Partnering for success in India

Companies engaging with India were recently able to access expert advice on what it takes to succeed in this complex and diverse market through a series of workshops held around New Zealand.

New Zealand Trade and Enterprise (NZTE) Beachheads Advisors for India, Peter Hassan and Ashish Hemrajani, spoke to business people brought together by Asia:NZ, NZTE and the India NZ Business Council.

The two advisors were in New Zealand to engage with existing clients and talk to a wider range of New Zealand companies already engaged with India or considering doing so.

Mr Hassan’s ‘day job’ as industries advisor to the state of Andhra Pradesh involves coordinating industrial development, trade and bi-lateral cooperation, and attracting inward investment.

His thirty years of experience in corporate and government affairs mean he can assist New Zealand firms with navigating the often complex Indian regulatory environment.

For his part, Mr Hemrajani brings his entrepreneurial know-how for building businesses and forming successful partnerships to the table.

Founder of online entertainment ticketing company Bigtree, Mr Hemrajani is the Indian business partner of New Zealand software company Vista Entertainment.

Not only has the collaboration led to success in the Indian market, but also in third markets. Bigtree has captured a 90 per cent share of India’s market for online entertainment ticketing and 70 per cent of software ERP in  all cinemas in the Middle East along with their partners Vista Entertainment of NZ.

Brian Cadzow of Vista Entertainment said from the outset they “took a long-term strategic approach to developing the partnership with Bigtree with the aim of expanding into additional markets.”

Key to the partnership was compatibility in terms of scale. Mr Hemrajani was first introduced to Vista by a firm he had approached in the UK. At the time the UK firm deemed Bigtree too small to partner with but helpfully referred them to Vista. The UK firm has since filed for bankruptcy.

Such partnerships with Indian companies can offset a lack of resources, contacts and capital and provide a platform for New Zealand firms to enter third markets. And finance for entrepreneurial ventures can be surprisingly easy to raise in India Mr Hemrajani says.

“You will get money very easily. In 1999, at the age of 24, I had half a million [dollars] from Chase Capital Partners JP Morgan in my bank account. I could have taken the money and run.”

“Access to money is easy, but you’ve got to have an India story that shows scale and scope. We’ve been successful because our partners trust us for going out and winning.”

But finding the right partner, rather than sourcing capital, is the real challenge in India, he says.

“Walker Architects came to India in 1999 and [designed] a few malls. The advice we gave them was strategic in nature. You need to find the right partners rather than capital in order to grow to the next level.”

Mr Hemrajani acknowledges that coming to a country as big, complex and diverse as India can be daunting for small New Zealand companies.

He advises NZ companies to: “Focus on the commonalities and get past the differences. For example: “Cricket is the religion in India - not Hindu or Islam.”

Both advisors concur that for small, resource-constrained New Zealand firms getting the right advice is essential.

“What is the Beachheads programme all about? It’s about sharing knowledge and experience,” Mr Hemrajani says.

Mr Hassan said that essentially their task is to “help New Zealand firms to keep out of trouble in India.” Mr Hemrajani adds that they would prefer to be called upon for advice when firms begin to plan their entry strategies for India.

In the past they’ve been involved in “fighting fires” which could have been avoided if they had been approached at an earlier stage.

The advisors are careful to point out that what they provide is not a consultancy service, as such, but advice and access to their wide network of contacts.

With the Beachheads programme, Mr Hemrajani says: “you’re only one phone call away from senior government officials and CEOs of large companies.”

He can cite the example of a significant New Zealand company struggling to resolve an issue for two years that they were able to fix by making a phone call to the right person.

Asia:NZ would like to thank the following partners for hosting the workshops: ANZ Bank (Auckland and Wellington), KPMG (Hamilton) and Lincoln University.
 

TAKEAWAYS

  • Depending on the nature of your product or service, you will need to concentrate your resources on a single state or city.
  • The attributes of patience and perseverance are essential when entering Indian markets, since achieving success can take five to ten years.
  • With the right partner India can act as a springboard into third markets.
  • For partnerships to work you need to have the same values and a complementary relationship
  • Focus on what you have in common, including shared aspects of each national culture (for example, British institutional and sporting legacies)

RESOURCES

Images: (top to bottom)
1. Beachheads roundtable in Wellington
2. (L-R) Ashish Hemrajani (Beachheads Advisor),Banu Sidharth (NZTE),Sir Ken Stevens (Asia:NZ Trustee),Peter Hassan (Beachheads Advisor)
3. Ashish Hemrajani (Beachheads Advisor)presenting

Last updated: 22 February 2012