The unparalleled tale of SG’s global success
“We were pretty big compared to a lot of other people in the industry,” noted Puneet Anand, CEO who was in Colombo last month involved in a business promotion activity during the ICC Annual Conference.
The company was named Sanspareils, meaning ‘without parallel’ in French, after an unexpected encounter with the term during a business trip to France. The choice of Greenlands, as part of the name, was a natural fit for their mission to manufacture sports equipment. The partition of India in 1947 forced the company to relocate to Jalandhar, India, leaving behind their factories and assets in Sialkot.
Sri Lanka's Dimuth Karunaretne is one of the international stars signed with SG
“We had to relocate to India. We came to India with nothing,” recalled Anand in an interview with the Sunday Times in Colombo.
The Indian government assisted in rehabilitating the sports goods manufacturers, many of whom were Hindu families from Sialkot. Despite the upheaval, SG managed to rebuild their business from scratch, taking about five or six years to regain their footing. Education played a crucial role in the company’s resilience and growth.
“My grandfather was very particular about education,” he said.
Even during the partition, the family ensured that their children continued their education. This commitment to education instilled a strong foundation for the business. When the second generation joined the company, they brought with them a passion for cricket. One of the family members, who played first-class cricket, started shifting the company’s focus towards manufacturing cricket gear. The real breakthrough came after India’s World Cup victory in 1983, which catapulted cricket into the national spotlight.
“We started focusing, concentrating more on the cricket business after the World Cup in the early 80s,” he explained.
SG’s dedication to quality and innovation has been a cornerstone of their success. They have always chosen quality over quantity, a principle that has guided their production processes.
“We never got tempted to increase our production just to meet huge orders. That has probably been the biggest plus point for us,” he asserted.
Puneet Anand, the CEO of Sanspareils Greenlands, better known as SG
This approach has ensured that SG remains an aspirational brand, known for its top class cricket gear. Their reputation for precision and quality, extends to their famous SG Test ball, used exclusively in BCCI matches since 1991. Despite challenges, such as those highlighted by cricketers like Ravichandran Ashwin, SG has continuously worked to improve their products.
“We are working with the country’s most premier engineering institute called IIT Delhi to help us standardise cricket balls as much as we can,” he added.
To maintain consistency and meet the high standards of professional cricketers, SG has integrated technology into their manufacturing processes. They now use machines for significant parts of their production, ensuring precision that handcrafting alone cannot achieve.
“Almost 50 to 60 percent of the ball is made by machines, and just about 30 to 40 percent of the component is the human touch,” Anand said.
Even with cricket bats, SG employs CNC machines to ensure uniformity, leaving only the final fine-tuning to skilled craftsmen. This blend of technology and traditional craftsmanship ensures that each bat is perfectly balanced and meets the specific needs of professional players.
International stars like Dimuth Karunaratne, Hardik Pandya, Kamindu Mendis, Liam Livingstone, Sam Curran, KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant have all endorsed SG bats. Today, SG is recognised as one of the biggest cricket gear manufacturers globally. They not only supply their own branded products but also manufacture for leading cricket brands in the UK and Australia.
“More than 50 percent of the cricketers playing for the countries sponsored by these companies are using stuff made in our factory,” the spokesperson proudly noted.
Despite their great success, SG remains committed to their core values of quality and innovation. They continue to push the boundaries in sports manufacturing, ensuring that every product bearing the SG name is a testament to their nearly century-long legacy of excellence in cricket.
Sanspareils Greenlands has indeed crafted a story that is as inspiring as the game of cricket itself—a story of resilience, dedication, and an unwavering commitment to quality. As they look to the future, SG stands as a beacon of what can be achieved with passion and precision, forever changing the landscape of cricket with every bat, ball, and piece of gear they produce.