Long yarn

Oswal Group tycoon S P Oswal is taking his son Adish8217;s brainchild AO8217;s Across Oceans, deeper into the country. The retail brand ...

Oswal Group tycoon S P Oswal is taking his son Adish8217;s brainchild AO8217;s Across Oceans, deeper into the country. The retail brand which was originally a couture collection for men only, has now launched some very hip casual wear for the youth as well as pure designer wear under the name Black Label. Launched in Gurgaon, AO8217;s impressed customers so much that encouraged by their response, the tycoon has now headed deep into Punjab with ten new stores to be set up by next year, out of which two or more will be in Jalandhar and Chandigarh.

So while he hopes that AO8217;s sales never stop, the group has also completed the merger of Vardhaman Textiles and Mahavir Spinning. This merger will help the Oswal group to be more integrated. Adish Oswal believes that the merger may also help in taking his AO8217;s brand further in the market. Things could indeed get better with forward integration that allows a yarn producer to have an energetic retail clothing brand within his grasp.

Depressed no more

What does a tycoon, who has many pharma products among the top 200 brands in the Indian industry, do in his spare time? Why, prepare some more unique ones to hit the market! Sudhir Mehta, the tycoon behind Torrent Pharmaceuticals, is soon coming out with loads of new drugs.

Some time back, he launched his new anti-arthritic drug, which even received approvals from the USFDA. This needless to say sold well, once customers realized that it, unlike other painkillers, did not bring on gastric side-effects.

Pleased with it, he has now launched Duloxetine, an anti-depressant under the name Symbal. It is the first in a new category of anti-depressants in India. This too comes with a unique element that other anti-depressants don8217;t possess. While others attend to only the emotional aspects of depression, the tycoon8217;s new drug claims to treat physical symptoms such as aches, pains, and gastrointestinal disturbances as well.

Considering that depression is one of the most common mental disorders, with 110 million Indians suffering from it, it is rather shocking that it still goes under-diagnosed. Seeing that in three years it could become the second largest disorder after cardiac ailments in India, the tycoon thought it better to bring out a new drug from his medicine cabinet as a solution. If it can really do what is claims, the tycoon may not have any depression.

Cheap airports

When other airlines hacked their fares, Capt G R Gopinath merely increased the number of his flights to meet the increasing passenger demand. This was a smart move as Air Deccan garnered some great profits. Now after having his low-cost, no-frills airlines fly almost all over the whole country, he wants to head back home. So he is trying all he can to influence Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy to reduce landing charges at the state airports. This is because presently they are too high for Air Deccan.

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The tycoon has also strongly voiced his opinion for revamping and expanding the airport infrastructure in India, so much so that he has suggested the formation of a NASSCOM-like organisation which will help lobby with the government for the expansion and promotion of the aviation industry. This is because the tycoon sees a large leap in passenger traffic from the present 25 million to 100 million in another six years.

But apart from this, the tycoon really wants a revamp because that what would aid low cost airlines. To help fund his aggressive expansion, Gopinath is planning to raise 60 million through private equity too, very soon.

So while he awaits the nod of the Kerala government, he has a bouquet of new flights to smaller northern cities like Delhi to Chandigarh, Delhi to Dehra Dun, Agra to Jaipur, and Delhi to Jabalpur lined up for the end of the year.

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