Unique times march 2014

Vol 3 Issue No.29 March 2014 | 50 | AED 5

Philanthropy & The Indian Businessman Shri V.P. Nandakumar

MD & CEO Manappuram Finance Ltd.

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Taking

Business Globally

strategies and phases to know

Learning

to Set Goals &Achieve It

A Family Business Rooted in Indian Values Interview with

Mr. V.S. Pradeep

M.D. of Cholayil Private Limited / uniquetimes

/ uniquetimes

The science of

differentiation

& the art of

integration

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Editorial

I am indeed glad, that we have got a lot of appreciation mails as well as some positive criticism from our readers. Thank you for your

Editor

feedback.

As we know that Auto Expos are getting warm welcome and attention in our country now, in this edition we are giving exclusive concern for Auto review. Also I would like to introduce our new column writers Mr. Kaushik Rajagopal, Mr. Vinod Kumar and Ms.Promita Banerjee. They are professionally sound & talented people, So I can assure that our readers would get a variety of

Correspondents

substances within.

We also have our regular columns from VP Nandakumar, Vivek Venugopal and Denisha Sahadevan. Hope you all will enjoy this edition.

Denisha Sahadevan Amrutha V Kumar

Thanks

Ajit Ravi

+971555776966 Tamil Nadu Marketing Head Chennai 450watts group of companys David Rajan, Ph : 09600044402 Andhrapradesh Bharath Kantham, Ph: 95500 54943 Karnataka Anupama Suvarna, Ph: 0966 362 8748 Kerala

Our Patron: Mr. V.P. Nandakumar

RNI Reg. No: KERENG/2011/42633 PEGASUS

Content & 12 Philanthropy The Indian Businessman Shri V.P. Nandakumar MD & CEO Manappuram Finance Ltd.

Power

31 Dressing

12 Men Promita Banerjee

31

Interview

16

Mr. V.S. Pradeep M.D. of Cholayil Private Limited

Taking

Business 20 Globally

strategies and phases to know Kaushik Rajagopal

Learning

27 &Achieve It to Set Goals

Ajit Ravi

16 20 27

Russia The Land of 50

44 60

Deep History & Culture

Denisha Sahadevan

Gadgets

44

50 Books 60 39 Santa comes in 39 Summer Vivek Venugopal

41 35

Tata Nano

Twist 41 Nano Reinvented

The science of differentiation

35 integration & the art of

Vinod Kumar

Unique Diary

Sebi Approvals Merging Proposal

S

ebi has given the nod for the proposal of merging Reliance group's two

power transmission entities located in Gujarat and Maharashtra with

Reliance infrastructure. The proposal is for the merging of Western

Region Transmission (Gujarat) Pvt Ltd (WRTGL), and Western Region Transmission (Maharashtra) Pvt Ltd with the Anil Ambani group firm Rinfra. Sebi in a letter to the National Stock Exchange gave its approval stating that they “hereby convey (their) no objection with limited reference to those matters having a bearing on listing/delisting/continuous listing requirements within the provisions of the Listing Agreement.” This move will be helping in reducing the managerial costs and the administrative costs among the others. He will be replacing Marc Nassif, who will be moving onto Global assignment within the group. Mr. Sawhney will be responsible for managing the entire operation for Renault and will be reporting to Gilles Normand the chairman of the Asia Pacific Region for Renault.

Mr. Nassif commented that “India's journey over the past eight years has been full of challenges and great learning having launched Renault brand and five product portfolio.”

The golden rule for every business man is this: Put yourself in your customer’s place.

Orison Swett Marden

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UNIQUE TIMES March 2014

Slow Progress in Appointing Nadella as Microsoft's New CEO

M

r. Satya Nadella's promotion as the Microsoft boss has stirred small reactions from the investors with the software giant's share price as it remained mostly at a flat level in the first four days of his reign. Since Mr. Nadella was appointed as the CEO on February 4th, the shares of Microsoft (which is worth $300 billion) has gained only less than one per cent. Mr. Nadella has been with Microsoft for 22 years and his promotion as the CEO comes during a time when the company is facing obstacles such as keeping ahead in the market with Apple and Google. Mr. Gates commented that Mr. Nadella's vision for how technology will be used and experienced around the world is exactly what Microsoft needs as the company enters its next chapter of expanded product innovation and growth.

High Number of Companies Registered in January

I

n January, about 265 companies were registered every day, totalling up to an 8,200 for the entire month, with most of them being from the private sector. The number being the higher than

December (8,000) and November (7,400), about 22 foreign firms were also incorporated and 800 new Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) entities came up last month. The new entities have been set up across the states as Maharashtra and Delhi saw the incorporation of over 1,000 companies. While there are nearly 14 lakh companies that are registered in the country, more than 9 lakh are active companies.

Around 28,400 companies are in the process of being shut down.

Surviving a failure gives you more self–confidence. Failures are great learning tools… but they must be kept to a minimum.

Jeffrey Immelt

Billionaire Icahn's Campaign for Apple Stock Buybacks

T

he Billionaire activist Investor Carl Icahn has stepped out from his campaign in increasing its stock buybacks, citing

that the company's recent repurchases as well as its

influential proxy adviser's call against his proposal. In a letter to Apple,

Icahn wrote that he was stepping down from his non-binding proposal in order to force Apple to add another $50 billion to its stock buyback plan "especially when the company is already so close to fulfilling our requested repurchase target." For months on, Icahn has been asking Apple to increase its stock's buyback program, making a proposal that the company should repurchase another $50 billion. Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. recommended that shareholders vote against Icahn's nonbinding proposal. They stated that the motion would “micromanage” as to how the company uses the capital.

March 2014 UNIQUE TIMES

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Unique Diary

Mozilla to Sell Ad's Through Browser

A

s Mozilla targets to get into the action of the fast expanding online advertising market, the company will be starting to sell ads. In a blog positing, the company stated that it has reached out to potential corporate sponsors about its fledgling “Directory Tiles” program targeted at first time users. When the new Firefox users open up the browser, they will see nine blank tiles which will be filled in overtime with the most visited or recently visited websites.

Mozilla will be displaying the most of the popular sites according to location as well as the sponsored websites, which will be clearly labelled.

Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety–nine percent perspiration.

Thomas A. Edison

Comcast To Buy Time Warner Cable Inc

C

omcast Corp has announced that it will be buying Time Warner Cable Inc. for a price of $45.2 billion in an allstock deal which will join the two largest U.S. cable operators. The takeover has come about as a surprise after months of public pursuit of Time Warner Cable by smaller rival Charter Communications Inc. It also raised questions as to whether it would pass the scrutiny of anti-trust regulators.

Comcast will be paying $158.82 per share, which is about what Time Warner Cable asked from Charter. The talks between Comcast and Time Warner Cable started about a year ago.

Negotiations came about to being finalized in the recent weeks.

Even when Charter had approached them, Time Warner Cable had told Comcast that it considered Comcast to be its preferred buyer according to sources.

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UNIQUE TIMES March 2014

Target Recovers

T

he Target Corp shares started to increase after it had been reassured by the investors that the customers are beginning to return to its U.S. stores which suggested that the after effect of a massive data breach may not be as bad as some had thought it to be.

When the news of the cyber attack and theft of payment card data had scared off the shopper's towards the end of the holiday season, there was a significant fall, however since then, the customer traffic has made much improvement. Target shares had fallen 11 per cent since the news of the breach broke and then increased up to 6.8 per cent at $60.37 which was their highest level for almost six weeks.

The important thing is not being afraid to take a chance.

Remember, the greatest failure is to not try. Once you find something you love to do, be the best at doing it.

Debbi Fields

France's Unemployment Remains Unstable

A

s the President of France, Francois Hollande tries to keep the unemployment rates down, it seems that in January, it has been recorded the number of unemployed individuals rose up to 8,900. The data from the Labour Ministry recorded that the number of people that were registered to be out of work had reached 3,316,200 in mainland France which is a 0.3 per cent increase over a month and in over a year 4.4 per cent. According to Barclays France economist Fabrice Montagne, “even though towards the end of last year the pace of deterioration in the labour market fell to about half the level of a year ago, it has so far failed to stabilize despite the government's active labour market policies.�

March 2014 UNIQUE TIMES

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Unique Diary

Arrest Warrant Issued Against Subrata Roy

A

non-bailable arrest warrant has been issued by the Supreme Court against Sahara Chief Subrata Roy for having defied its summons in connection with the long running case which involved his failure to refund the investors' money, which had been taken up by market regulator Sebi. The arrest warrant came the day after the top court rejected Mr. Roy's plea for exemption from personal appearance. The top court has asked the police to bring Mr. Roy on March 4th stating that “when other directors have appeared, why can't he?” Mr. Roy made a similar request earlier, and even then it was rejected because for the last two years (the Supreme Court) has granted exemption from personal appearance. The Senior advocate Ram Jethmalani, representing Mr. Roy told the top court that Mr. Roy's mother is ill and it is due to that he has been requesting to be excused from personal appearance.

