A very different India Strategy : IKEA

We need large land tract near highways and metro’

Sidhartha & Dipti Jain, TNN | May 16, 2013, 04.25AM IST

Juvencio Maeztu, the IKEA India CEO, is more familiar with bathrooms and bedrooms in Indian homes than many of you would be. "We have been sitting in bathrooms and bedrooms and asking people to show their wardrobes and how they live," he says while sitting in his modern office in Gurgaon. The visits are part of a familiarization trip by executives from the Swedish furniture and furnishings firm to figure out how Indians live. The inputs are being used to plan the stores and what will sit on the shelves in the outlets, each with an investment of Rs 500 crore and spread over three lakh square feet. Although the company has got permission to invest over Rs 10,000 crore, it seems to be in no hurry to open its stores. In an interview with TOI, Maeztu says the company will roll out stores at its own pace. Excerpts:

Now that IKEA has obtained clearance for a 100% venture in India, what is your next step?

We don't want people to have expectations that we will open stores as of this summer. We have to do the right thing at the right time. The right location for us is a big piece of land with easy connection to the highway and it has to be near the metro (train). Finding the right location is important. We would like to buy the piece of land and develop it. If we have the land today, we may take two years to have the store. But imagine we have the land in three years from now, then it will take five years to open a store. We can't say in Year One we will have x% growth or in Year Four, y%. But overall, if we look at India after 30 years, there will be lot of stores, lot of local suppliers.

How have the reactions from state governments been for opening IKEA stores?

We feel very welcome in India and we will start dialogue with the regional governments in the coming months. That is why we want to start the process of talking to regional authorities. Our entry point is the city and not a shopping mall. In India it is interesting because the cities are growing so fast. We need to build a picture of India in 2020 or 2025. As far as we know, the big growth will happen in the big cities.

You have proposed an investment of over Rs 10,000 crore in the long term. What is your planned investment in the near future as you open stores?

Investment will depend on the pace of expansion. An IKEA store may cost Rs 500 crore on average. The size of the store will be around three lakh sq ft. It is a big investment. How much growth and in how many years will depend on the ability to find the right place. What is important is that we will not take a short cut here.

Will localization of products be a priority?

We are doing several things here. We are visiting homes. We need to understand how you live. We go to homes and we are seated in the bathroom or in the bedroom and then we ask them open their wardrobes. We need to understand life at home. We have a range of over 9,000 products and a majority of them will be introduced here. There will be no compromise on that. Our second priority is to present that range in a way that it meets the customer needs. The third is the basics — that we do not have in the range but we need to have in India. So, we may need more bowls for daal, or some special things for cooking.

Q: You have been sourcing from India for many years. How will the sourcing target change once you open stores here?

A: We are not just a retail company. We provide furniture, but we also sell solutions for a better life. We have to source much more in the future and we have to feel confident that we have the right product at the right cost because our model is based on affordable solution. We already source goods worth $450 million from India. We are starting the process of mapping and inviting more suppliers. We need to find good supply chain and support them. Today we produce two-thirds of our furniture in Europe and one-third in China. India is not present in the list. Big part of our production in India is in the textile space. We need to develop more industrialized products here.

Q: IKEA has been permitted to operate restaurants within its stores but not retail food items...

A: We can sell food and beverage in our restaurant and cafeteria here. Our restaurant and cafeteria are meant to provide good shopping experience. It is not like a supermarket.

Q: How important is the Indian market for IKEA?

A: India is going to be a big market, an important market for IKEA. We don't see what is going to happen in year one or year two. We tried to come to India five to seven years ago but the conditions were not right. Opening a store is not the approach here. It is about long term commitment.

Q: What are the major challenges in the Indian retail space? Is real estate one?

A: Real estate is a big challenge here. It is even bigger for us because we will not compromise on the IKEA concept. We have to talk to the regional authorities and the government to see how we can contribute and have the right dialogue. On the other hand, we like challenge - to produce good products at low price.

