Dear friends,
Things were going well. The business was growing day by day and I began to enjoy the experience of making money. Even though my Nellore factory was a challenge, it started to give results. It was a smooth ride – the Cochin factory, the shipping business and the brand new factory in Nellore. In the meantime, three more housing projects were completed. Two in Cochin and one in Trivandrum.
I was flying high. The school too made great progress and added many credits to the Group.
I never stopped dreaming of growth wanting to do more day by day. Meanwhile, I began imbibing quite a bit of style from my partner in California. His Corporate Office was simply stunning with lounges, cafeteria, kitchen, bars, mood lighting and so on. It was full of style. It was very impressive and a pleasure to associate with. I took a special liking for him and I could soon see a change happening in me. My desires changed, my style and thinking changed and I wanted to be like him. Back home in Cochin those days, things were very different from what it is today. The thinking of the citizens was very different. Very few shops, no malls, no corporate offices, less traffic, no imported cars, no night clubs, no five-star hotels (except the hotels on Willingdon Island) and of course the little old airport with a short runway. Being influenced by this individual in California, I began to feel the need to centralize my operations and build a dream corporate office, in style! Hunting for a property, I found a three-storied building right in the heart of downtown Cochin.
In fact, this building was used as a godown when I inspected it and the landlord was in no mood to sell it but was ready to lease it at an exorbitant price. The lease amount was a big shock but I finally decided to lease it and convert this three-storied building into my Corporate Office.
I conceived ideas, called architects and interior designers and put a plan together to build this dream. In fact, the interior designer, who was a friend of mine tried to talk me out of this asking why did I need this? Too much investment! Where is the return on investment? Too risky and so on, but I was firm and bent upon doing this because it was a novel concept in work culture. Cochin needed new corporate thinking and looks.
The interior walls were demolished, floors changed and I put in a host of facilities into this building- a gym, restaurant, lounges, private offices, centralized air conditioning and of course a bar for entertaining, with an impressive lobby and reception to welcome my customers. We called it Choice House. A big neon sign outside the building said CHOICE. Everyone who came downtown saw this building. Some even thought it was a hotel. I remember people driving into this building and enquiring at the reception if they could check-in. It had the looks of a classy hotel. I was proud of it and my employees and team members took great pride in walking into this building to work
It was motivating for everyone. I remember on the 2nd floor, we had the club called CLUB CHOICE. This was something I designed for the employees and their families. Everyone could join as a member and use the facilities – pool tables, indoor games, internet surfing and dinner from an a la carte menu absolute style! By this time, I had even beaten my partner’s office decor.
This soon became the talk of the town and the concept was novel. Many admirers and of course, much envy as well. Bouquets as well as brickbats! The way I was growing, people even spread rumors that I was making money unlawfully. I was never deterred with any of this as I was sure of what I was doing. I knew I was doing the right thing just that it was – in style. I never cringed on anything. I even provided expensive air-conditioned cars for my employees. Next, to this building, there was a vacant plot of land that we used as a parking lot. It soon began to fill with more and more cars as the days passed. A brand name Choice was created in the city. I noticed this building added a lot of credibility to my business. Vendors who came to see me there were impressed. It was easier to get them to agree to my terms. Customers from all over the world would come to spend the evening with me at Club Choice.
Business is not only a matter of how great your product or concept is. It is also how well you package it and provide a holistic picture to your customers and suppliers. If I’m not mistaken, it was Cochin’s first corporate office of its kind. Soon, other businesses started to follow this example. I had pioneered a new trend in Cochin.
Friends, work hard and think big. Believe in yourself, that you can do beyond your imagination if you enjoy what you do and that too – in style!