Success in business requires training and discipline and hard work. But if you’re not frightened by these things, the opportunities are just as great today as they ever were.

David Rockefeller

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UNIQUE TIMES March 2014

Infosys' to Set up Campus in Nagpur

T

he IT giant Infosys's third campus will be set up in Maharashtra on 142 acres of land in the Multi Modal International Cargo Hub and Airport (MIHAN) Nagpur helping to give a boost to increase the employment opportunities for the youth. After Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan laid the foundation stone for the project he said that “the Congress-led government in the state has brought two global IT companies, namely Infosys and TCS, besides the Air India-Boeing Maintenance Repair Overhaul (MRO) facility which would provide employment opportunities to thousands of youths in the region.” The project is expected to be completed within two years. The campus has been designed by the architectural firm Morphogenesis and will be developed and executed as per the guidelines of the green rating for the integrated habitat assessment (GRIHA).

SBI to Slow Down Recruitments According to a top bank official, the country's largest lender, State Bank of India, may start slowing down on their recruitments during the next 2-3 years. Keeping the expansion programmes in mind, the bank will attempt to maintain the employee strength at the current levels, according to the Managing Director A Krishna Kumar. Kumar stated that they will be seeing “the extent of people who are retiring from the bank from all levels. So to that extent (they) may look at replenishing that stock.” However they are not looking to increase since as of right now they have 2.23 lakh people working with the bank. He added that “by March 2014, the employee strength may fall to 2.2 lakh.” Over the next few year's SBI will try to keep the figure of employees working for them leveled between 2.2 and 2.23 lakh.

If you work just for money, you’ll never make it, but if you love what you’re doing and you always put the customer first, success will be yours.

Ray Kroc

BlackBerry Shares Increase After FB Deals With WhatsApp

E

veryone is well aware that Facebook and Whatsapp are tied up now due to this deal, BlackBerry Ltd shares have shot up. The deal sent BlackBerry shares up by 9 per cent in trading because it put a rough valuation on metric around the smart phone maker's own BlackBerry Messaging service. The BlackBerry messaging was a pioneer in the mobile messaging service, however its user base has failed to keep up with WhatsApp, mainly because BlackBerry had refused to open the service to users on other platforms. Facebook's valuation of WhatsApp translates roughly around $42 per user, which could possibly lead investors and analysts to rethink their valuation of the asset within BlackBerry.

March 2014 UNIQUE TIMES

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Feature

Philanthropy&

The Indian Businessman 12

UNIQUE TIMES March 2014

O

n March 2, 2014, the Asianet News channel telecast a half an hour documentary on the CSR activities of our company carried out under the aegis of the Manappuram Foundation. It was a very well-made documentary that successfully captured the full range of activities we are involved in as part of our corporate social responsibility (CSR). In this context, I would like to share some thoughts about businessman and philanthropy.

P.N.C. Menon, founder of the Sobha group, who has promised to devote half of his fortune to philanthropic efforts.

According to a report on Indian philanthropy by the management consultancy Bain, private charity contributions as a percentage of GDP are only 0.4% in India, compared with 1.3% in the U.K. and 2.2% in the U.S. The report noted, however, that “India

We all know of Bill Gates as the founder

is recognized as a nation of givers. But

of Microsoft and usually the richest man

we have a tradition of being quiet

in the world. In 1994, he sold some of

givers.”

his Microsoft shares to create the

Around the time that Bill Gates came to

William H. Gates Foundation. Later, in

India, there was a lot of talk in the

the year 2000, Gates and his wife

Indian media about how Indian

combined three family foundations into

businessmen were not as generous as

one and created the Bill & Melinda

their American counterparts in the

Gates Foundation. Today, it is the largest

matter of charity. Actually, the truth is a

transparently operated charitable

little more complex.

foundation in the world and Bill and

There is an important reason for this

Melinda Gates are among the most

divergent trends in philanthropy among

generous philanthropists in the world,

businessmen in America and in India.

having given away billions of dollars in

In India, all citizens including wealthy

charity.

businessmen are allowed to leave their entire wealth to their family. Estate duty, or the tax on inheritance, was abolished

In December 2010, Bill Gates joined hands with the legendary investor Warren Buffett, to take a pledge—what they called the "Gates-Buffet Giving Pledge"—in which they promised to donate to charity at least half of their

Shri V.P. Nandakumar wealth over the course of time. Gates MD & CEO and Buffett visited India to promote the Manappuram Finance Ltd. Giving Pledge and encourage wealthy

in India in 1985. In the US, if you are very rich, the estate tax has a top rate of 40%. Therefore, when an Indian businessman donates a crore, it is money that otherwise would have gone to his family. In America, only 60 percent would pass on to the family with the rest going to the government as estate tax.

Indians to give more. The chairman of Wipro, Azim Premji, became the first person in the country to sign up for the

Businessman donating their wealth to charitable causes is one side of the story.

Giving Pledge. He was joined by

March 2014 UNIQUE TIMES

13

14

On the other side, India has seen

to foreign companies registered in

medical expenses up to a limit of

some very good work being done by

the country.

Rs.60,000 per annum.

corporate establishments as part of

It is a matter of pride that well

Presently, the bulk of the

their CSR. Indeed, CSR has

before CSR became mandatory,

Foundation's activities is restricted

assumed extra importance ever

Manappuram had become active in

to Thrissur District (Kerala) but we

since the government amended the

this sphere out of its own cherished

now plan to try and extend our CSR

Companies Act to make it

values. We established the

footprint across India. We have

mandatory for corporate entities to

Manappuram Foundation in 2009

decided to sponsor worthy projects

spend a minimum of 2 percent of

with the objective of funding and

focused on the uplift of weaker

their after tax profit on social

managing grassroots programmes in

sections of society in areas where

welfare. The revised norms apply to

healthcare, education,

we have a presence. For this

companies with at least Rs 5 crore

empowerment of women, and

purpose, senior executives of the

net profit or Rs 1,000 crore

charity. The first major initiative of

company from across India have

turnover or Rs 500 crore net worth

the Foundation was Janaraksha

been asked to identify suitable

and comes into effect from April 1,

Manappuram Free Health

projects with the potential to make

2014. From this date, companies

Insurance Scheme rolled out in FY

a visible difference to the lives of

will have to spend 2 per cent of

2009-10. Under this project, 20,000

the underprivileged classes. And so,

their three-year average annual net

BPL families—that's about one lakh

one of these days, the Manappuram

profit on CSR activities in each

people—in seven Panchayats

Foundation will also become a

financial year, starting from FY15. It

adjoining our Corporate Office at

national presence, like its parent,

has also been clarified that CSR

Valapad, Thrissur, are provided with

Manappuram Finance Ltd. That is

activities will have to be undertaken

free health insurance covering

the dream.

within India and will apply equally

them for hospitalization and

UNIQUE TIMES March 2014

Interview

Mr. V.S. Pradeep M.D. of Cholayil Private Limited 16

UNIQUE TIMES March 2014

Cholayil Private Limited A Family Business Rooted in Indian Values C

holayil Private Limited is a

history, and future.

company which is

where it had its humble beginnings in

How did Cholayil Private Limited start?

the railway quarters as Dr. V.P. Sidhan

It was started by my dad. He started

an allopathic doctor thought of

it off way back in 1969. He's an

coming up with a soap to help his

allopathic doctor by profession and he

patients who were suffering from skin

was working in the Indian Railways

diseases. Though he is an allopathic

and though he's an allopathic doctor,

doctor, having come from a great

we come from a traditional ayurvedic

ayurvedic family in Kerala known as

family in Kerala and the family name

the Cholayil, Dr. V.P. Sidhan was able

is Cholayil. The ancestors of Cholayil

to obtain an in depth knowledge

were great well known ayurvedic

about ayurveda from the ancestral

practitioners, and they were not only

texts and was able to create the soap

known in Kerala but there were

Medimix in the year of 1969. Today

practitioners in Sri Lanka. My father

with Cholayil Private Limited being

had the opportunity of reading some

available worldwide, they have their

of the ancestral texts and he always

headquartered in Chennai,

values deeply rooted in the Indian

believed in ayurveda. so when he

culture as they use ingredients which

started his practice in the railway

have been used for centuries to cure

hospitals, he came across many

skin diseases even today. Cholayil

patients, who were having skin

Private Limited has many products

problems. He was finding it that the

aside from Medimix such as Krishna

patients were not comfortable using

Thulsi ayurvedic soap and Cuticura

creams, lotions, applying it, then

soaps. Cholayil Private Limited being

having to wait and washing it off. It

a family business is currently being

made him think why doesn't he come

led by Mr. V.S. Pradeep the current

up with a soap which can eliminate

M.D. of Cholayil Private Limited and

the skin problems so that by just

the son of Dr. V.P. Sidhan. We have a

taking a bath the skin problems get

talk with Mr. V.S. Pradeep to find out

solved. That's how he started this

more about Cholayil Private Limited's

Medimix soap. It was started with a

March 2014 UNIQUE TIMES

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CHOLAYIL very small capital and as it started it was known as prescription soaps. He

from overseas countries such as Malaysia, Singapore, and Taiwan?

had many doctor friends, whom he

We are able to attract our overseas

used to go personally in the evenings

clients easily because they like

after his work and meet to give

Medimix's natural herbal quality.

samples of the soaps, requesting

In 2011, Cholayil industries had

them to prescribe the soap. Originally

obtained the Krishna Thulsi Soaps.

