“Very soon we will have our own online domain for component distribution services”

Online component distribution has taken the industry by storm. With more and more players foraying into digital sales, can this be the end of the monopoly of a few popular players? Baishakhi Dutta interacted with Dileep Jain, CEO of Rajguru Electronics (I) Pvt Ltd, to learn how the company is gearing up to strengthen its position in the digital world.

EB: Would you be open to having a discussion with principals wanting to expand their network in India? On what basis will you decide to work with a particular company?
Yes, we are always open to new affiliations. Our main focus is on products. As we are in the electronics field, our main aim is to get the latest technology to India. Nowadays we are targeting products that are at the core for IoT and 3D printing. These include Wi-Fi modules, security products like POE switches, as well as RFID modules, 3D printers and power modules. So, any principal offering products related to these latest technologies is welcome to become our partner.

EB: What are the key attributes of your firm that make you the ideal distributor for component OEMs?
I would say we enable our partners to sell their products in large quantities, supporting them by introducing them to various exhibitions and promoting their products through technology magazines. We ensure a flexible payment model by which we either pay in advance to our suppliers or we opt for same day payment once we receive our supplies. We do not operate on credit with any of our suppliers.

EB: What is the role you play in marketing and generating demand for the component lines you represent?
We spend money in all the marketing media—by placing advertisements in magazines, taking part in exhibitions, promoting products through our website and also through search engine optimisers like Indiamart and Trade India. We train our sales team efficiently so that they can deliver better results as well as offer good after sales service. Our staff training is solely focused on keeping our customers satisfied.

EB: What is the mix of principals you represent–with respect to Indian and global component OEMs?
We are trying to cover all aspects of electronics like security, home automation, banking, medical, agriculture, etc. Currently, we are the authorised distributors for the following firms.
Spectra Symbol Corp. supplies high quality resistive flex sensors which are used in automotive controls, medical devices, industrial controls, computer peripherals, fitness products, musical instruments, measuring devices, virtual reality games, consumer products and physical therapy.

Ehuoyan Technology Co. Ltd supplies RFID and NFC for products, services and solutions related to the creation, management and use of RFID for millions of customers worldwide.
Shenzhen Hi-Link Electronic Co. Ltd is into designing power modules with high efficiency and small volumes.

Xiamen Rongta Technology Co. Ltd supplies thermal printers. It specialises in designing PoS printers, receipt printers, label scales, thermal transfer barcode printers, impact printers, printer mechanisms, control boards and other PoS peripherals Dong Yang Smart Technology Co. Ltd is a fast developing company with good technology and R&D strengths, and specialises in 3-axis stabilisers, servo motors, brushless motors, speed controllers, propellers, etc.

Apart from these, we are the stockists for ADH Technology Co. Ltd. We are also the distributors for Bonens & Chengdu Kingbri Frequency Technology Co. Ltd and for Arduino LLC which supplies development boards. In our vast product portfolio, we have the RG1602 LCD display, which has a wide range of applications, including security and home automation.
Sourcing of electronic components is done by our highly qualified and experienced staff at Shenzhen. To ensure strict quality assurance, we have the latest instruments to check the originality and the quality of passive and active components.

EB: How do you think online sales will influence the components distribution business? Have you started tapping this segment too?
In a world connected by the Internet, online distributors are a major source for customers to buy the products they require and we, too, feel that this makes it easy for companies to reach out to their customers.

In the case of traditional sales, it is difficult to reach out to all customers in a vast country like India. For us, reaching out to markets in the eastern part of India was quite difficult. Even after promotions through magazines and exhibitions, our reach was limited to just certain cities. But today, with the Internet, we can reach markets all over the country.

Yes, we have started an online section. Currently, we are available on Indiamart and Semikart. Very soon we will have our own online domain for component distribution services apart from carrying out our traditional sales services.

EB: How has your organisation grown in the last two years? And how do you see it growing this financial year?
It has been a great journey till now. Our sales and profits have increased by at least 25 per cent every year and we expect the same growth in the coming year.

EB: What’s your leadership style? What are the best management practices that you’ve adopted?
I believe in two principles— Sabka sath sabka vikas, and that one person can’t win the battle alone.
When it comes to working with my colleagues, principals or customers, I always like to work together as a team. We share all the necessary details with our customers and suppliers. Many feel that I cannot keep any business secret; but for me, this approach makes sense as my suppliers and customers are loyal to us and we all intend to grow together.

When it comes to the employees of Rajguru, we treat every one of them as a partner of the company. We all work together as one and in return what we achieve is trust from our employees who do not need to be worried about their job security.

EB: What are your key focus areas for the next financial year?
For the next fiscal year, we are betting on the development and promotion of our online portal. Apart from that, we aim to start exporting to other developing countries.

EB: Any major initiatives taken in the last financial year that you’d like to share with our readers?
Yes, we have taken some positive steps.
We have started sharing our profits with our accounts and logistics teams. The idea behind this is that they too have worked towards building up the company; our sales team members always get their share of the profits with incentives.

We have started spending more on SEO and are actively taking part in exhibitions.
We also arrange a sales management training programme for our staff every three months to improve certain factors like developing clear action plans for organisational challenges and priorities, clarifying organisational vision, exploring leadership effectiveness (within the organisation and in comparison to other senior executives), helping executives enhance their own image by improving their communication skills, and helping them to learn to balance and sustain their own energy. This training also has a big impact on our sales, since it provides our sales managers with the skills, knowledge and tools they need to drive the bottomline.

EB: Any views on current government policies related to imports-exports, GST and electronics manufacturing?
We are very happy with the existing government policies – be it the GST or the Exim policy. I feel the government is bringing in a lot of user friendly policies. For example, previously, we had to face a lot of issues during custom clearance, but now the clearance structure has become very easy. Even from the GST perspective, traceability has become very easy. Projects like Make in India have helped people to start manufacturing in India, which undoubtedly has and will help component distributors to supply more components to the industry.