Samsung tests 5G technology to download movies in a second

SEOUL: Samsung Electronics on Monday said it had successfully tested super-fast fifth-generation (5G) wireless technology that would eventually allow users to download an entire movie in one second.
The South Korean giant said the test had witnessed data transmission of more than one gigabyte per second over a distance of two kilometres. 

The new technology, which will not be ready for the commercial market before 2020 at the earliest, would offer transmitting speeds "up to several hundred times faster" than existing 4G networks, it said in a statement. 

That will permit users to "transmit massive data files including high quality digital movies practically without limitation", it said. 

"As a result, subscribers will be able to enjoy a wide range of services such as 3D movies and games, real-time streaming of ultra high-definition (UHD) content, and remote medical services," it added. 

Samsung said it had found a way to harness millimeter-wave bands which have proved to be a sticking point for the mobile industry to date. 

The test used 64 antenna elements, which the tech titan said overcame the issue of "unfavourable propagation characteristics" that have prevented data travelling across long distances using the bands. 

One of the most wired countries on earth, South Korea already has around 20 million 4G users.

The Many Pataudis

Twenty-two essays delve into the legacy of one of Indian cricket's most significant figures

Trust Mike Brearley to come up with the mot juste. A distinguished former England captain and one of the most respected and original thinkers on the game, Brearley had this to say in his speech (reprinted in this anthology) about Tiger Pataudi at Lord's in 2012: "Tiger was… the first cricketing superstar in India whose appeal involved so heady a mix of brilliance, charm and charisma."

If one were to search for a coda for this book, to look for an encapsulation of what Pataudi meant to his fans, to Indian cricket and, indeed, India, one needn't go any further.

Brearley's is one of several perceptive, well-enunciated contributions that make up this handsomely produced book. In the day of the ebook, this collection - with its beautiful, well-chosen photographs, pages with generous margins, and arresting front cover - reminds us again that there are few things as gorgeous as the book as an object, as an artefact.

Sharmila Tagore's moving foreword - shorn of self-pity at her loss, underlit by a plangent dignity and love - sets the tone for the anthology. Abbas Ali Baig recalls his escapades with Pataudi at Oxford. Bishan Bedi, part of the formidable quartet of spinners that Pataudi used as an unprecedented spin-only attacking force, pays a glowing tribute to his first Test captain. Sunil Gavaskar recounts his struggle about how to address the Nawab (a question that seems to have preoccupied other cricketers as well).

Mike Coward's interview with Pataudi (from the archives of the Bradman International Cricket Hall of Fame) is illuminating. The veteran Australian cricket writer asked Pataudi what it took him to play cricket at the top level after the accident in which his vision was impaired. "Determination. And, perhaps, an ability to not get completely frustrated; to get over the fact that I could never be what I would have liked to be. To accept that I was, say, 30 or 40% below what I would have liked to have been. That took a while; took a bit of doing."

What kind of a player Pataudi might have been had he not met with that accident as an Oxford undergraduate is one of the most popular counterfactual discussions among Indian cricket fans of a certain generation. Pataudi himself never chose to dwell on it. But that remark in the interview to Coward offers a key to the staggering mental strength and resolve it must have taken him to become the player he did. This dwindled brilliance that was on show, shadowed by the speculation of what the undiminished genius might have been like, is at the heart of the legend that was Pataudi.

But Pataudi: Nawab of Cricket is no hagiography. Suresh Menon, the editor, has been clever in including in the book an essay by Vijay Merchant, the man whose casting vote stripped Pataudi of the India captaincy in favour of Ajit Wadekar. Then we have journalist Mudar Patherya's essay, "The Many Pataudis", which realises two aims: it makes an enterprising attempt to cut through the myths and received wisdom and objectively assess Pataudi's achievements and legacy; and it shows how, had Pataudi been less withdrawn than he was, he could have made a far bigger contribution to the game.

