The Lone Ranger In Channel Business

Bangalore-based Rakesh Jain skillfully diversified from his

family's silk business into the more competitive IT business. His willingness to

work hard coupled with his skill at strategizing helped him to achieve his

target sale of Rs. 6 crore last year.

Situated at a strategic location very close to Bangalore’s

greenest patch of land ‘The Golf Course’, is the prominent Rakesh Trading

Company. Rakesh Jain, who started this company in 1995, is the authorized dealer

for a wide range of computer peripherals and consumables. But what is surprising

is that this was not the business that Rakesh was supposed to be handling.

Born into a family that was involved in the silk business,

Rakesh’s entry into this trade came forth following his father's death. Barely

ten years old at that time, the responsibility of running the family and

business fell on his tender shoulders.

With his uncle's help, Rakesh harmonically managed issues

concerning his family and the silk business. But sometime in his teen years,

Rakesh decided to veer into IT and establish a foothold in the channel network.

Alone, from start to finish

Rakesh joined Devraj Computers in 1991 to get a hands-on

experience dealing with IT products. Here he handled sales and marketing

operations successfully for over five years. Simultaneously, he joined Vijaya

Evening College to graduate in the commerce stream. Finally in 1995, after

finishing his college, Rakesh decided to venture into the channel business on

his own.

Rakesh started his operations as a one-man show with a basic

investment of Rs.1 lakh. He handled the internal and external operations all by

himself. Talking about those days, Rakesh reminisces, "I still remember my

hardship days, it was a learning curve for me. Every step that I took was a new

experience, which gave me a chance to learn better ways in handling business

deals." It was a tough beginning for Rakesh, as he did not have anyone to

help and guide him, given his background.

But his efforts have paid off and today Rakesh Trading

Company has over eight employees on its roll. "Today with the help of my

sales and support team, I’m all geared up to meet the challenges and break

through any kind of hurdle which comes my way," says a proud Rakesh.

Within a span of five years Rakesh Trading Company has added

many distributors to its list. These include Compuage, Rashi Peripherals, Priya

and Savex Technologies. "I had projected Rs 6 crore as my turnover for

1999-00 and I have achieved it. This year I hope to double it," says Rakesh

with a smile on his face and a glitter of hope twinkling in his bright eyes.

Today Rakesh Trading Company is a renowned name in Bangalore

for computer peripherals and consumables. "The responses and feedback that

I receive from distributors and vendors has been exemplary and have acted as a

motivator to outdo my previous task", says determined Rakesh. He is now

planning to open a chain of outlets and showroom in and around Bangalore to

showcase all the products that the company deals with.

Rakesh believes that competition will drive a struggle for

survival in this industry and it would be tougher as time goes and newer players

entering the channel business. "Moreover with the increasing popularity of

online transactions, channel business will see a different phase where we would

be competing with direct transactions. The thought sometimes scares me",

says Rakesh.

But despite these apprehensions, Rakesh is willing to go

ahead with his expansion plans and give a stiff fight to his competitors. With

his characteristic never-say-die attitude and ambition to create a path of

success for himself it will not be long before Rakesh Trading Company scales

greater heights.

Sunila Paul

in Bangalore