The Hindu Business Line : Earning his stripes the classic way

The floor where Kishore Musale’s office is situated in the industrialised belt of Andheri in Mumbai is a sprawling expanse of space dotted with artefacts and paintings. A large bookshelf is crammed with a wide range of books. I notice there is no place for fiction here.

Kishore is the smiling face of a new India. He embodies the growing breed of young entrepreneurs who are relatively low-profile but hugely successful and are the people to watch out for in the next few years.

After studying in Canada, Kishore returned to the family business that manufactured metal labels for two-wheelers. The young man somehow realised that this particular business was in the downswing of its life cycle. On his trips to Japan, he was convinced that the next big thing in the area of his business was motorcycle graphics. It also appeared to be a natural progression from printing metal labels. He set up a manufacturing facility in a 10 ft X 10 ft space borrowing Rs 2 lakh. One year later, his product was approved by the Japanese and he was off and running. The motorcycle market was booming and Kishore’s foresight saw him setting up his first factory with 22,000 sq. ft. of manufacturing space in Vasai, Maharashtra. By 2004, his third factory with 1.20 lakh sq. ft. of production area had been inaugurated and he stresses that though he could rightfully claim that his Classic Stripes is the largest company in automotive graphics in the world, he prefers the sobriquet of ‘the best company of its kind in the world’.

This was, however, to be only one of his interests. Diversifying into aluminium composite panels, he set up Durabild to dress up the millions of buildings that are being built as part of the the huge infrastructure boom all over the country. This too was virgin territory. The market till his entry was dominated by about 150 imported Chinese brands. It presented him with just the kind of challenge he seems to relish. His new factory near Pune has the country’s first ever colour coating plant. His third diversification led him into the area of helmets and protective gear. Once again something new, but close to the two-wheeler industry he caters to.

With a net worth of Rs 2,000 crore, the Astarc group over which Kishore presides is not resting on its laurels. Kishore has plans to invest about Rs 10,000 crore in the next few years in the area of ports, power and an alumina plant. The group has already forayed into contract farming in a big way.

His vision is to build great plants, enable production of great products and always concentrate on great people.

And this brings us to a rather fascinating facet of Kishore’s persona. His group employs about 950 people. He always refers to them as associates, never as employees. He is committed to being totally transparent to his “associates”. “Never lie to your people,” he says with feeling. “Everyone from the sweeper to the president must know what is being done and why it is being done.” This, he feels, engenders a feeling of ownership of the job. And in turn ensures efficiency in every aspect of production.

His companies have no labour union. A choice that his associates have made for themselves. There are relationship committee meetings every week where possible problems are aired and addressed immediately. And once a year the entire family of every associate is invited to spend a whole day at the factory to understand just how important the associate is to the work process and the company.

All this did not come easily. When Kishore returned to India, he was sorely disappointed with the prevalent corruption and inefficiencies all over. He realised that real clean business was not competitive in that era. The mid-Nineties, however, changed everything. Real opportunities were thrown up by the opening up of the economy and Kishore was quick to strike while the proverbial iron was hot.

In the midst of this teeming industrial activity, his family life is like an oasis of calm. Going home to his family is one of the greatest pleasures of Kishore’s life. Right through the busy growth phase of his Group, he ensured that he took two vacations a year with the family.

With interests as varied as golfing, music and reading, Kishore is a colourful personality. He gleefully admits to liking really hard rock like the music of Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple. He feels that the real stress busters in his life are music, family and the smiling faces of people around him. And smiles there are a-plenty. Flagship company Classic Stripes has been ranked among the ‘Top 25 Great Places to Work in India’ by a leading business magazine and the Great Places to Work Institute of the US.

Kishore Musale is an artist at heart. He learned painting from V. B. Pathare and his love for art is evident all around him. In fact, he seems like someone who goes after his dreams with single-minded commitment. Right down to the fact that his fascination for the size, strength and power of huge steam locomotives prompted him to buy one and park it at one of his factories.

A rather inspiring story in himself, he modestly but honestly says that he is inspired by innovators who have made life easier for us. With endearing candour, he says, “Every time I e-mail my son, I bless Bill Gates.”

We are sure anytime someone falls off a motorbike, they will bless Kishore.

(Ramesh Narayan is a communications consultant.)

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Earning his stripes the classic way