Interview with Saurabh Jyoti, Chairman-Syakar Trading Company Pvt. Ltd.

Q.No.1 Honda is the leading Automobile brand in Nepal. What is the competitive advantage of Honda, why do you think it is unique from others?

Answer: Honda is a company that has a legacy, rich past and a very bright future. It is one of the biggest Automobile companies in the world. It has been providing the latest and suitable models for Nepal at reasonable prices backed by excellent after sales service for Nepalese customers. Honda has three philosophies: Joy of buying, Joy of selling and Joy of creating. So, you are not buying a product, but you are buying an experience. Honda also never compromises in its core principals, i.e. respect for individuals and commitment of durable, qualitative and reliable products. Honda is a company that believes that, it should be a company that society wants it to exist. Honda is always in a process of continuous improvement. Honda already has the R &D for 10-20 years down the line. So, based on that, I think it has come a long way.

As far as SYAKAR Trading is concerned, we don't just focus on sales, but on a whole experience of buying, sales service, spare parts along with second hand exchange, safety as well as financing for our customers. Our customers are very important for us.

Q.No.2 Our country has been importing vehicles ever since we have known about its very existence. We are losing a great deal on trade deficit in this regard. Has Jyoti Group ever thought about manufacturing vehicles here in Nepal?

Answer: We have been studying this possibility for a long time. A justifiable volume is important for investment. It doesn’t make sense to manufacture or assemble cars for that matter in Nepal because the volume is too less. But assembling is feasible in case of motorcycles. A certain model has to cross a certain number of units and volume to become feasible. So, once the volume is justifiable, we are ready to make that investment and assemble Honda bikes in Nepal. Also, another factor is the incentive from the government to encourage assembling in Nepal. As of now, the incentives given by the government are not very attractive.

Q.No.3 Where do you see Automobile industries 10 years down the line in terms of manufacturing and assembling of vehicles in Nepal?

Answer: As of now, the duty structure imposed on automobiles is too high. The volume for passenger car sales annually is 14,000 units only. And, the number is not feasible for car manufacturing or even assembling the parts in Nepal. For motorcycles, the number is somewhat justifiable. The yearly market in Nepal is 2.5 lakhs units of motorcycle. There are 29 million people in Nepal. Nepal is not a small country. If the duties are reduced and every individual is capable to own an automobile or a motor vehicle, it is possible to see the assembling of automobiles in Nepal, be it 10 years down the line or more. But again, in terms of feasibility of investment, the minimum volume is required to make the assembling feasible.

Q.No.4 What are the favorable and unfavorable factors for entrepreneurship in Nepal? How can we tackle those unfavorable factors?

Answer: Nepal is a country full of inefficiencies. The same inefficiencies could be the opportunities for all the aspiring entrepreneurs if we can turn them into efficiencies. You need to have a sustainable business model, a long term plan, and of course, commitment, hard work and dedication. Do your homework, study the market and assess gaps. Identify the inefficiencies, and deliver a product or service that creates value. People are ready to pay for anything that creates value. The unfavorable factors could be political instability, uncertainty, and frequently changing policies. We also lack adequate power supply. But the fact remains, i.e. Nepal has a huge potential in terms of power generation. The case is the same in other sectors. One needs to make sure value addition happens in Nepal, and go from subsistence to surplus production.

Q.No.5 We see a huge gap between the academic world and the real business world. Is it the Nepalese education system or the business environment that demands international manpower?

Answer: Based on the job trend and skill demands in the market of Nepal in any sector, the same skill set needs to be taught which is lacking in our Nepalese syllabuses. There needs to be collaboration between academicians and professionals from private sectors to communicate the requirement and change the curriculum accordingly. Students once hired are forced to unlearn and relearn everything to fit in the market because of the mismatch. This wastes a lot of time and resources. Since we are not able to find the resources with the right skill set, we are forced to employ people from abroad.

Q.No.6 What message would you like to give to all the aspiring entrepreneurs?

Answer: There are challenges, but challenges are opportunities in disguise. You need to identify those challenges, make improvements, and offer effective business model. There is so much potential in every sector in Nepal. They always say the grass is greener the other side. But, before you see the other greener side, make sure you water your own grass. In our generation, we had lots of projects in the pipeline. However, because of the civil war and instability, we couldn’t do what we wanted. But your generation has no excuse. You have excellent education, you have information at your fingertips, and technology has fostered by leaps and bounds. Nepal is at such a transitional phase. We are at the top of the hill now, and now it's all downhill. We are soon going to have a stable government. Your generation can achieve ten folds of what we have achieved in shorter time span than what we have achieved. It is a great time to start up businesses, and look for opportunities as there is tremendous potential in Nepal.

Interviewers: Pravash Rai,Rebika Bhandari, Saurav Raj Manandhar and Femona Shrestha.

Writers: Trisha Dali, Pratibha Rimal, Prasansha Bariya and Kajal Jha.

Editor: Pravash Rai

Editor-in-Chief: Edna Shrestha

Note: The interview is featured in the print magazine of People's Campus - Management Vision - an opinion based magazine of business and entrepreneurship prepared by the students of People's Campus.