Budhays : Story of a Persevering Couple

Business Algorithms has come a long way since its inception in April 1988. This company is the brainchild of two technocrats, Sudhir and Reeta Budhay, who believed in their dreams and worked diligently to become one of the most respected names in the distribution world, in central India. The leading distributor of Nagpur has completed 25 years and is still going strong.

Humble beginning
Business Algorithms, more popularly known as B.Algo, was formed with an investment of `60,000 in the car garage of Budhays' residence.
Before B.Algo emerged between 1982-1988, the couple worked with a firm called MGDA Industries, which was into manufacturing of control panels in MIDC Nagpur."In the late 80s, there was an emergence of IT and we managed our heads to capitalize this opportunity. The company then tied-up with Wipro, and Sudhir was responsible for hardware sales and I was into software development," said Reeta Budhay, director, Business Algorithms.
Budhay says, "We realized that we have been taking care of this entire business alone. This gave us the idea of starting our own venture and we believed in it. But coming from a middle class family where the general mindset is to work and not think of some business, our family opposed this idea. However, we still wanted to go ahead with it so we resigned from our jobs and with the provident fund money of `60,000, we started this business." She further added, "When we set up our business, we spent about `30,000 just on our phone that we booked in tatkal."
The family sustenance had become a matter of concern and so Reeta Budhay had to go back to the service industry. For the next 14 months, she worked with Coal India as systems officer while Sudhir continued with B.Algo.

First deal and challenges
The first big deal Budhays managed to fetch was worth `5 lakh and the company had tied up with a vendor called DCM data products. Budhay said, "This was the time when we used to have 10% AMC with warranty."
In the initial phase, when the company's turnover was around `30 lakh, DCM stopped manufacturing overnight and decided not to support any of its installations. Budhay said, "We were committed to our customers and decided to provide them with services and support. The sustenance was getting really difficult and in process we had to sell our father-in-law's priced possession which was his car. We used to buy spares from Mumbai and supply to our customers here."
Going ahead in 1991, the company tied up with another firm called ICIM but this venture only lasted till 1994 as that company also closed shops. We thought as if history was repeating itself but then we were more prepared and were able to support our customers effectively, " shared Budhay.

Success Begins
It was in the year 1994, when Sudhir had the vision to venture into the retail business and the company started its first retail outlet in Nagpur, the first one in the central India. But this too was not so easy. Budhay said, "We faced tremendous opposition and there we people who were mocking this move. But we knew that this would be the future. The only other retail shop was in Mumbai called Tangerine." She added, "Due to our past efforts and ethical business practices most of our partners stayed loyal to us and gave us the confidence to go ahead with our plans. They were ready to sell products of the vendor we chose to sell."
This was the time when a PC used to cost `90,000 and a color CRT monitor would cost around `30,000. There used to be 15 to 20% margins in sales even though the turnovers used to be less.
In 1996, the company tied up with Compaq and from then there was no looking back for the duo.
Today, the company has a turnover of over `50 cr and is a leading distributor and service provider of HP products. It owns two showrooms, one with 1500 sq.ft. of floor space and the other 500 sq.ft. which would soon come up at Sadar, in other part of the city. The service center is of 1400 sq. ft. space for walk in repairs and about 1200 sq. ft. of office, 550 sft of battery service center for Okaya, four own godowns of about 500 sq. ft. each at a octroi free place called Wadi outside Nagpur. The store today is an authorized exclusive HP retail outlet named as "HP experience zone" for their Presario and Pavilion Series. Also, it has a multi-brand retail outlet primarily showcasing and selling Apple products.

Success Formula
"We always believed in ethical business and provided quality support and service to our customers. Above all, hardwork, honesty, keeping commitments and ethical dealings have been the main factors that have contributed to our success," shares Budhay.
The other key factor that gives the company a strong standing in the market are its loyal employees. The company sincerely attributes its success to its team of experienced employees. Budhay states, "As of today, we have more than 45% of our staff that has been with the company for almost two decades."
Furthermore, the company has created verticals in the organization and each vertical has a group leader. Budhay said, ‘We have given full freedom to the group leaders and their decision is final in matters concerning that vertical. However, we share the profits across verticals. Apart from this, we have incentives in place for our employees and as per their performance we provide them handsome incentive excluding their salaries."
Also, B.Algo has a well-documented service policy guidelines and full-proof call management software. Service manager and call coordinator constantly supervise the call status on hourly basis and take corrective action on escalated calls. Also, marketing policy guidelines and administrative policy guidelines are well documented, which helps in smooth functioning on day-to-day basis.
B.Algo was the first company to implement ERP at the organization. Furthermore, they have well implemented ‘Just in Time' inventory module. Budhay said, "Effective logistics and finance control have also been key factors to our growth."

Future Ahead
B.Algo intends to improve its numbers in sales and further get more aggressive in the retail front. Also, the couple's daughter has joined the business and will be responsible for retail ventures, marketing initiatives and also logistics.