Medimix was sold only in the chemist shops and that also with the

The ancestors of Cholayil were great well known ayurvedic practitioners, and they were not only known in Kerala but there were practitioners in Sri Lanka. So my father had good knowledge for our ancestors and he had the opportunity of reading some of the ancestral texts.

outlets and it's available in all types of

There are other brands in the market as well such Himalayas, Chandrika, do you have any plans to create partnerships with any of these brands? Where do you see this company 10 years from now?

stores. Medimix is not only popular in

We don't have any plans to create

India but also in the entire Gulf

partnerships with any brand right

Region. And interestingly Medimix is

now. In 10 years from now we are

popular in countries like Malaysia,

aiming to become a more successful

Singapore, Taiwan, Lithuania, and

company.

prescription from the doctors. Slowly it started going from the chemist, and started moving to the dealers. Today Medimix is available in 18 lakhs

over thirty five countries where Medimix is sold .

Why do you think that consumers value Medimix as much as they do?

Medimix is different from the other

What was your field of study and why it is that you did not opt to become a doctor?

I liked business more so I decided to study commerce at M.O.P Vaishnav Men's College in Chennai.

soaps in the market because it has 18 powerful ingredients in it. Each of helping your skin. Medimix is good

What kind of gratification do you feel working in the family business?

for pimples, skin itches and it takes

In the family business right now,

care of all types of skin problems.

there has been a change that had

the ingredients has its own way of

happened somewhere in 2007. My

What is the reason that you are able to easily draw costumers

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UNIQUE TIMES March 2014

father, my brother in law and myself are the three people involved in the

family business and due to some

work daily, so in that time, my mother

differences in opinions I was not able

was managing the business. She used

to continue the business with my brother in law which caused a split to happen in the family. And during the split what had happened is the southern market that is the Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Kerala markets came under my brother in law's care. And I handle the rest of the markets in the country and exports. That's one of the crucial things about family business. It becomes at times difficult to in a family business to get along. There might be differences in opinions and the differences in opinions may not be taken in the right spirit by family members, it may become difficult to manage. These are the complexities in the family business.

Your mother Mrs. M.K. Sowbhagyam has also played her role in the family business, please tell us about that.

She was involved in the earlier stages. As I told you my father was a railway employee so he has go to his

March 2014 UNIQUE TIMES

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Business

Taking

Business Globally

strategies and phases to know

I

Kaushik Rajagopal M.D., Knack Business Metrics

20

UNIQUE TIMES March 2014

n India, on an average, 1 in 20 of us have our family member or close friends working or owning a business abroad. It's quiet common to see people from Kerala, Gujarat, and few other parts of India to run a business successfully in Far East, Middle East, Parts of Africa, and Europe. As we all are aware of, it's the Currency value and Demand for Skill/ Knowledge that plays a vital role in attracting people to certain

geographical locations across the globe. The craze of going abroad to enjoy increased income and standard of living does not only attract individuals; even companies are marching towards it.

Coming out of the individual's point of view, let's see this from the Commerce's or Business's prospective. This gives us the adequate knowledge about the

foundation upon which MNCs are

unreliable. Products could be sold at

formed.

a very competitive price through

In case of Businesses, its the Turn Over that represents its hugeness.

The volume of sales, the level of Research and Development activities carried on, the living standard of its employees, its Corporate Social Responsibilities (CSR) are also the key factors which speaks about the worthiness of the company.

Here, let's focus on the core aspect of

In the current scenario, the market size and competition could be assessed out of few calculations and ready available data.

But the crux lies on knowing what is an 'Appropriate Product'.

a Manufacturing Business – Revenue generation. Revenue generation in this case would be from sales and service. So, all that a company needs to focus on at high priority should be on sales.

Now, revenue from sales is directly related to the size of the market, prevailing competition, and last but not least – the demand for appropriate product.

In the current scenario, the market size and competition could be assessed out of few calculations and ready available data. But the crux lies on knowing what is an 'Appropriate Product'.

With the advent of internet and global trade shows and exhibitions, everyone knows in and out of their competitor's product offerings. At times, even the product manufactured by two companies having manufacturing plants in different continents look similar despite their special application.

Therefore, by Appropriate product, I mean the product that a prospective customer demands with the price which he has already fixed up in his mind. Of course, he would have got the idea through few hours of online window-shopping for the machine in famous trade portals.

It's not that all cheap products are

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Entering a market

planning its expansion. If found

be much economical with marginal

favorable, to have a safe and steady

level of overseas sales and little risk;

expansion, firms shall opt for local

but there would be no control on the

channel partners (franchisees) who

specific market. Return on

are well aware about the market

products or

Investment is directly proportional to

dynamics.

services are

the size of the investment made by

Deploying the vision and ideology of

the company overseas.

the company is its basic Brand

Another fundamental aspect known

building block. This could be well

as Entry Level Market Knowledge

executed upon the successful

determines the entry mode. Firms

marketing communication and

dare to enter any new market without

through the ways and means in

where no similar

offered before will be a best scope for building or repositioning a brand.

22

them global for the first time. It may

UNIQUE TIMES March 2014

knowing about the market size,

which the products are offered. The

potential and condition. In short, a

level of transparency and operations

proper market and PEST analysis has

control in the day-to-day functionality

to be done by the company before

of the overseas channel partner,

Fundamental Differentiations Capital intensive

Indirect approach

Huge investment

Less Investment

Huge Risk

Less Risk

Quick ROI

Late ROI

Good Control on the Market

No or less control on the Market

Quick and Good Knowledge on market dynamics

Slow learning process

determines the sustainability and

potential, the one with close

growth in sales.

proximity of culture has to be

On a long run, to have a wholly owned subsidiary at the foreign market place would enable the firm to have its dominance. The backbone of this entirely lies on the Business Intelligence, which the parent company has gained from its coordination with the franchisor over the past years of their operation. The bottle neck here is that, a franchisee won't be sharing the entire market pulse and operating profitability of his market to its franchiser; keeping in mind the risk of the Parent company eliminating him from the channel partnership in future.

What is the best strategy?

Considering the above factors, the strategy for going global has to be tailored for every firm which is into to the manufacturing business.

To have a fundamental understanding of the strategy, let's consider a manufacturing firm planning to expand its market and also having a vision of setting up an overseas manufacturing plant.

1. Select the Country The initial step in economic globalization is to identify the favourable market. From the list of probable international markets with

March 2014 UNIQUE TIMES

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To have a fundamental understanding of the strategy, let's consider a manufacturing firm planning to expand its market and also having a vision of setting up an overseas manufacturing plant. the international market.

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UNIQUE TIMES March 2014

Leadership

Ajit Ravi

Learning to Set Goals

&Achieve It W

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UNIQUE TIMES March 2014

e do not always get where

When you attempt to set a goal, what

we want just by luck. There

you must do is be able to do it

are those who are given

accordingly. Goals are not always easy to

everything as it falls into their laps, just

set, none the less easy to achieve. If you

like that within the snap of their fingers

are an unorganized individual you will

and then there are those who work hard

certainly be facing many obstacles in

for it day and night. Some success is not

trying to set goals. But when you are

achieved through hard work in trying to

organized it is easy to lay out your goals

get somewhere or do something, it is

since having a certain goal in mind is

simply handed down. Be it in your

what gets the job done, helping you to

personal life or your professional life, at

reach the success which you want to

times you must learn that you will not

achieve. When it comes to organization,

always be handed down everything and

you must learn to differentiate as to

be lucky and must learn that to get

what is the most important to the least

anywhere the most necessary key which

important. You must always learn to

is a must is for success is having a “goal�

keep the important tasks first and give

in mind. Even if you are lucky enough

the necessary attention to it since the

to get everything you want such as a

more important tasks of course always

successful business handed down to you

require more attention. Learning to

from your family, it takes hard work and

figure out as to what is the number one

setting a certain set of goals to maintain

priority is obviously your own common

the success.

sense in means that it should be self-

known as to what should come first.

budgeting which would be required

Whichever you place to be the

to set up the business, and figuring

number one priority should also be the number one step to helping you to figure out what your goal is. You can also figure that in going about setting a certain goal, the steps of becoming organized are mini goals which pave the path to the end goal which will earn you the success that you seek.

