The Hindu Business Line : Playing fair

The primary purpose of trade shows is to educate consumers on the various types of products and services available, says Syed Zakir Ahmed of ZAK Trade Fairs and Exhibitions.

Taj Mahal recreated in Chennai.

We want to bring India onto the global business roadmap and see it emerge as the hub of trade shows in the world," says Syed Zakir Ahmed, founder-CEO of ZAK Trade Fairs and Exhibitions Pvt Ltd. Since its inception in 1994, the company has conducted 134 trade fairs and exhibitions, both in India and abroad, no mean task considering that it is the only private operator in its class and scale in the country.

Says Ahmed, "At the time I started, professionally managed trade shows were an alien concept. Apart from the Indian Trade Promotion Organisation (ITPO), the nodal government agency, which organised major trade fairs in India, promoting external trade, and FICCI and CII, there were hardly any players in the field organising such fairs. The trade fair industry was spurred by the trade liberalisation in the 1990s but the lack of adequate infrastructure was an obstacle in hosting exhibitions in different cities in the country."

Taking his cue from there, Ahmed decided to go full scale into organising trade shows involving as many industries as he could. "I come from a large joint family. The one thing my father Syed Abdul Gafoor gave me apart from a share in the family pharma and insecticide business, was a sound education and practical knowledge and experience," he says. "So for 11 months in a year I would be out of the house, travelling as a salesman in the remotest parts of the country, by bus and train." He set up two companies; one of them exported pappadums and curry powders. Ahmed travelled extensively in India and in the US "carrying sample bottles of pickles" in an age when telecommunication was poor.

After a failed attempt at a fabric exporting company that folded up in 1994, he set up ZAK Trade Fairs and Exhibitions Ltd. "With my exposure to so many industries, I found that trade shows could be a real boon to buyers and sellers. Vendors mistakenly believe that such shows are meant only for big players. Another myth is that the sole purpose of a show is to sell. But the primary purpose of such shows is to educate the consumer on the different types of products and services available, which can later be turned into post-show sales," says Ahmed.

Moreover, he says, "Trade shows give instant feedback to the exhibitor, they give him a chance to exhibit in local and international markets of his choice, and they also give the buyers a chance to see the kind of technology in use to appreciate its unique qualities. Networking and awareness of the competition are the other benefits." ZAK's USP is organising shows for multiple industries in numerous cities with innumerable themes. From jewellery, apparel machinery, industrial products, garments, interior design and automobiles to social awareness, property, glass and glazing, herbal products, and IT, the company has tackled almost every type of product and service, organising shows in India, Bangladesh, Singapore, Dubai, the US and Sri Lanka. In 2003 alone Ahmed handled 34 exhibitions with an annual business turnover of nearly Rs 180 crore in areas ranging from 1,000 sq m to 10,000 sq m.

"We are planning shows on metallurgy, handicrafts, education, hospitality, leather and biotech products, chemicals and petroleum products, international amusement facilities, tourism, building materials and services, air-conditioning and allied services, logistics and material handling in the future," says Ahmed, who is known for the innovation he has brought into the business, in particular his recreation of the giant Taj Mahal at Chennai and Mumbai. "Though we suffered a setback in 1997, today we are in a position where we don't have to take even loans," he says. "We don't think small," is the company's mantra of success he says, adding that "the government has been supportive but can do more. For instance, they can give us endorsements and approval as in the case of tourism. In Singapore and Sri Lanka, the governments have readily helped private enterprise in these sectors. In addition, they can put trade show posters in embassies all over the world, share their trade database with us, and by acknowledging that such shows have potential we can together put India on the global trade show map as in the case of Germany and Japan."

Trade shows are here to stay, says Ahmed. "If we can organise quality trade shows, they will generate more employment, increase forex reserves with overseas participation, improve technology awareness and give us access to world-class products without Indians having to travel the world to see them! We lack nothing, we have the resources and the manpower," he points out.

Planning a trade show a year in advance is not without its risks, but Ahmed and his professional team of 26 people tackle it all expertly with offices in Chennai, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bangalore and Delhi. "I use performance-oriented people who need not be highly qualified. They are allowed to take their own decisions," he says. Time-bound projects with huge investments are subject to crises such as bandhs, riots and inclement weather, but Ahmed has taken it all in his stride.His next venture is the ZAK Expo Centre in Chennai, which will be a state-of-the-art standard venue on international standards with a dimension of one lakh sq ft and an initial investment of Rs 15 crore.

Picture by Shaju John

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