The pieces by Pataudi's daughters, Saba and Soha Ali Khan, while shining with the love they had for their father, clearly throw up the angularities he had as a person.

Certain common themes about Pataudi emerge in the 22 essays in this book: his wicked sense of humour, his love for repartee, his unquestionable qualities as a leader, and the fact that he would walk out to the middle with whichever bat was closest to the dressing-room door.

For cricket fans who never saw Pataudi play, this book offers a glimpse of why those who did were entranced by him.

Pataudi: Nawab of Cricket
edited by Suresh Menon
Harper Collins India
186 pages, Rs 399 

Cost-Effective Portable Diagnostics

PTI | May 12, 2013, 02.07 PM IST

NEW DELHI: Village folk may soon have access to accurate medical diagnosis at 

their doorstep with a miniaturised pathological laboratory packed into a suitcase

 capable of conducting tests which could lead to early identification of many diseases.

Amit Bhatnagar, an alumnus of IIT-Roorkee who quit a plush job in Hollywood's

 famed Universal Studios, has designed a portable biochemistry laboraotry, which

 comes packed in a suitcase and can perform 23 crucial medical tests including for

 kidney, liver, heart, anaemia, diabetes and arthritis.

The portable lab, which could prove a boon to people staying in remote areas that

 have little access to diagnostics which results in several diseases remaining

 undetected, was launched by Science and Technology Minister S Jaipal Reddy

 yesterday.

"It is a complete compact lab in a suitcase with power backup. It has been designed

 to perform 23 vital blood tests for kidney, liver, heart, anaemia, diabetes and

 arthritis accurately, cost-effectively and timely," Bhatnagar said.

The lab, which costs a maximum of Rs 3.5 lakh, includes blood analyzer, centrifuge,

 Micro pipettes, incubator, Laptop with Patient Data Management Software and

 consumables.

"Key advantage of Mobile Lab is in its design, rugged analyser, portability,

 cost effectiveness," Bhatnagar said.

The portable lab is being used by Border Roads Organisation at its dispensaries in

 remote areas of Kargil, Leh, Nagaland, by the Central Reserve Police Force in the

 jungles of Chhattisgarh and various programmes of the National Rural Health

 Mission in Haryana and Kerala on a pilot basis.

"We did a trial for 800-900 people in our dispensaries in remote areas. It has a lot 

of potential for early detection of lifestyle diseases like diabetes, cardiac problems

 and in emergencies," Brigadier S B Mahajan, Deputy Director General, 

Border Roads Organisation said.

Mahajan said the results of the tests performed by the portable lab were validated 

against those done in conventional laboratories and were found to be accurate.

"We have put up a demand for procurement of more such units," he said.

Bhatnagar received a soft loan of up to Rs four crore for developing the lab from

 Technology Development Board of the Government of India.

He raised an additional Rs four crore from various other resources. Bhatnagar

 did his B.Tech in Mechanical Engineering from IIT, Roorkee and went to the 

Pennsylvania State University in the US to complete his Masters in Biomedical 

Engineering.

He joined as a business consultant at the Universal Studios, where he analysed 

consumer trends for products of the Hollywood major. 

But homeland beckoned him and the stint in Hollywood was cut short after nine

 months.

Back in Delhi, he and his technology partners at IIT Delhi decided to take on the

 problem faced by nearly 70 per cent of villages in the country which did not have

 access to accurate diagnosis.

The 'lab in a suitcase' was a fruit of the efforts put in by Bhatnagar and his 

collaborators at IIT-Delhi.

Changing skyline of NYC......

The Rule of Four

Posted by Team BP on June 17, 2012 in Columns, Different Strokes · 0 Comments

12

Photograph/Brian Lary

In the movie “American Pie 2” (a movie grossly disregarded by the Academy Awards), there is the mention about the rule of three. This rule, in line with the overall maturity of the movie, states that whereas men exaggerate by a factor of three the number of women they have slept with, women on the other hand understate by a factor of three the number of men they have slept with. You do not learn facts like these from films who actually win Academy Awards.