Once you are able to prioritize your tasks in an organized manner, you need to figure out as to how to incorporate these tasks into your

Once you learn about the business and you know exactly what is necessary to start the business, you will have to figure out as to how to make your business stand out from all the other business which are already in existent in the market.

daily routine so that you can make certain that you do not slack in giving attention to your priority list. Keep in mind that it is this priority list which will help you to get where you want.

Once you have everything listed out in a structured manner, the goal which you want to set will form about. Now to start off with an example, say you are an individual who is seeking to start a business. You have either just quit your present job, or have just finished up your degree and you want to be independent since you can't always be depending on your parents, or anyone for that matter. So sometimes figuring out the next step after calling it quits on your job or fresh out of college is the main task at hand. Once you figure that out that you want to stand on your own by starting up your own business, you must learn to do the basics such as figuring out firstly what type of business would you like to start. Once you have an idea, you can start working out an in depth detailed chart as to how to start off the business such as figuring out the

March 2014 UNIQUE TIMES

27

and thus making it a burden for

attention in office.

those around them who may feel

In learning to set certain goals, and

neglected by the individual as their

achieve them, you must learn to put

attention will be on their work

each of these goals into action, by

rather than their family or

doing it. You can say anything you

whomever that they are with. When

want, but the difficulty is in

this happens, many issues tend to

carrying out the goal. In order to do

occur in your personal life and it

that, you have to be able to minus

will take a toll. You must always

out any laziness which you may

keep in mind that you must give the

have in your body which will pull

necessary needed attention to your

you back. This laziness tends to

personal life when you are out of

come from again as mentioned

office. When you are with your

before your state of mind. You must

family, be with your family rather

always learn to be emotionally

than making phone calls in the

strong, and learn to think with your

middle of dinner, or cutting off your

head and act on practical thoughts

children while they talk to you

rather than on your emotions. Most

about something that has happened

of the great leaders take their time

in their day to finish up a project

in thinking before answering and

work from office. When you able to

taking action. It is through a well-

maintain good relationships in your

planned out thought process that

life only then can you find an

each individual can achieve their

emotional balance as well. When

goals as they take the steps to get

there is an emotional balance in

where they want.

your personal life, you will be mentally put together to pay

28

UNIQUE TIMES March 2014

Fasion Promita Banerjee

Power Dressing

Men A

few years back, I was at the airport waiting for my flight. Since I was early, I sat in a corner and I looked

around and saw a sea of people. Looking at them I

played a little game in my mind to kill time. Eventually I started enjoying this game and I have been playing it ever since, in order to perfect my skill of power dressing.

Next to me, sat a gentleman in a pin striped shirt and a black, well tailored trouser, crisply ironed, wearing a well fitted brown leather shoe pairing it with brown socks. He accessorized it with a brown belt, a simple watch, clean shaven, and hair neatly combed and smelling fresh. I wondered to myself his purpose of dressing the way he did. I decided, that he was probably going for work directly after landing. Since we were sitting in close proximity, he received a call and he affirmed that he would head straight after landing which delighted me at my immediate success of presumption.

At the first success of my assumption I ventured out for the next victim, it was a middle aged lady, wearing a cotton sari well pleated and pinned on her blouse, hair which she wore into a

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UNIQUE TIMES March 2014

neat chignon. A few bangles in her

summer or if you are in tropical

hands, a red bindi which sat on her

weather. Normally try and only wear

fore head, a small earring which

shirts with white collars and white

seemed like diamond, a simple

cuffs with a jacket. These shirts

heeled footwear. Looking at her a

should not be part of a business

thousand things ran through my

casual wardrobe, that is, one where

mind. I gambled with my thought,

suits are not utilized. Never wear a

she could be a lecturer, a social

shirt with any type of logo on it in a

worker, an activist. Intrigued, I

business setting, including when in

walked up to her, complimenting her

business casual dress. These shirts

on the way she wore her sari. As we

should be reserved for casual wear.

got along with our conversation, she

There should be no presence of logo

said she was the head of the

or branding when wearing a suit. For

department of a medical college.

example, do not wear a Polo shirt

With multiple success over the years

with the Polo logo on it under a suit

I summed up a few things about

jacket or a Burberry tie with the

dressing, which I have shared with

Burberry tartan (although the scarfs

many and now with my new readers.

are fine). The emphasis of a suit

First popularized in the 1980s, power

should be the fit, not the brands it is

dressing referred to an effort by the

worn with. off color shirts with a

wearer to convey a sense of

white collar should have French

dominance, confidence and

(double) cuffs, regardless of whether

professionalism through his style of

or not the cuffs are white or the same

dress and hair.

color or pattern as the shirt.

Men's guide to power dressing

Length of the sleeve should be such

menswear

that no details of the arms are seen.

commandment number one, when it

According

to

When bending the arm the sleeve

comes to making decisions of the

should not move up more than an

sartorial persuasion, knowledge is

inch

king. Attire, at any age, expresses a

Cuffs should end where your palm

person's lifestyle. For prom night,

begins. They should never be higher

what you wear points to your high

than where a watch begins. They

school “coolness” factor. In the

should be looser than a watch.

working world, what you wear is an indication of your professionalism.

The suit/ jacket

Think of clothing as currency used to

The suits/jackets have been

barter goodwill. Wardrobe conveys

categorized into 3 major types

messages of status: authority, power,

namely, the American, the English

rank; personality: friendliness. An

and Continental or European. These

appropriate wardrobe is a strategy for

three traditional suits show you how

image development equally as

each type in its modern incarnation

important as other business and

is suited to different body types.

personal plans.

The American –

The rules-

In picking the right suit for your body,

Know your environment- you needn't

remember: An American-style suit is

be in navy pin stripped suit always,

best for larger bodies, Two of the

choose a lighter color shirt during

hallmarks of this classic suit that

March 2014 UNIQUE TIMES

31

continue to make it appropriate for today's larger men are the threebutton, single-breasted blazer and the plain-front trousers. A threebutton blazer, like a two-button blazer, will never go out of style.

The British When picking the right suit for your body, keep in mind that English suits are most flattering on average and athletic body types. As a result of their design (which bears resemblance to a military uniform, due in part to the hacking-style jacket with it's long shape, slightly nipped waist and flared skirt), British suits tend to confer an authoritative appearance on their wearer. Like a uniform, the

British suits tend to confer an authoritative appearance on their wearer. Like a uniform, the shape of the suit also follows the line of the body quite closely and puts emphasis on the chest.

shape of the suit also follows the line of the body quite closely and puts emphasis on the chest.

The EuropeanThe predominant traditional aspects of European — particularly Italian — suits have been a close cut, severe shoulders, a shorter length, and small, high armholes. Also, these suits are usually single-breasted with two buttons, have slim-cut trousers with a lower rise and a ventless back to slim the figure further. Nowadays, many features of the European suit have been preserved in mass-made suits.

Some guidelinesNever wear Chesterfield coats, which are typically signified by a velvet collar, with business attire.

Never wear a bow- tie without a jacket.

Never wear suspenders (braces) or hipsters without a jacket.

We may wear brown, grey, dark coloured suits for business dress. Do not wear a solid black suit for

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UNIQUE TIMES March 2014

business or professional activities.

the same pattern.

Save it for formal events and funerals.

The long necktie length should be up

Life is more fun in a tuxedo (dinner jacket).

Never button all three buttons of a three button jacket. Sometimes the top, always the middle and never ever the bottom. In a two buttoned jacket button up the top button.

Accessories We should match the metal of the bit on loafers, belt buckle, suspenders, blazer buttons and cufflinks.

One may not match the metal on the watch with the other metals one is wearing, however, it is preferable.

One should match the color of his socks with the color of his pants. As an exception, socks can be matched to something worn above the waist such as a man's shirt, tie, pocket square or suspenders (braces in the UK). If the colour isn't matched one may wear a shade darker but not lighter If pants do not have belt loops they should have side tabs and/or buttons for use with suspenders (braces).

The color of the belt should match to that of his shoes. This holds true in all situations except when wearing white bucks.

One need not match the leather on the watchband with that of shoes and belt, however, it is preferable.

One should wear a belt when wearing pants with belt loops.

