RP tech India ( A division of Rashi Peripherals PVT LTD) is one of the fastest-growing B2B technology solutions providers and ICT distributors in India with strong fundamentals and robust business model spread across four business verticals: Component, Peripherals, Networking & Personal Computing and market verticals: Retail, Online & Enterprise. In an interaction with NCN magazine, Mr. Kapal Pansari, Director, RP tech India discusses his growth vision for the organization, business strategies and key focused areas in the next 3-5 years.
Please brief us about your education and background before you joined RP tech India?
Mr. Kapal Pansari: I was born and brought up in Mumbai. I did my schooling from Arya Vidya Mandir and graduated in the Commerce stream from Narsee Monjee Institute of Economics & Commerce. I did my Post Graduation in Entrepreneurship from S.P. Jain Institute of Management and Research, where I did specialization in family managed businesses. After completion of my formal education, I joined RP tech India in 2006.
What inspired you to join your family business at RP tech India?
Mr. Kapal Pansari: Being a second-generation entrepreneur it came to me naturally. I was involved in our business part-time during my graduation days and I learned about various functionalities and processes. I started working in the departments such as finance & accounts and MIS, wherein my primary role was drafting management reports, inventories management, tracking collections, formulating marketing strategies, etc., This early exposure allowed me to learn and understand the fundamentals of the technology business. My passion for technology helped me to climb the ladder in the organization during the period 2000-2006 when India was booming in terms of IT.
What changes have taken place after you joined RP tech India and what is new about the current market scenario?
Mr. Kapal Pansari: Though my industry experience was limited during the initial years, my objective was to bring improvements in the system through innovation. The turning point came in my career post-2009 when I initiated several strategic changes such as restructuring the organisation, strategic partnerships, short-term and long term goals setting and changing approach from reactive to proactive. We were the first distributor to shift our business processes from Tally to the SAP ERP system. We implemented a data-driven approach across the departmental functions. As a result, we marked consistent double-digit CAGR yoy and expanded our channel reach and area coverage in 750+ cities/towns.
What opportunities and challenges do you foresee in the distribution?
Mr. Kapal Pansari: Due to the pandemic, there are many challenges; amidst the challenges, there are opportunities too. Today, IT has become an indispensable part in the lives of people, be it entertainment, a study from home or work from home. This has generated new demand for PCs, headsets, routers, security & data protection, etc. We see that this trend will continue and grow further. We have pioneered the PC, components, peripherals distribution in India. Now we are focusing more on the enterprise space. Now, AI and e-learning are the key drivers in the technological space. We are focused on the solution-driven business along with the conventional ICT distribution.
What is RP tech India’s focus in the growing areas of enterprise and cloud?
Mr. Kapal Pansari: RP tech India entered into the Cloud computing business in 2019 with the strategic investment into ZNet Technologies, a Jaipur-based cloud solutions company that offers infrastructure and SaaS-based services. We are offering customers cutting edge cloud solutions from ZNet.
What are RP tech India’s USPs that helped to achieve constant growth and leadership position in distribution?
Mr. Kapal Pansari: Developing and managing the company is a long journey. One has to keep working on both short-term and long-term goals. One cannot stop or become complacent at any stage. Constant innovation and revising strategies according to the changing market trends and customer needs are the keys to our growth and success.
How do you motivate your teams and partners to perform better and be innovative?
Mr. Kapal Pansari: I always advise my team and partners to take care of their mental and physical health by doing regular exercise, eating a proper diet and maintaining healthy habits. We run motivational and fitness programmes for our employees and partners because we believe that if they healthy and fit, they can take responsibility and perform better. We encourage our employees to participate in strategy planning through various quiz and debate competitions. It also gives them a sense of inclusiveness. We recently organized quiz competitions for the children of partners in the age groups 5-10 years, in which around 2000 children participated and 100 children won prizes and gifts. We always try to do something different for our partners and employees.
What new changes you plan to initiate at present and where you want RP tech India to be in 2 years?
Mr. Kapal Pansari: We are focused on further strengthening our business operations and processes for better output and success. We are gradually shifting from a product-focused approach to a solution-focused approach. Besides our regular PC business, we are betting big on the enterprise segment, where storage, cloud, AI & machine learning will be key growth drivers. Cybersecurity is another area we are keen to explore. In retail, supply chain management and the online channel will be the areas we will be improving on. All these initiatives will be driven by our channel. We also aspire to expand our footprints in the other markets in Southeast Asia and we are working towards it. We are contemplating commencing our branch in Singapore where cloud and semiconductors will be our initial focused business area.
What is your message to your partners?
Mr. Kapal Pansari: I would say Don’t be afraid of trying new things. This pandemic has changed the way we live and operated in the world. Therefore, we need to be innovative, and adaptive to the change to sustain and survive in the current scenario.
