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Hambantota
in major drive to attract investors The event is
being undertaken in collaboration with the Ministry of Southern
Region Development, Rural Economic Advancement Programme of the
southern province, the Southern Development Authority and the active
participation of the southern Provincial Council. HDCC said in
a statement that the overall objective is to help accelerate economic
growth throughout the district by facilitating private sector investment
and marketing the southern region as an investment zone, both nationally
and internationally. The Isuru Asiri
2002 exhibition brings together a wide range of skills, provides
an opportunity to share these skills, knowledge and new technology,
and at the same time promote the latest in products and services
available both to and from the southern region which is being considered
a key region for development. The investment
forum at the "The Oasis" is themed 'the role of the BOI
in the development of the Ruhuna" and will be chaired by Power
and Energy Minister Karu Jayasuriya with Southern Region Development
Minister Ananda Kularatne. Opposition
leader Mahinda Rajapakse and Oddvar Laegreid Charge d'Affaires,
Royal Norwegian Embassy will along with Jayasuriya be associated
in opening the exhibition on successive days. NORAD, through the
Royal Norwegian Embassy, Colombo, is the principle donor providing
funds to the Entrepreneur Service Centre of the HDCC. HDCC said some
major development projects have been earmarked and are underway
in the southern region and will receive a boost through this exhibition
cum conference. The Investment Forum will highlight the potential and available opportunities within the district and generally across the south. The exhibition will centre around three main themes - products and services of the district, services; information and technology know-how available from outside the district; beneficial to development of the local business community and projects operating within the district. Trincomalee
prepares for mega fair The Sri Lankan
government through the Industries Ministry is organising the "Yuga
Dekma" (which means showcase of the era) exhibition where a
large number of state and private sector institutions will be exhibiting
their products and highlighting their achievements. These displays
will be held inside specially constructed rigid tents with several
stalls inside. "Yuga Dekma" will give Trincomalee a boost
and help to promote the idea that peace is a prerequisite for successful
economic development," a statement from the Board of Investment
(BOI) said. The BOI will
manage one of these tents and will carry out an exhibition of photos,
videos, multi-media presentations, as well as products manufactured
in Sri Lanka by BOI companies. The historical development of the
BOI from its early origins to its current status as the One Stop
Shop for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into the country will be
the main focus of this exhibition. The development of Export Processing Zones and their role in the national economy will also figure prominently. On August 18, the BOI for the first time in the history of foreign direct investment in Sri Lanka will conduct an Investor Forum in Trincomalee aimed at those interested in investing in Sri Lanka. Some 400 companies of which 200 are foreign firms are taking part in the exhibition. Industries Minister Rohitha Bogollagama and BOI chairman Arjuna Mahendran made a joint visit to the 26-acre Trincomalee site lost week where workers were preparing the location for this mega fair. Bricks
and clicks Whichever category
you belong to, your channels of delivery are important to you. As
you build the blueprint for your dream business, don't forget to
consider the delivery channels. Delivery channels
or the "place" where you make your product or service
available is considered as one of the 4Ps in marketing. The channels
available to your new business depend on the type of product or
service. Think of the many that you already know. Grocery products
and basic consumer items can be sold through retailers or wholesalers.
Retailers come in many guises. The little
grocery shop is the pawn of the retail chessboard. Supermarkets
and large retailers occupy the top end. There are many others in
between. Are you thinking
of marketing a consumer item this way? Then you will benefit from
knowing retail trade statistics. According to
Rajiv Dharmendra, Director in charge of the Keells supermarket chain,
large retailers account for less than 5% of the retail sales volume
in Sri Lanka. What does this
mean to you? On one side, you will see great possibilities for growth
of supermarket-type operations. They need not be very large scale.
Little self-service
shops and vege-shops can fill this niche quite comfortably. On the
other hand, if you keep on trying to supply to supermarkets, you
are restricting your own scope. You are also
competing with thousands of others in a market with little bargaining
power. Large retailers prefer a few vendors with a wide product
range to many vendors selling one or two items each. It eases their
administrative burden and helps ensure quality. Traditional
channels open to your business will vary with the type of market.
Some will be time tested with entrenched procedures and practices.
Approach untested
possibilities with caution. Do your research and test their merit
keeping your risks under control. There is no substitute to getting
out there and talking to people. Do ground work to build your dream
castle on a solid foundation. There are new
delivery channels that did not exist 10 years ago. Think of the
Internet. It is a great delivery channel and a boon to small businesses.
In the traditional world of "bricks and mortar" large
retailers lord over small businesses. They can afford
big showrooms in affluent locations. Small businesses cannot compete
on equal terms. But in the
world of "clicks", the Internet enabled small business
can compete on equal terms if it is able to build a good reputation.
Can we do it
in Sri Lanka? Yes, you can. Quite a few Sri Lankan companies are
already making use of the Internet to deliver goods and services
not only within Sri Lanka, but also to international markets. But
let us keep that topic for another time. Whether you
go for bricks or clicks, or a sensible mix of the two, you must
make the choice by understanding your customer. A delivery
channel is a success only if your customer uses it. A supermarket
in Timbuktu or a website that no one visits will not make a successful
channel. The choice
of delivery channels also depends upon what your business can afford.
Nice to have a large shop or service unit in a shopping mall or
city centre location. But, can you
afford it? So, when you think of delivery channels for your business,
think not only of owning your own place. Think up possibilities
of using or sharing the channels already in place. Think of entering
into strategic partnerships that can help you reach your chosen
customers. As with all
the rest of the 4Ps in marketing, while choosing delivery channels
too you need to think different; to stand out from the competition;
be different not for the sake of it, but in a way to give value
to your customer. Wondering about
the best channels for your new business? Tell us your concerns.
You can reach us on btimes@wijeya.lk or 074-304100. (The writer
is a Chartered Management Accountant by profession with a Masters
in Business Administration from the University of Strathclyde in
Glasgow. She is the Managing Editor of Athwela Vyaparika Sangarawa
(Athwela Business Journal), the only Sinhala management monthly
targeting the small and medium- sized business operators.) Tea
prices rise sharply at Colombo auction In the ex-estate
catalogues a wider range of seasonal quality teas on offer attracted
widespread demand. "Buyers
operating for key continental markets such as Germany and the Netherlands
bid actively against those bidding on behalf of clients in Japan,"
Asia Siyaka Commodities said. "Both
BOP and BOPFs moved up in value with price gains in excess of Rs.
50 per kg being quite common." The market
for good liquoring teas was "bullish" with better liquoring
Westerns too gaining in value, the brokers said. A wider range
of teas in the best and below best category came in for more support,
establishing a more clearly segmented market after a considerable
length of time. The tea-for-price
segment remained fully firm and some of the cleaner teas gained
Rs. 2 to Rs. 4 per kg. Asia Siyaka
Commodities said specialty teas were doing well with the diverse
range of orthodox high-and mid-grown whole-leaf and semi-leaf teas
on offer attracting significant interest among buyers. This was
on top of continuing good demand for similar low-growns. The range of
bright liquoring specialty teas such as OP, FBOP and Pekoe have
moved up sharply in value following improved weather conditions.
"Sri Lanka's
traders have done well by creating awareness and market opportunity
in the global trade, and this augurs well for the industry,"
Asia Siyaka said. Some of the
first teas of the Eastern quality season to attract international
attention were the specialty range of Ceylons, it said. "We believe
that the price potential of this significant segment is yet to be
fulfilled." |
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