Never ever use the belt to hold accessories like beepers, phones, Blackberrys, ID tags and/or keys.

If pants do not have belt loops they should have side tabs and/or buttons for use with suspenders (braces).

Never wear a tie and pocket square of

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33

Leadership

The science of differentiation

& the art of

integration

T

he green worm catches the boy's eye as it slowly moves across the leaf, biting into its flesh, and leaving a strange pattern behind. The five-year-old is picnicking with his parents, he plays tirelessly and his attention is suddenly on the leaf and he observes that it is a different object in his environment. It is certainly a part of the plant in the garden, but the plant is different from the picnic basket, the jar of jam, plates and other cutleries. Then there is water, tumbler, napkins and food. Around him are many objects with diverse utilities. But he is attracted by the movement of the worm that is eating away all the leaf. He saw that the leaf does look beautiful but stationary, and on it the caterpillar, though looking odd, is mobile. The mobility of the worm is in contrast to the stillness of the leaf. Are these mere observations or imaginations of a child?

Vinod Kumar is the Managing Director of Vimpact Consultancies. He has had a good exposure as a trainer, Personal Coach,Trend Forecaster, Brand Strategist & Negotiator to many diverse segments of society. Apart from all these, he is a prolific writer and a story teller.

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UNIQUE TIMES March 2014

For a botanist, this worm is of not much importance because he is only interested in the leaf and the activities that happen in it. He makes incisions on the leaves with a sharp blade and dissects the leaf further into cellular levels: he needs to know what makes the leaf so green. He is not concerned about the worm or how it makes a meal of the leaf. He focuses on factors

The role of the mentor is not limited to getting the newly-recruited employees motivated to work hard.

Along with on-the-job training in the manufacture and production, the mentor has to take care of performance and quality. like photosynthesis, protoplast and chlorophyll, ignoring what the boy found interesting.

These scientific discoveries require severe categories, divisions and unending dissections. The education scene gives thrust on a few thingshow much stamina do you have to dissect further to subatomic and nano levels, what is the IQ required to indulge in the waves of quantum environment, who has crossed over to the other side of intellectual rigor?

It does not stimulate the interest and the curiosity of a five-year-old. And it ignores the questions he or she raises as the worm moves to another leaf.

So, is there a gap between what our graduates have studied and what is required in the industry? What is the state of readiness of our graduates to be absorbed into the industry? Have you ever thought of going back to the basics of work environment? The socio economic realities compel all of us to relate to making profits. There is also a clear distinction between loss of resources and gains. How has the education system addressed the intense need to orient people to earn profits? Has it been able to give intellectual balance and emotional steadiness to graduates? It is where a life coach or mentor comes into place, and no manufacturing company can function without the designation of such a person for their new recruits.

How does he work? Let's take the case of the botanist who finds employment in a company that manufactures herbal soaps. He did look mature enough to work under

pressure during the campus placement interviews. It was only during discussions at the work floor that it became known that he just did not want to work. So the mentor has to create a new curriculum so that the emotional intelligence is established through training.

Trainees had to know that their compensation is linked directly to the output of their work. Many are ready to work as long as their contribution is limited to that of a messenger or an informant. Work that requires intellectual participation such as research, production and manufacture are considered challenges by many.

How could the young people resist the charm of manufacturing new products? Does our system encourage manufacturing enterprise or create clerical employees?

The role of the mentor is not limited to getting the newly-recruited employees motivated to work hard.

Along with on-the-job training in the manufacture and production, the mentor has to take care of performance and quality. The worker needs to be educated on the aesthetics of the intangible beauty of the product. Moreover, the product of fine design and utility needs a suitable package.

Depending on the segment the product belongs to, it has to be wisely and adequately promoted. The campaign of visibility and through media is a separate factor by itself.

The science of making presentations that can compel the listener to make purchase is an essential section of sales and marketing. When such varied components come together,

March 2014 UNIQUE TIMES

35

the result means profits. So, naturally, the botanist has to let go his rigid analysis and assessment, and adopt flexibility in sales and marketing.

With out flexib l e opt ion s, t h e manufacturer will become limited to a specific stance or position.

In all business sectors, identification and targeting of a consumer segment must be given top priority. This needs a fresh view devoid of past prejudices and biases. Be alert always, and extra vigil can prevent the loss of market to the hands of competitors. In short, the botanist and the manufacturer must have a synthesis of minds and decisions. Unchecked activities will lead to unending and unnecessary issues. With wisdom and maturity; the classifications, categorizations and segmentations will all be integrated as a wholesome business. The objective

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UNIQUE TIMES March 2014

of business is to bring comfort, convenience and care to all members of the family, ensuring the luxury of a relaxed picnic.

The integrity of education will be upheld only when graduates leave their institutions industry-ready. For this, the curriculum should not only teach how to differentiate and divide but also to synthesize and integrate.

Innocence is beautiful only if it is supported by intelligence. The sanctity of any work is in the creation of a product that can be traded for its utility. The wisdom in living is that you make yourself capable of building resources. Welcome to the new enterprise. The science of differentiation and the art of synthesis must come together. This is integral to the success of business.

Auto Review

Vivek Venugopal

Designed to be the Best driver’s Car in the

World

McLAREN P1 T Aero-led design produces more downforce than any other production road car ·916PS (903 hp) generated by 3.8-litre twin-turbo V8 petrol engine coupled to an electric motor gives tremendous power and instant throttle response with an electronically limited top speed of 350 km/h (217 mph) Active ride height, and aerodynamics work with large adjustable rear wing to give ground effect suction and optimised downforce IPAS (Instant Power Assist System) and DRS (Drag Reduction System) offer instant boost of power and straight-line speed The MonoCage is one of the lightest carbon fibre full-body structures used in any road car to date, weighing 90kg. This weight includes the roof and lower structures, roof snorkel, engine air intake cavity, battery and power electronics housing MonoCage chassis includes fibres more than five times the strength of the best grade titanium, and includes the use of Kevlar 0 to 300 km/h in less than 17 seconds – five seconds quicker than the legendary McLaren F1 To maintain exclusivity, production will be strictly limited to 375 units

he astonishing new McLaren P1™, which debuts in production form at the Geneva Motor Show, has a clear goal – to be the best driver’s car in the world on road and track. To achieve this objective, McLaren is using all of its 50 years of racing experience and success, especially in the fields of aerodynamics and lightweight carbon fibre technology.

The result is a car that has an unprecedented amount of downforce for a road vehicle: similar levels to a GT3 racing car and yet with even greater ground effect. This downforce not only boosts cornering and braking performance. It also helps balance, stability and driveability at all speeds.

‘McLaren introduced the carbon fibre chassis to the world of Formula 1 in 1981 with the MP4/1, and we had the first carbon-bodied road car,’ says McLaren Automotive Executive Chairman Ron Dennis. ‘We have always been at the cutting edge of vehicle aerodynamics, and all of this experience has gone into the new McLaren P1™. Twenty years ago, with the McLaren F1, we raised the supercar performance bar. With the McLaren P1™, we have redefined it once more.’

The best driver’s car in the world must also have exceptional straight-line performance and instant throttle response. To deliver this, the McLaren P1™ uses an innovative IPAS petrol-electric powertrain comprising a substantially revised 3.8-litre twin-turbo V8 petrol engine, coupled to a single electric motor, collectively known as M838TQ. Combined power output is 916 PS (903 hp). As important as absolute power is the electric motor’s ability to provide instant torque, making the powertrain superbly responsive. It is also amazingly efficient. Carbon dioxide emissions are less than 200g/km, and it can cover more than 10 km in electric-only mode.

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Auto Review

Santa comes in Summer

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UNIQUE TIMES March 2014

T

he Hyundai Santa Fe has been the flagship model for the company in India since its launch in 2010. While, the world has seen three generations of this SUV India only got two, the one we review now, being the latest that was launched at the recently concluded 2014 Auto Expo in Delhi a few days back.

Incidentally the name Santa Fe comes from the city by the same name in Mexico. The Hyundai Santa Fe has been a big seller in the USA since its first generation. India has finally got the latest generation Santa Fe after a long wait and we got an exclusive first drive of this car on our roads, soon after its launch.