What the movie did not mention is that there is a rule of four within photography. The rule of four states that it is only when buying camera equipment the fourth time that one really hits it right. How many tripods does one buy before knowing what kind would be the right one? Well, many photographers will say that they bought three tripods before they got what they really needed with the fourth one. And how many bags does it take before one really knows which would be the most practical one? Three bags are bought before getting it right with the fourth one. And how many lenses before finding the right lens for the right purpose? Yup, it is with the fourth lens one gets it right.

Anyone disagreeing, saying for example that he or she got the right lens the first time, simply has not tried another three lenses. And anyone saying that it takes more than four lenses is simply being a snob, indecisive, or both. Or suffering from tetraphobia (yes, that is a real word!). Am I wrong here? Uninformed? Heck no! I am just concluding what I have seen. The rule of four rules!

The rule of four is also relevant in other photographic cases. When taking photos with a digital camera, only every fourth photo is worth keeping. And only every fourth person being pictured looks photogenic. And only every fourth photographer probably knows what he or she is doing.

So, what are the consequences of the rule of four? Apart from a lot of money being spent, it can also be concluded that few photos are actually good. If only every fourth photographer succeeds with every fourth photo of every fourth person, only 0.25 X 0.25 X 0.25 = 1.6% of portrait photos are any good. And this is assuming that a photographer is at his or her fourth tripod, bag, lens, etc. If not, not even statistics can sort out the obscure situation in which one shall find oneself.

Incidentally, 1.6 is equal to 0.4 X 4, once again showing the significance of the number four. And as this would not be enough to prove the rule of four, here are some more proofs—four more proofs to be exact—of its validity.

1. Four-letter words are used by many photographers when they are unhappy with their photographic results.
2. Four is the number of corners of the sensor in a digital camera. Not five. Not three. Four!
3. Four out of four professional photographers will always use light to obtain a better result.
4. An ideal foursome is the term to use when everything clicks, i.e. the four factors shutterspeed, aperture, ISO and focus all join together to take the perfect photo.

So, what is the practical use of the rule of four? Well, like any rule, the rule of four can be used to predict future happenings.The rule of four tells us that anyone buying a camera needs to budget four times the initial cost of anything bought.

Furthermore, any memory card needs to contain four times as many photos as actually appreciated. And anything shall have to be done four times before getting it right. In short, multiply any photo activity with four and you will have a more fourseeable photographic life.

The rule of four shows once and for all that photography is more than an art form; it is a science now that its behaviour can be foreseen and thus more understandable. Furthermore, the rule of four—being one number above the rule of three, or 33% more—is a more exact rule according to mathematical logic. Some would say that a potential rule of five would be even better, but such a rule would lead to costs that would be completely out of control. One has to be realistic here.

And with that, the rule of four really has its scientific place in photography.

Who Moved My Shrikhand? :: Competition from fast food chains is killing Mumbai’s iconic eateries

( From the Outlook Magazine)

PHOTOGRAPHS BY AMIT HARALKAR

Dattatreya sees its last few days

MUMBAI: OLD EATERIES

Who Moved My Shrikhand?

Competition from fast food chains is killing Mumbai’s iconic eateries

PRARTHNA GAHILOTE

A little after 9.30 pm, when Prakash Wagle quietly slips behind the cash counter, two old men enter his eatery and walk up to his desk. “We read about you in the papers. Is it true?” Wagle, the owner, simply nods, without even looking at his two patrons. Over the past few weeks, staff members confirm, Wagle has made it clear to everyone entering Dattatreya that any conversation about the restaurant’s future will not be entertained. “It will be very sad,” say the two customers, and wander off to find themselves a corner table. Wagle continues to stare at the bill book on his desk. The eatery established in 1953 will be shutting shop by the end of this month, days after it celebrates its 60th anniversary on May 4.

