Dreamer At Heart

Shravan Mehrotra feels he has what it takes to become the next Dhirubhai
Ambani. And though he loves to dream, it does not matter much to him if all his dreams are
not fulfilled. This does not stop him from putting his best foot forward in whatever he
does.

Varanasi is well-known for its temples and religious fervor. Not many
would think that there is much scope for a channel partner to first of all survive and
succeed in this small town. But this is precisely what XLNC Computers has been doing for
over a decade now.

The credit for this success firmly rests on Shravan Mehrotra, the man who
started the company in 1993 with just Rs 10,000 as investment. Today XLNC Computers has a
turnover touching Rs 21 crore.

One reason why Mehrotra was able to spin this success story was because
though there is a lot of awareness about technology in smaller towns, people do not have
access to it. They have to visit bigger cities in order to both see the products and buy
them.

XLNC managed to plug this gap, since it was one of the few companies that
has been around for some time now. Mehrotra is optimistic that in the future customers
will no longer have to travel to Lucknow for business; rather they can deal with traders
in Varanasi itself.

Support matters

It is said that behind every successful man is a supportive wife. This holds true for
Mehrotra as well and he gives the entire credit of his success to his wife who supported
him through thick and thin.

When this resident of Varanasi finished his post graduation from the
Banaras Hindu University, he pursued a computer course from NIIT. It was at that time that
the idea of doing something related to technology struck him.

And this was how XLNC kick-started itself in 1993. Mehrotra knew that
initially he would face several challenges to get his business off the ground, but this
did not daunt him.

He believed that by offering good products with good services to
customers, he would definitely excel in his business. He thought that once he succeeded in
making a loyal clientele, he could further introduce them to newer technology, and this
would be his path to success.

This belief of his paid off. Slowly people started recognizing him as a
dealer with best products and good services—just like Mehrotra had planned.

But it was not easy for Mehrotra. He faced tough competition from
Lucknow-based dealers who were already offering better services at reasonable prices to
their customers. But gradually Mehrotra managed to increase his clientele, and after this
he did not have to bother much about competition from dealers of other cities.

"People in Varanasi are very comfort loving and want to lead lives
without worries. It is because of this attitude and the extended support by customers that
I have achieved so much," exclaimed Mehrotra.

Selling lifestyle ideas

Currently, Mehrotra is focusing on selling laptops as a lifestyle device. He has observed
that in smaller towns people have high purchasing power and a willingness to go for big
brands like Compaq, Lenovo or HCL.

The fiscal 2005-06 marked a milestone for XLNC Computers. The company,
which earlier had a turnover of mere Rs 2 crore, saw its revenues jumping up to Rs 14
crore that year. Last fiscal the company clocked a turnover of Rs 21 crore, which shows
that it is on a healthy growth path.

After dabbling in the IT business, Mehrorta is now planning to expand in
the telecommunication sector which, he believes, holds immense opportunity. He has seen
the mobile penetration increase manifold in his own city and would like to use his
resources to harness this market as well.

Mehrotra is planning to go public. His vision is to become the best
channel partner in the entire region, and according to him the best way to achieve the
status is by giving utmost satisfaction to the end-users. He is also planning to open
branch offices in Lucknow and New Delhi.

Apart from work Mehrotra also likes to spend quality time away from work
by watching movies on weekends and visits various metros with his family.

There are many other dreams twinkling in Mehrotra’s eyes. But he is
not worried about his dreams—instead he has the earnestness to move towards them and
put in his best efforts.

His aspiration is to become as famous and successful as late Dhirubhai
Ambani. He is convinced that he has that kind of temperament, which is required to excel
in any field, and if people around him support him, he will be a winner. He is quiet
confident that this dream of his will translate into reality one day.

AMRITA TEJASVI