The New Santa Fe looks a lot more dynamic and stylish in its stance. The key body styling has got a lot rounded and flowing. The New Santa Fe has got 45mm lower in height than the older one and marginally longer too. The face gets the family hexagonal grill that is part of all modern Hyundai vehicles these days. The headlights get a new swept back look for added dynamism. The headlights get very well detailed xenon units along with LED Day

Time Running lights on the top part that look like eyebrows. The windows are large in size going about with the large overall dimension of the SUV. The windows get the blacked out frames and also a chrome garnish running around the frame. The third row fixed quarter glass has an angular design to it that gel well with the steeping roofline. You also get black roof rails and a radio antenna as standard fitment on the New Santa Fe. The New Santa Fe drives on 235/60 R18 spec tyres mounted on a neat looking five petal shaped alloy wheel. The rear of the New Santa Fe looks very stylish with a pair of trendy looking flushed LED tail lights that have the soft pipe LED glow in them. The rear gets a neat looking spoiler with stop lamp. The rear bumper has stop lamps mounted on it. The lower part of this bumper has a silver painted skid plate. Twin round chrome tip exhaust do their job on the New Santa Fe. Step inside and you are welcomed to a rather luxurious cabin inside the New Santa Fe. The dash is made of a dual tone soft plastic material in beige and brown. There also are wood inserts in the dash and door pads along with the leather upholstery. The instrument cluster is a twin pod design with a multifunction display placed in between. The steering comes with leather wrapping and gets manual adjust for height and reach. The steering has all the multifunction control buttons for controlling audio, cruise control and telephony. The AC vents get a different looking angular design styling and come with chrome surrounds around them. The center dash gets a touch screen color display that reads out the multimedia information.

You get a dual zone climate control and also air vents in the B Pillar for the rear passengers. A single CD MP3 unit with radio, USB and Bluetooth connectivity comes standard. The sound quality is very good and so is the radio reception. The automatic transmission shifter stick comes with a dash of leather and glossy finish with chrome garnish on it. The seats get full leather upholstery of high quality. The driver's seat gets 12 way full electric adjust for height, reach and incline etc. The front passenger seat gets manual adjust. The front seats are of large size and feel well contoured for back and thigh support. The second row seat can be set for incline angle and also has a slide feature to it.

The middle row seats fold down 40:20:40. The third row seat can hold two passengers and can also be folded full flat into the floor when not needed hence extending the boot capacity. The second row seats offer a lot of comfort and space while the third row is best suited for shorter drives and for kids.

The New Hyundai Santa Fe will come in 2 trim

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Hyundai has also given the Santa Fe with flex-steer, a system which increases the steering weight by up to 20 percent depending on which one of the three modes are selected comfort, normal and sport.

levels, the 2 wheel drive manual, 2 wheel drive automatic and 4 wheel drive automatic. We drove the top end 4x4 Automatic for our test. All the variants are powered by a 2.2liter CRDi diesel engine that makes 194 bhp @ 3800rpm and kicks out a meaty 445Nm of peak torque between 1800-2500rpm.

The manual version gets a 6 speed manual transmission while the automatic gets a 6 speed auto transmission. You also get 4wheel differential lock that can be activated at a press of a button during off road activities. Start the engine using the button start and you instantly notice the huge refinement levels of this unit. At idle, the engine is super silent and a big part of this also goes to the cabin damping. The Koreans also carried out extensive work on reducing cabin noise, which means a quieter and more pleasant cabin ambience. Even over the dirt roads

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Hyundai had us testing the Santa Fe over, we were pleasantly surprised by just how little road noise was passed into the cabin.

Shift to drive mode and the Santa Fe surges ahead at a brisk pace.

The 6 speed transmission does its duty nicely, shifting gears seamlessly and delivering the power in a refined an enthusiastic manner. Hyundai has also given the Santa Fe with flex-steer, a system which increases the steering weight by up to 20 percent depending on which one of the three modes are selected (comfort, normal and sport). It cannot improve the feedback or feel of the system, but it makes it heavier and lighter depending on where you drive. We loved driving around the hills in the Sport mode steering. In comfort mode the steering gives the light feedback and is best suited for traffic and city drives.

The suspension setup is very well

suited for India and Hyundai has worked real hard to come to this level. The Santa Fe feels well balanced on highways and on bad roads and at all speeds feels safe and planted. Overtaking is effortless and the power delivery is seamless.

On the face of it, the Santa Fe is what a typical Indian SUV customer demands. Hyundai has studied the Indian market well and loaded the New Santa Fe with endless feature list. The New Santa Fe is generously large on the inside and trendy looking on the outside.

The 2.2 engine is powerful enough and scores very well on refinement.

You get a lot of kit including Differential Lock, Stability Control along with Traction Control and Six airbags. The prices for the New Hyundai Santa Fe start at Rs. 26lakhs for the base 2WD Manual and go up to 30lakhs for the 4WD Automatic ex Delhi.

Auto Review

Tata Nano

Twist E

Nano Reinvented

ver since its launch in 2009, the Tata Nano has come a long way. This is the car that put Indian automobile industry on the world map despite the fact that Tata Motors doesn't sell the Nano in developed countries. Everyone appreciated the value engineering that goes into this little car, and now, Tata has a new variant on sale, called the Twist.

For starters, the Tata Nano Twist will replace the Nano LX variant. The Nano had got a heavy facelift in 2013 and all those changes still prevail on the Twists exteriors. The best part on the Nano that's always been appreciated is its super tight turning radius of 4meters which stands true on the Nano Twist as well. The rounded face with a chrome strip that runs across in between the body flushed headlamps looks neat. The front bumper gets a triangular fog lamps and the air dam is placed low here. As with all Nanos the engine is placed at the rear while you get the bonnet area as the storage space. He sides too remain the same with the large windows and the tall stance.

The running board integrates a pair of air dams on either sides

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to cool the engine. The Nano twist comes standard with regular wheels and with optional alloy wheels. The tyre spec remains unchanged at 135/70 R12 for the front and 155/65 R12 for the rear and the wheel size at 4Bx12. It comes standard with steel wheels, while buyers can opt for alloy wheels at the dealer end.

The rear on the Nano Twist has some changes as compared to the Nano 2013. The rear bumper gets its lower part done in black and also gets an air extractor grill on it that again should help in cooling the rear mounted engine to a large extent.

The Tata Nano Twist also gets the inclusion of two new exterior color Shades, Damson Purple and Dazzle Blue.

As with the exteriors the Tata Nano Twist gets a few new features on the inside too. The Beige dashboard feels of better quality and houses two

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closable storage bins on either corners of it along with a pair of dashboard mounted speakers. The center mounted instrument cluster is totally refreshed. You get a digital fuel indicator on the left and the engine temperature indicator on the right, The speedo is calibrated to 120kmph.

A DTE (Distance To Empty) indicator is placed just below the speedo. This DTE unit reads out the distance to empty, average fuel economy, clock and trip meter. The audio player on the Nano Twist can play CD, MP3, Radio, AUX, USB and can also connect to your phone using Bluetooth connectivity to make or receive calls. The seats get better cushioning and fresh looking upholstery while the door pads too get a new design and extra padding.

The ergonomics on the pedals have been changed and they have been spaced out rather well. The gear shifter gets a silver top while the base gar shifter console too gets the silver

The Tata Nano Twist will gain a lot with the addition of the power steering which will help in boosting its sales figures for sure. Plus you get a better looking and better quality interiors

cladding. The front power window is standard while the rear have to do with manual rotary windows.

For security and convenience the Nano Twist gets keyless entry and exit on its feature list along with central locking. The Tata Nano has an airy cabin with a lot of space for headroom and leg room. The steering wheel is marginally bigger than before and with the same 3 spoke design as before.

No changes have been made to the engine of the Nano and thus the performance is the same as before.

The 624cc, twin-cylinder engine belts out 38 PS of power at 5500 RPM and 51 Nm of torque at 4000 RPM. This engine is mated to a 4speed gearbox and top speed is limited to 105 kmph. 0-100 kmph takes 27.50 seconds but in spite of this long time to sprint to the ton, the Nano doesn't feel sluggish at all and is quite peppy to drive in the city. There are some vibrations on the doors but NVH levels are very good and that's thanks to the addition of more padding on the engine cover. Clutch feel seems improved and the gearbox is relative smooth to operate. The Nano is very efficient and returns a real world mileage of 20 kmpl in city conditions. Now for the technical changes that the Nano Twist gets. The biggest change and

the one that can make the most impact on the sales of the Nano is of course the power steering. This ain't any ordinary power steering; it has been developed by ZF Lenksysteme (ZFLS) in conjunction with Bosch. Driving the Nano was always effortless and the addition of a power steering makes life so much more convenient. Now you can zip through the tightest of spots without having to exercise your biceps in the process. The steering is extremely light at low speeds and that makes parking such a breeze.

You can actually maneuver the car with one finger and that's because the Nano is itself quite a light machine, weighing less than 650 kgs and since it's rear engined, there isn't much weight over the front wheels. Even though the lightness of the steering is apparent at city speeds, as soon as you reach upwards of 60 kmph, the steering starts to get weight with speed sensitivity cutting off post 80 kmph.