Vishwa Mahal is dead

For Mumbaikars who dig authentic Maharashtrian food, Dattatreya’s closure will mark the end of a way of life. Ask anyone bustling around the modest wooden tables of the eatery, seating six on each. The older residents around Shivaji Park in Dadar say the area has lost two of its most iconic symbols: Balasaheb Thackeray late last year and Dattatreya now, which incidentally was a favourite of the Shiv Sena supremo. In fact, Dattatreya’s fame shot up after it became known that Thackeray loved their batata vada and kotambir vadi. No wonder then that eight years ago when Wagle had to shut shop for eight weeks after trouble with a local politician, Thackeray intervened personally to get his old haunt going again. in fact, until recently, one could see pictures of Wagle with the former Shiv Sena chief on the walls of the restaurant and old staff members say he shared a long and old relationship with Thackeray.
On a week day, tables start filling up around 8.45 pm for dinner. Children escorted by grandparents, teenagers with friends, individual office-goers clutching laptops on their way home, working mothers looking for a quick takeaway for dinner at home and families out for an evening. Fifteen minutes here or there, and finding a table beco­mes a struggle. However much the rush, service remains prompt and warm. Ever-alert waiters in uniform keep an eye out for anyone who might need att­ention. An extra helping of chutney or dahi? Before you know it, it’s there.
Hard times have befallen not just Dattatreya. Across Mumbai, local cuisine restaurants are fighting to keep the pot hot in the face of snazzy fast food chains with their war-like operations. The venerable Mahabhoj in Matunga is slated to turn into the fast food joint Cafe Greens and Beans. The shutters at the old eatery are already down and renovation work for the new one is on. The south Indian family restaurant has been leased out and will soon be serving international cuisine. Old-timers can only lament its demise. “I would catch at least two meals a week,” says Aadi Nair, a regular. “The food was delicious and affordable. This falls on my way to office and now when I walk past this building it brings back to mind the taste of the rice plate here. I am going to miss it forever.” But Mahabhoj’s owner Sachidanand Shetty says the restaurant was running into losses. “I couldn’t go on. I served `50 a thali for long, struggled to keep it going and realised that it bled me. Everything counts. Gas prices are higher. Labour and prices of food items have shot up. It’s difficult to run the place like this.”

Long live McDonald's

Vishwa Mahal, another restaurant serving simple vegetarian fare in Mulund, is headed towards a certain demise. Says Manohar Shetty, its owner, “People came up to me and said they would miss the food at Vishwa Mahal. But the truth was the business had become a headache for me. I tried my best to keep up our ancestral business but the returns were poor.” In desperation, Shetty even introduced Punjabi and Chinese dishes to keep the fires burning. But when even that didn’t spice up things for Shetty, he decided to take the dreaded step and leased out his eatery to McDonald’s in June last year.
Even at Dattatreya, the tables might look like they are all taken, but it’s nothing like the old times. That was when the bustling eatery would be serving 250 thaalis at one go come lunchtime. Today, it struggles to sell 50 meals a day. You can’t exactly blame Prakash Wagle then for leasing out his space, unappetisingly enough, to a bank. It just makes better business sense. So old Dattatreya soon will be an hdfc branch.
In Dadar, many such finger-licking home-style Maharashtrian food eateries are finding it difficult to keep pace with fast food and Chinese joints that have mushroomed in its lanes. Dattatreya too tried to join them since it couldn’t beat them. Waiters in the restaurant, mostly hailing from small Maharashtra towns like Ratnagiri and Kolhapur, recall serving spring rolls and noodles. But Dattatreya was too much of a homebody to become something it was not. Even an air-conditioned avatar in another part of the city failed to lift the already waning demand. An old wooden clock in a corner of the restaurant is marking time. The sole idol of the Dattatreya deity in the front of the restaurant silently watches the guests having their last few meals here, asking no questions.