself if you could build a machine to play chess you could build a machine to weave cloth. The fact that he had never seen anyone weaving before did not stop him. In addition, in 1785 Edmund Cartwright patented a power loom.

Opportunities surround us, often one area of success is to find a business that is doing well, or just taking off. Ask yourself what demand will be created from this? Every business creates a knock on effect. Just take something very simple like a breakfast cereal.

The farmer grows the wheat, giving work to a team of people. Including mechanics for tractors etc., they may process on the farm or send it off to be processed. Lorry drivers take the wheat to the factory to be cooked and made into the cereal, the boxes are often made at a different factory and shipped in. the boxes need to be designed, printed and cut. Then packed and transferred to the shop’s placed, on the shelf’s, advertised and marketed long before you purchased the cereal, you probably buy milk also which is a whole now chain of events.

What about sporting events, ground maintenance, parking sites, food, cleaners, advertising, tickets printing, brochure design, printing, TV deals just for a partial list.

What other opportunities in your field can you fill, improve upon the key with most things in life is to take action even if it’s not that good to start with. Edmund Cartwright’s first loom design was not a great success in fact it took two big men to work it. After much refining, he had a success. Cartwright‘s loom was one of the major innovations of the industrial revolution.

Oh, the chess machine that inspired Cartwright was a fake built by Baron Wolfgang von Kempelen and had very small and skilful chess player hidden inside.  

You never know where inspiration will come from.

Read About John Cassidy-Rice