MRF gears up

Madras Rubber Factory MRF, the largest tyre company in India, is all set to roll off its expansion plan of Rs 150 crore. However, the tyco...

Madras Rubber Factory MRF, the largest tyre company in India, is all set to roll off its expansion plan of Rs 150 crore. However, the tycoon behind the tyre, K.M. Mammen Mappillai, is not in a good mood. Neither are any of the rubber tycoons for that matter. This is because the prices of rubber have undergone a huge hike and there has been severe competition from China. This happened because the Chinese were importing cheaper rubber and flooding their tyres into the Indian market. MRF has not really been harmed, thanks to brand preference and some real good planning.

Moves like the present expansion in all six manufacturing units, is all part of the plan to fight such competition. It may even be a part of a secretive Vision 2010 plan, which foresees MRF as a Rs 10, 000 crore company. Whatever it is, he8217;s definitely making sure it8217;s 100 Chinese proofed!!

Shaw8217;s Cuban connection

If there were a list of the richest female billionaires of India, Kiran Mazumdar Shaw would top it. Especially now after her company shares had a fantastic debut at the Bombay Stock Exchange. She was already flying high because her Biocon IPO had raised 72 mn, which would be used for setting up new facilities. Now she8217;s simply going higher.

Sticking to her policy of being open to acquiring other businesses, technologies and products that fit in with her plans, Shaw had just entered into a JV with Cimab SA, a Cuban pharmaceutical firm, in which Biocon holds 51 stake.

The products will be manufactured at a new facility in Bangalore and will be under the Biocon brand name. The tycoon has already invested Rs 125 crore into this venture. The products will hit the market in two years. They will consist of those relating to the treatment of head and neck cancer in the beginning, but later other cancer treatment products will also be manufactured.

This venture will make things much easier for India, where presently these products are being imported. Now the next thing on the tycoon8217;s to-do list is the completion of her internally-developed recombinant human insulin which will be launched under the brand name 8217;Insugen8217; in India as well as abroad.

There is a lot on her petri-dish for this year, but Shaw knows how to give them the attention they deserve.

High hopes on Airbuses

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NS Narahari has undergone a sudden change of mind, and the tycoon behind Air Deccan has declared that he will not go in for any foreign equity partnership after all, irrespective of whether the government agrees to it or not. This is because he realized that seeking investment from foreign airlines would be a situation where the cons would outweigh the pros.

Foreign airlines, after all, usually insist on branding arrangements which the tycoon would not have been comfortable with. Now all his efforts are being utilized in raising 40-50 mn by July, the same month in which his two Airbus A-320 aircrafts will arrive.

These planes have been taken by the tycoon on lease and will be used for flights to the four metros along with Hyderabad. Later, flights to Kolkata, Ahmedabad and Kochi will also come up.

Dilip Cherian runs public relations firm Perfect Relations. He is an economy watcher and tycoon tracker. The people he writes about are not clients. Send your insider dope to dilipcherianexpressindia.com

Anand Mahindra writes

Dear Dilip,
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I couldn8217;t resist writing to correct the tattle on the Club Mahindra losses. Club Mahindra turned solidly into black two years ago and has been growing at 40 pc ever since. I have not given up, as you said8212;which accounts for our winning habit! It would be a pleasure to share the Club Mahindra balance sheet with you. We have receivables from our customers under our 8216;Deferred Payment Scheme8217; of more than twice the amount of the loan and a fixed assets base in excess of Rs. 100 crores, which I8217;m sure you8217;ll agree makes a healthy balance sheet. Our customer base of 25,000 is growing at more than 30 pc driven largely by a high rate of referrals from existing members who have had excellent experiences at our resorts and are recommending it to their friends. I strongly recommend that you too must try the experience! Finally, we are by no means abandoning the Club Mahindra brand.

In fact, we are taking the brand global and have opened offices in Dubai and Kuwait and have just incorporated a subsidiary in US, called Mahindra Holidays USA Inc. Marketing in the US will start once we complete the compliance requirements. So see you soon!

Cheers, Anand