Chapter 282 The Shabby Rich
Chandani is not only the founder of Onida, he is also the president of the Consumer Electronics and Television Manufacturers Association (CETMA).
He has been working in this industry for more than ten years and believes that he has understood Indians' consumption habits and has a full grasp of the market.
Under his leadership, Onida has been going smoothly all the way, from the initial agency sales, to assembly and OEM, and then to independent production, step by step.
Chandani is very proud that ten years ago, India was still a technological desert and it was he who brought television to this vast subcontinent.
At that time, Videocon was not yet a big thing, and Onida truly made it possible for ordinary people to enjoy the right to watch TV.
Even the name "Onida" has a story to tell. At that time, Chandani was racking his brains to come up with a memorable name for his newly established company.
He wanted to be original and not follow the stereotyped Indian style of using surnames as names or using all kinds of gods and Buddhas as names.
His wife pointed to a brand of tableware called Oneida in the magazine and said, "That's nice. I like it."
Chandani also likes it, for no other reason than that the name sounds very Japanese.
In this era, Japanese and Korean brands represent advanced technology, especially in the television market.
Even European and American families use the televisions they produce. Doesn’t this prove something?
Chandani knew very well that Indians who could afford televisions would certainly look down on domestic products and they had a blind worship of foreign brands.
"Oneida" is a great name, and most people think of Japan first.
However, in order to avoid possible legal disputes, he removed the letter "E" from his name and changed it to "Onida".
This trick worked, and for quite a long time, people thought that "Onida" was a Japanese brand.
With this clever naming method, Chandani quickly gained a foothold and successfully overcame the fragile initial period of its entrepreneurship.
But OEM is OEM after all, and most of Onida's profits are taken away by Japan's JVC.
Their gross profit is less than 10%, and after deducting various costs, they are lucky to get 5%.
Chandani was certainly unwilling to give up. Taking advantage of India's economic liberalization, he also began negotiations with JVC on local production.
Things are going smoothly. They finalized various details last year, and this year the Andheri factory is building a complete production line.
This is thanks to the high-profile publicity when Sur Electric and NEC collaborated.
Perhaps feeling the pressure from the market, JVC also opened the door to in-depth cooperation with Onida.
However, success and failure are both due to Xiao He.
The new 18-inch color TV launched by Soul Electric is priced at an outrageously low price.
Chandani had someone calculate that even if Onida achieved complete independent production, it would not be possible to price it at 15,000 rupees.
Their costs are higher than this, and if they want to make a profit, the minimum price must be more than 18,000 rupees.
How could this be possible? His Andheri factory had already fallen behind before it had even achieved localization transformation.
If Onida continues like this, only death will await him, and Chandani will certainly not sit idly by.
He is the chairman of the industry association and used his position to file an antitrust lawsuit with the Competition Commission of India (CCI) on the grounds of "low-price dumping and market destruction."
He accused Sur TV of engaging in unfair competition and demanded the closure of the factory and a hefty fine of one billion rupees.
To make his accusations more plausible, he also submitted a so-called cost analysis report.
In the current market environment in India, it is impossible to produce a qualified color TV with 15,000 rupees, let alone make a profit.
Especially the black and white TV that costs 4,000 rupees, which is probably only 70% of the manufacturing cost of its peers.
This predatory pricing undoubtedly violates India's antitrust rules.
Chandani came with great momentum. He united a considerable number of his colleagues in the association and was ready to force the Maharashtra government to take action against Sur Electric.
At the same time, some public opinion also began to question whether Sur Electric Appliances was using cruel means that hurt others and itself and was willing to plunder the market at all costs.
This obviously hinders the development of India's domestic industry and is not conducive to domestic technological iteration and updating.
In short, all kinds of big hats are put on Sur Electric Appliances.
Chandani wasn't sure if this would work, but there was nothing he could do as he couldn't use many of the tricks.
Ever since the failure of the Firefly Project and Videocon suffered a heavy loss, no one dared to use any means against Sur Electric.
If he hadn't been pushed to a certain extent, Chandani wouldn't have wanted to be an enemy of Sur.
If he were an ordinary person, he would have found a way to bribe officials to seal off the other party's factory, or send his competitors directly to jail on the grounds of colluding with foreign forces.
No matter how outrageous the reason is, it makes sense in India, provided you are willing to spend money.
Unfortunately, this trick doesn't work on the rich and powerful because they also have agency power.
Take Sur Electric for example. There are tens of thousands of workers there. Which politician would dare to offend them?
Not to mention all the bribes, the votes alone are enough to make them bow their heads in front of Suer.
Are you kidding? That’s the largest manufacturing plant in Mumbai and also the biggest sponsor.
No official would be so blind as to cause trouble for Sur.
Chandani has been running a business here for many years. He tried to test the waters, but when his old connections heard that the target was Sur Electric Appliances, they all avoided him or just ignored the topic.