The brushless motor reduces assist as you gain speed. What's even better on the Nano Twist is the active return feature and as you guessed it, it pulls the steering back to centre ahead position on its own every time you turn. This reduces the effort to get the car pointing straight when you are making sharp turns, especially u-turns.

Although it has torque sensors, the fall back to centre position isn't

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Gadgets

Jam-A-Party A Bluetooth wireless portable stereo speaker system delivers up to 12 hours of wireless play. It has a pop out handle which makes it easy for the portable use. AC or rechargeable batteries can be used and it works up to 30 feet from any Bluetooth enabled device There are also the JAM Plus speakers which can be paired with another JAM Plus for stereo sound. The JAM Party speakers cost Rs.7,990 and the JAM Plus speakers cost Rs.3,990.

Canon PowerShot G16 The PowerShot G16 features a DIGIC 6 Processor which is coupled with a 12.1MP High Sensitivity GMOS. The camera can shoot Full HD1080p video at 60p. It features a zoom range of 5x, with a focal range of 28mm-140mm which is expandable to 10x using Canon's new ZoomPlus feature. It has a feature called the Star Shooting mode, Star Nightscape, Star Trails, and Star Time-Lapse movie. It has a new Background Defocus feature.

The camera can produce the “bokeh� effect. The camera is priced at Rs.34000.

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Lumoback Do you ever wish that you could be a proper lady who sits up straight and shows class. Well if you want practice to sit up rigidly straight, you can use this Lumoback to correct your posture whenever it vibrates when you start slouching. This is priced at Rs.13,000.

Pure Evoke Mio Deutsche Grammophon This Portable DAB/ FM Radio is a classic radio which has a sleek color scheme and a plaque proper. If are an old schooler who likes to jam with the old radio sets, this is just the radio for you priced at Rs.14,000.

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Gadgets

IK ILoud This is 40 watts of ultra accurate response when you want to listen to your favorite tunes. It is a portable Amp/Speaker which is built for musicians. It is priced at Rs.20,000.

Moto G Brand new into the market priced at Rs.13,500, Moto G is made by Motorola and influenced heavily by Google. This is a smart phone which looks expensive but is surprisingly selling at a low price. It has a P front camera and a storage capacity of 8 GB or 16 GB. It has Wi-Fi and Bluetooth enabled, and the battery life reportedly lasts up to 24 hours with mixed usage.

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Urbanears Humlan These headphones are colorfully covered made from a flexible fabric covered plastic which is so bendy that you can squash them into the pocket of your skinny jeans and pull them out without having any damage done to them. The built in mic and the 3.5 mm ZoundPlug allows a friend to listen with you. It is priced at Rs. 4,850

TomTom Runner GPS This is a fitness tracker which is built for those who have to get a round of their morning jogs. It is simple to use and has an easy to read LCD display which puts vital stats such as pace, distance, speed, and calories burned. It is priced at $170. There are three training options, which is Race which pits you against your PBs, Goal which vibrates when you hit a certain distance and calorie burn and Zone which uses a separate heart rate monitor to judge how hard your working.

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Gadgets

Stir Kinect Smart Desk When you are in office you want the best of everything to make your office into a smart office. This desk which has been made in California has Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and touch screen controller. It also has motorized legs, which raises and lowers so you can stand, or sit, or perch in between. It can be programmed via the 4.3 inch touch screen in the corner to move automatically at set times. As smart as it is, it also comes at a high price of $3,980.

FreedMan Chair To go with your smart desk, you have a chair which helps you to replicate your standing posture while you are still seated.

The chair uses the spine's natural standing curve as a support so that there is no strain on the back muscles. It is priced at Rs. 79,900.

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Rim Blackberry Playbook With a BlackBerry QNX OS, a 1GHz dualcore processor, 7 inch screen, and a storage space which is available in 16 GB, 32 GB, and 64 GB, this playbook has a great design and build. It has flash enabled and nice QNX interface which is priced at Rs. 13,990.

Sony PS 3 Super Slim If you love gaming you'll love this light designed Sony PS 3. It is priced at Rs. 18,990 (12 GB), Rs. 19,990 (500 GB). It has an easy hard drive access for storage boosts. It is slim, light and cheap. It has a Cell Broadband Engine CPU, Wi-Fi is enabled.

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Travel

Russia

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Denisha Sahadevan

The Land of

Deep History & Culture

I

f you ever hear the Russian language, I don't know what many may think, but I would say that it is truly the most beautiful language which one can hear. It is not only the language which is beautiful, but the land itself is a beauty which you will be taken aback by. Whenever you think of Russia, you will probably think of the cold weather, and also the Czars who ruled such as Peter the Great and especially the last Czar who was in reign Czar Nicholas II. Russia is a country with a very deep history. The country which gave us famous writers such as Leo Tolstoy, and Fyodor Dostoevsky and composer's such as Peter Tchaikovsky. If Tolstoy was not born, then there would be no book such as Anna Karenina and if it was not for Dostoevsky, the in depth philosophies which the book “The Idiot� contains would not exist today. The country which went through numerous hardships after it was part of the Soviet Union has emerged to be a country which has contributed much to the world with its famous writer's and also the wonderful movie Anastasia which was inspired from the imprisonment and the execution of Czar Nicholas II's family and his daughter Anastasia who was found to be missing.

Now when you think Russia you will obviously think what to do in a country that is so cold. It is the country where you will see beauty not only in the people who you come across, where the children look like lively little dolls with their big beautiful blue eyes, but even the buildings which have been constructed in such an artful manner. When you visit Russia, you will definitely want to take a look at the beautiful architecture, and you can start off with Saint Basil's Cathedral.

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flame. The building was built between 1554 and 1561 and it is located right at the heart of Moscow.

You won't be able to see such a building anywhere else on earth, as this architecture is that unique due to the various colors and the shapes that are used on the dome.

Hermitage Museum Another place which you will most definitely want to stop by with the

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Must See Spots Saint Basil's Cathedral

children in the museum in Russia,

This cathedral is known for its

of artwork with its cleanness and the

the building itself serves to be a piece

unique architecture as the shape of

royal color. The Museum was

the top of the cathedral will probably

founded in the year of 1764 by

remind you of the movie Aladdin.

Catherine the Great and happens to

The building is designed to resemble

be a Museum showcasing art and

the shape of a bonfire which is in full

culture. Located in Saint Petersburg,

the Museum consists of a collection

full of onion dome topped kremlins,

top governmental offices which

fashionable way which will make you desire to add to your wardrobes as well. The rich culture is also shown through the many artifacts which you can find in the Russian homes.

Fashion is not the only thing which will make you love Russia, but the chocolates and the food will have your taste buds dancing. Russian food is full of richness, especially it's sharlotka (which happens to be Russian Apple pie which will melt in your mouth!) You must also not miss out on the Russian tea with a side of sushki (Russian bread for tea time) as well as having a pirashki (which is Russian bread with stuffing's and a pierogi (Russian dumplings).

of over 3 million art works from

cathedrals and monasteries. The city

encloses in on four cathedrals that

Bukle

were built in the 15th and 16th century

This place is a café come boutique which has a collection of Lyudmila Mezentsevaya which is called Vereteno has clothes which are mainly casual wear such as t-shirts, skirts, sweaters, handbags etc., but everything has its own fashionable twist to it.

worldwide. The collections are placed in a large area which consists of six historic buildings including the Winter Palace which happens to be the former residence of the Russian emperors.

Moscow Kremlin It would be another step into the past during your visit to Moscow when you stop by the Kremlin. This spot happens to be home to the nation's

as well as several notable museums.

The place is a 250 acre ground which includes the Armory that is filled with treasures of the royals from the past and the Diamond Fund Exhibition which consists of a collection of jewelry including a 190 carat diamond which had been given to Catherine the Great.

Suzdal Suzdal happens to have been once upon a time the capital of several of the Russian principalities. It is known as the jewel of Russia's “Golden Ring,” an ancient city that the country has preserved as a living museum belonging to Russia's cultural past. Those who love architecture must also stop by here as they will be able to find the best of Russia's architecture here with the

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Evropeysky Shopping Centre

Mount Elbrus is located in the Caucasus Mountain Range in the South of Russia. It stands at 18,510 feet and is included as one of the Seven Summits, the highest summits on each of the planet's seven continents, which attracts many mountain climbers.

This place during the time of its construction happened to be one of the largest urban shopping centers in the world. Though it does not compare to the megamalls in the city outskirts, it is big and it has hundreds of shops and restaurants. It even has an ice skating rink, a movie theatre as well as a supermarket. It's a place where you can have fun and get all your shopping done.

Izmaylovo Market

Mari Vanna

This is the place where you can find many of your arts and crafts. This place is known as Vernisazh market.

