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R. Balaji

Chennai, Oct. 28

A 5-foot ‘dragon boat’ that stands majestically at the doorway is but one example of the oriental heritage of Apache Footwear India, whose Tada factory churns out 2.6 lakh pairs of sports shoes each month. The very layout of the office and the plant reflects this heritage, built as they are with an eye on channelling the natural energies to ensure wealth and prosperity.

The company, which makes shoes exclusively for the international brand ‘Adidas’, has so far invested over Rs 100 crore in setting up the factory and plans to invest as much more to raise capacity to about 15 lakh pairs a month.

Its General Manager, Mr Steve Huang, explains the factory’s construction in strict adherence to the principles of Feng Shui, the Chinese version of ‘vaastu’. Feng Shui, Chinese for ‘wind and water’, outlines the principles of the layout of office or home to channel the natural energies to ensure wealth and prosperity. The dragon boat for instance, represents wealth and businessmen keen on growing their business usual have one on the premises.

Mr Huang points out the S-shaped driveway leading to the entrance, the water body around which the driveway curves, the hillock behind the factory site and the carefully placed dragon boat set at a specific angle to the doorway. These are all meant to follow the diktats of Feng Shui.

Hard business considerations have gone into choosing the ideal location for its factory – it was a toss up between Chennai and Tada for Apache to locate its facility.

Apart from the SEZ benefits Tada won out for the benefits given by the State Government, apart from the cheap labour, easy connectivity to the international Ports in Chennai and the new one coming up at Krishnapatnam about 100 km north of the factory.

But having made its choice, Apache has also take care to propitiate greater powers to ensure success.

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