This opponent is growing so fast, like riding a rocket, catching us off guard.
Since ordinary means didn't work, he could only seek a solution through the legal system.
Chandani remained silent, gazing at the top of Malabar Hill. His residence was also in this famous wealthy circle.
The Arabian Sea is visible outside the window, and the vast blue sky is overhead. The room is clean and tidy, and the solid wood furniture is elegant and grand.
I stood by the window that afternoon and looked out. There was no one anywhere I could see. This was India, and the wealthy area was completely deserted!
Whenever a stranger "accidentally enters this place" with a feeling of admiration, he will look at the distant view luxuriously and greedily, and gaze leisurely at the palm trees and the lazy sea water at low tide.
People nearby hung their towels on the clothesline to dry. There was no wind, and the towels stood straight.
Ah! This is the kind of life so many people dream of.
However, Chandani was not very satisfied, as the wealthy circle in Malabar Hill was also divided into different levels.
His home may seem luxurious, but its facilities are often broken. The air conditioner frequently breaks down, and water drips onto his head while he works in his study.
The entire street was cut off from water at 9:30 in the morning and the water supply was restored at 8:30 in the evening.
This is true in both summer and rainy season. It can rain heavily outside the window, but there is not a drop of water in the luxurious bathroom inside.
Even in wealthy areas, ordinary people couldn't even imagine it. They would place a row of brightly colored buckets under the taps, waiting for the water supply to be restored at night to fill them up one by one, so that they would have water available the next morning, and they could also distribute and store it in advance.
What's even more cruel is that in Mumbai, even if the taps are working, the water cannot be drunk directly.
Mumbai’s water comes in its rawest form and has to be processed intricately.
The rich could command servants to do work, but ordinary people had to do it themselves.
First, use a layer of fine gauze to filter out the sand visible to the naked eye, then put the water into a large white container and insert a candle-shaped filter for further filtering.
The water is then boiled, especially during the rainy season, and then poured into empty whiskey bottles and refrigerated.
Or, as the older generation would do, put the water in a clay pot and let it cool, then drink it for a light sweetness.
It takes at least 24 hours from the time water is released to the time it is available for drinking. Most people in Mumbai grew up drinking stale water.
Mumbai is completely dependent on inland water. It is the only city in India that has to transport water from lakes hundreds of kilometers away.
Mumbai used to have well water and reservoirs available, but after the cholera outbreak, the city government had to stop drawing water from contaminated wells and reservoirs.
Currently, the Mumbai Municipal Corporation processes and supplies 3 billion liters of water per day, which can only meet 70% of the water needs of citizens.
Slum dwellers without access to water are forced to steal water from the pipes that run through their area and carry water to legitimate users.
Nearly a third of the water company's supply was stolen, leaving even the wealthy areas of Malabar Hill without water.
Some middle-class areas such as Bayanda and Mira Road also occasionally experience riots due to severe water shortage.
Of course, what Chandani couldn't stand the most was the public toilet problem in Mumbai. Every morning when he looked out the window of his study, he always saw people relieving themselves on the rocks by the sea.
Twice a day, as the tide rises and falls, the awful smell rises from the reef and spreads eastward throughout the high-end apartment complex.
It is said that half of Mumbai’s population has no access to public toilets, so they can only relieve themselves in the wild.
Assuming there are five million such people, if each person excretes one pound of feces every day, there will be five million pounds of feces piled up in the wild.
Where is the most popular and convenient place for people to go? Of course, the beach.
As the wave came, all the tools used in the crime were cleaned up.
However, no matter how vast the ocean is, it cannot withstand the pollution of millions of kilograms of feces every day.
Even the wealthy area where Chandani lives cannot escape this nightmare.
Once, the World Bank sent a group of experts to try to solve Mumbai's sanitation problems.
The bank's solution was to propose building 100,000 more public toilets in Mumbai, a truly absurd suggestion.
Chandani had seen what public toilets in the slums looked like: none of them worked properly because the cesspools had been clogged for years, forcing people to relieve themselves anywhere.
Building an extra 100,000 public toilets would simply magnify the problem a hundredfold.
Indians have a very different understanding of citizenship than people in, for example, Nordic countries.
Here, the only place you should keep clean is your own little piece of land, and that's it.
Every household in the building has a spotless home because the servants sweep and mop the floor as many as twice a day.
However, public spaces such as corridors, staircases, lobbies and patios are covered with betel nut stains, and the ground is stained with wet garbage, plastic bags, human and animal saliva, urine and feces.
This is the case throughout Mumbai, even where rich people live.
There is one exception, however, and that is the top of Malabar Hill.
Most of the daily necessities there are specially supplied, and the infrastructure is also maintained by dedicated staff.
Ron lived there, and Chandani planned to visit him.
Without the support of politicians, the antitrust case may be delayed for several years.
It was still unclear whether Onida would be there at that time, so it would be best if negotiations could resolve the problem.
(End of this chapter)
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