It has many arts, handmade crafts and antiques. You can find all your souvenir's here. You can find Moscow's biggest original range of matryoshki, palekh, and khokhloma ware as well as less traditional woodworking crafts.

When you enter this place you will feel as if your home in someone's living room where the tables are full of dried flowers put into vases and the walls decorated with framed photographs. You just have to ring the doorbell rather than look for the signs and go inside to taste the best of the Russian cuisine.

A Korkunov

You may think at first that this place is just another bar, but in fact when you go inside you will see it's a classic place which you will want to put on your list of places to stop by at. The

Russian chocolates are something which your mouth will water for as it is probably the most sweetest thing which you will taste. This candy

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company was founded in 1997, but the shop's interior will make you feel like you are in an old fashioned confectioner. There is an assorted range of handmade chocolates which are 15 kinds of filled candies and two types of bars which are showcased in a glass case. You can also have your fill of a cup of delicious hot chocolate on a cold winter's day here.

Beryozka

place is decorated with faux birch trees and serves the Siberian specialty and you will find more Pelmeni of various types on the menu than in any other restaurant. You can also find freshly brewed beer which is at times available for self service from the table side taps.

When you visit Russia, you will left wanting to go back again and as saying “Paka” or “Dasvidaniya” (meaning goodbye in Russian) will be the most difficult thing to do once you get a taste of the Russian culture and food.

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Beauty

Staying Beautiful As You Get Older

Tressa Varghese Director, Phoebe International

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UNIQUE TIMES March 2014

ge is a timeless. And when it

A

with two year, you do not want to be

comes to beauty and fashion,

caught red handed wearing chunky

no matter how old you are,

heels with a tight dress, and bright

you will always want to stay

colored nails and lipstick with

fashionable. Only there is a very big

overdone eye linear and mascara.

“no no� which almost many adults in

When you are young, you can pull off

their early 30's and on wards do

almost anything, such as the bright

without knowing. This is mainly for

colors, animal prints, and heavy

the ladies, know one thing, as you get

make-up. For the girl's in their early

older, it is a must to stay fashionable,

20's it is the time to experiment with

but it is also a must to dress

make-up, fashion and to learn to

according to your age while you stay

become the fashionable woman

fashionable. Whether it is in the way

strutting down the street. You want

you wear make-up or your dressing

to make heads turn, so you should try

style, from the way you do your hair,

different outfits as you experiment

to the shoes you wear, you must

with a mix n' match look. You have to

always be aware that it is only when

learn to contrast the colors which

you dress according to your age that

wear, no matter how bright. When it

you will be able to be fashionable. In

comes to hairstyles, it's always fun to

other word's if you're a 35 year old

experiment with funky hair do's

where you do layered cuts so that

age, and know that with age beauty

when you do an up do you have some

only increases. Don't frown upon

loose ends hanging down to create a spunk in your look. At this age, it is the time to wear the latest heels chunky or skinny highs, whichever one you find you prefer.

The ladies in their mid 20's to their late 20's should know these days of being able to experiment with hairstyles which will make jaws drop, and colors that may just be very eye capturing are long gone and it's time to step into the world of maturity.

This is when ladies you have to become prim and proper just as a lady should be. It's time to put away those wild days of heavy make-up and step into the world where all eyes of society are watching you as you become a lady of class. During this age you should learn to dress in colors which are suitable for your age. Colors which are rather warm are more suitable for ladies in this age range. And rather than always wearing jeans, it would be more suitable to try wearing dress pants occasionally and wear a bit of loose tops rather than tops which are body fitting. You want to seem mature rather than vulgar and keep in mind as you become older, you want to seem a bit more conservative as being conservative can always be top class.

As you get married and you become mother's ladies in their early 30's to 40's should always maintain the beautiful mother look which every mother can pull off. Make-up is not always necessary, always make certain that you have very light make-up. Learn to appreciate your

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When it comes to dressing at this age it is safer to stay on the conservative side more over as exposing your skin is not as attractive as it might have seemed when you were younger.

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Books

S.M.A.R.T Goals made Simple S.M.A.R.T Goals made Simple – 10 Steps to Master Your Personal Career Goals by S.J. Scott

W

hen you want to get somewhere whether in life, or in business, it is necessary to have certain goals set. You have to learn to set professional and personal goals which you can

actually achieve. You then have to learn to take action to achieve the goals and in this book S.J. Scott gives you a ten step plan for setting and achieving your goals by putting it into action and how to make these actions on reaching your goal into your everyday routine helping you to get where you want faster.

The Improbability Principle The Improbability Principle: Why Coincidences, Miracles, and Rare Events Happen Every Day by David J. Hand

I

n this book, David J. Hand argues that extraordinarily rare events are very common and that everyone should be expecting to experience a miracle at least once a month. As you take a break

from all the business read's you can give a bit of attention to spiritual aspects with this book as Hand talks about how there is no mystical or supernatural explanation in order to understand why someone is lucky enough to win the lottery twice, or is destined to be hit by lighting three times and still survive, all it is necessary to know is that there are a set of laws, the laws of inevitability of truly large numbers, of selection, of the probability lever and of near enough.

Scaling up Excellence Scaling up Excellence: Getting to More without Settling for less by Robert I. Sutton and Huggy Rao

I

n this book, Sutton and Rao discuss the challenge which determines every organization's success scaling up farther, faster and more effectively as a program or an organization creates a larger footprint.

They have uncovered as to what it takes to build and uncover pockets of exemplary performance, to help spread them and to keep recharging

organizations with even better work practices. As they take a look inside accounts and case studies and academic research from a wealth of industries, they identify the key scaling challenges that confront every organization.

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The Up Side of Down The Up Side of Down: Why Failing Well Is the key to Success

by Megan McArdle

M

istakes in life are to be made and it is through mistakes, and failures that you learn and become better. When you start a business, success is not always assured. There are many

businesses that fall at the beginning and in this book Megan McArdle points out the key in learning how to handle failure. McArdle teaches how to recognize mistakes early to channel setbacks into future success.

The Moment of Clarity The Moment of Clarity: Using the Human Sciences to Solve Your Toughest Business Problems

by Christian Madsbjerg and Mikkel B. Rasmussen

W

hen you have issues regarding business, you will find the traditional methods to solve out the problems, however at times these traditional methods can only come in handy for

certain of the basic everyday dilemma's rather than problems which stand at a higher level. In this book an in depth study is done about the business world's assumptions about human behavior and show that these assumptions can lead businesses off track for which Madshjerg and Rasmussen pave a way to get through. Using theories and tools from human sciences, this book introduces a practical framework known as sensemaking to help understand business challenges in a better way.

Big Data at Work Big Data at Work: Dispelling the Myths, Uncovering the Opportunities by Thomas H. Davenport

W

henever you think of data, the first thing that may pop into your mind is computer science. You would think about the new technologies, and the inter details regarding it. Thomas H.

Davenport did his portion of research to find that there is more to data than mere technology. Big data derives from a technical, consumer, and management perspective, as he discusses in his book along with explaining what its opportunities and costs are and where it can have a business impact.

This book will help you to understand various aspects such as why big data is important to the organization as well as what technology is necessary in order to manage your organization.

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Books

Ready Aim Fire!

Ready Aim Fire!: A Practical Guide to Setting and Achieving Goals by Erik Fisher

S

ometimes we all lack practicality in our lives, as we are overwhelmed with our work load and cannot think or focus in with clarity. At times you will

be unable to accomplish all which you have in mind, however you find

that you have become such a busy body, that you are unable to do the things which you have in mind to do. In this book, Erik Fisher helps you to figure out

how to focus with good direction in a practical way in order to achieve your goals as it shows a step by step plan to set goals which fit your life, and helps you to find direct action steps to guide you every step of the way to achieve your goal.

The Business Book The Business Book (Big Ideas Simply Explained) by DK Publishing

W

hen you think business, there are many complexities behind it. The terms are not always self explanatory and the concepts tend to seem like a another language which takes

time to comprehend. In this book, graphics along with simple explanations are used to break down the concepts that make up business.

Varying from managing risk and alternative business models to effective leadership and thinking outside the box, this book covers every aspect of business management which is necessary for an individual in the business world to be aware off.

Reinventing Organizations Reinventing Organizations by Frederic Laloux

O

rganizations are many in today's time, and the way it is run is always different, however today it is out of date in many ways. At times, what most of the organizations lack are enlightened leaders, and more over

it is necessary to have enlightened organizational structures and practices. In this book the writer reveals that every time humanity has shifted to a new stage of consciousness in the past, it has invented a different and new way in which they can run an organization as they bring out breakthroughs in the collaborations that are made through the reinvention creating a new change in consciousness. Laloux discusses as to whether this can create a more soulful and purposeful way to run businesses.

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+971555776966 500 + postal charge

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