“I have three daughters – just like you.”
TOOLS
He sells in amounts measured in gunny bags or a measuring tin(which holds 15 rupees worth of charcoal)
His account book keeps track of his business.
His friendly nature and command over various languages betters your shopping experience.
MATERIALS
The charcoal he sells comes from different sources – from Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.
He has a permanent contract with certain charcoal suppliers who come deliver at his doorstep.
CONSUMPTION
His trade requires monetary consumption.
He spends part of his profits on periodically restocking his charcoal.
He has an employee who sits at one of his stores.
He has two stores – one where he lives in Yelahanka Old Town and a relatively newer one in New Town. The rent to the new store is also part of his business consumption.
Gunny bags are used for storage.
SKILL
His trade skills include an almost intuitive grasp of measuring charcoal amounts.
Managing accounts is an important skill.
He speaks three languages: Kannada, Hindi and English although to speak to his customers he needs to use only Kannada, which, even though it isn’t his mother-tongue, he speaks fluently.
He has a unique ability of becoming friends with his clients – even if he’s met them for the first time – and this works wonders for his business.
ECOLOGY
His business provides an income for charcoal suppliers from various states.
Agents involved in transportation of the charcoal are also benefited.
He pays his employee who mans his old store.
Gunny bag manufacturers are benefited.
His income comes from laundries and people who use charcoal for cooking at home.
He spends money on his family and his children’s education.
STRATEGY
He has a monopoly in the area of Yelahanka New Town where he keeps shop.
He has a very close and trusted relationship with his customers – who are allowed to measure and take their charcoal for themselves.
He speaks to his customers in their own language.
SPACE
He has a shop where he lives, and one in a rented space some distance from his home. It is in the latter one that he sits all day.
All his charcoal is stored at the back of these shops – which are small one-roomed spaces.
GEOGRAPHY
His older shop is in Yelahanka Old Town, attached to his residence. His newer shop is in Yelahanka New Town, near the bus stop.
EARNINGS
He has a thriving business in charcoal although none of his children – three daughters and a son – are working in the charcoal business.
His two elder daughters are married, his third daughter is studying B.Com and his son came first in B.CA and is working in the new airport. His business pays enough to provide for his large family as well as pay for their higher education.
PEOPLE
He looks for potential customers who pass his shop and look in curiously.
Also his business depends on the word of mouth – his long-established customers who trust him spread word of his business to their acquaintances.
MONEY
He took a loan when he started his first charcoal store.
The store soon earned enough to pay off his debts and also set up a new store in another locality.
LIVING
When he began he was the only earning member of his family of three daughters, a son and his wife.
Two of his daughters are now married and his son topped in computer application degree and is now earning from a job in the airport. His third daughter is doing her Business Communication right now. He is very proud of being able to provide his kids with good quality education.
BUYERS
People from around the area come and buy charcoal from him for cooking purposes.
The laundry stores and ironing business are his main customers.
OUR EXPERIENCE TALKING TO HIM
He saw us looking in to the shop curiously and called us in, then he heard one of us say “hey, can we use this for that thing?” and then he replied “ yes why don’t you try it on my table”. He then gave us a hand full of charcoal free and told us to tell our friends to come to him whenever we needed charcoal. He told us that he couldn’t charge us for the little amount of charcoal we needed.
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