African Safari
Godrej Locks Spreads Its Wings
A view of Mount Kilimanjaro from the plane
en route
from Dar es Salaam to Arusha.
n 3
March, 2005, Minoo Panthaki accompanied me on a visit to M/s. Light Point
Ltd., our locks dealer in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. We met Elias Hassanali,
Director, Hassan Hassanali, Marketing and Sales Director, and Muslim
Hassanali, Managing Director, of
M/s. Light Point Ltd. After the initial discussion, we decided to obtain
feedback from the actual customers themselves. Accordingly, we paid visits
to a few retailers, and spent substantial time with the main retailer,
Khuzema Jamalee of M/s. Global Hardware Co. Ltd.
While Jamalee provided us with vital feedback and useful suggestions, we
were pleased to note that Godrej Ultra Locks with dimple keys have become an
instant success in the Dar es Salaam market. Some officials from the Finance
Ministry of the Government of Tanzania who purchased the locks from these
dealers observed: "We knew that Godrej was manufacturing safes and filing
cabinets because we have them in our office, but we never knew that Godrej
manufactured locks!" This statement from the retailer encouraged us to go to
Arusha, an upcoming city in Tanzania to meet another retailer, M/s. Africa
Bulk Suppliers Ltd.
We took the flight to Arusha from Dar es Salaam the next day. Amar Pathak,
the Manager there, was at the airport to welcome us. We met Rajab Nurbhai,
the Managing Director of M/s. Bulk Group of Companies, the parent company of
Africa Bulk Suppliers Ltd.
We talked to customers who came to the shop for their locks as well as other
requirements. Minoo Panthaki conducted a short training programme for the
sales people at the counter, explaining how Godrej Locks were superior to
the other brands. Rajab Nurbhai plans to market our locks to the surrounding
cities. He indicated that he plans to promote Godrej Locks and discontinue
some other brands.
Play Safe With Godrej
n 4
March, 2005, our Security Equipment dealer in Tanzania, M/s. Business
Machines Tanzania Limited, had arranged for a Customer Meet in Arusha. R.
Kirubakaran, General Manager, BMTL, invited me to take part in this event as
I was going to be in Arusha.
The Meet, which was supposed to commence at 7 p.m., started at 8.15 p.m.
Apart from other products, there were Godrej Defender Plus Safes and Godrej
Fire-Resisting Safes on display. I took the opportunity to explain the
superior features of our safes to the customers.
Kirubakaran, in his address to customers who were mainly from the diamond
industry, spoke of a recent attempted burglary in a bank in Dar es Salaam
where a Godrej Class I Strong Door with Grill Gate was in use. The burglars,
three of whom were from within the bank, tried their luck from 9 p.m. till 6
a.m. Though they managed to make a small hole in the main door, they could
not cut open the grill gate. They had to abandon their effort the next
morning and flee from the site. That morning the Branch Manager called
Kirubakaran thanking him for the strong room door, which not only saved them
from losing a lot of cash, but also enhanced the reputation of their bank.
This reference, coupled with the display of our safes, made a customer
remark: "If my Managing Director were here, I would have placed an order for
this safe (referring to the Godrej Defender Plus 41 Safe). Nevertheless, I
shall consult him and get back to you."
The success of this Meet has prompted BMTL to arrange for another such
event, where they plan to invite the top brass of the diamond industry in
Arusha. Vishwesh Naik, Branch Manager, BMTL, Arusha Branch, personally
thanked us for our active involvement in the event.
Fredrick Correa,
Godrej, Kenya