Perhaps more than any other profession, one finds that the real entrepreneurial spirit and the desire to excel and grow, resides in the heart of a small business owner. This passion to excel and become a market leader is what defines Suman Pratap Agarwal, proprietor of A R Wires.

It was in 2010 that S P Agarwal decided to team up with his friend Laxman Bisht to establish A R Wires. Laxman had extensive experience in the wire industry and after two years spent in thorough market research and procurement of machinery etc, A R Wires was established in November 2012. Since then there has been no looking back for this enterprising duo. In a matter of three years, they have made a name for themselves in their industry and are amongst the leading manufacturers of high quality Zari & EDM wires in India.

In conversation with GlobalLinker (GL), S P Agarwal (SP) traces the phenomenal growth of his Jaipur-based enterprise. Watch this video and read more about this inspiring business journey.

GL: Tell us about your business & how it came into being.

SP: The idea of establishing a company that produces high quality wires was that of my founding partner, Laxman Bisht. He had an experience in the wire industry spanning over 15 years. Laxman proposed this business concept and the idea appealed to me. Based on my market survey, I felt there was a need that our company could address. That’s how A R Wires was established.

Our production started in November 2012 and two years prior to that we studied the market & procured our machinery from Delhi. I look after finance and marketing while Laxman oversees the production aspect of the business. Our factory is located in the Jhotwara business area of Jaipur. We primarily manufacture EDM (Electronic Discharge Machinery) brass wires & German Zari wires.

GL: In a short span of time you have achieved phenomenal growth in business. Please share with us the secret of this success.

SP: The motto of our enterprise is ‘Quality is our strength’. I believe that it is our high quality products that have helped us expand our market share. We are the leading manufacturer of wires in our segment in the country. In India, the demand for wires is huge but frankly, the quality of very few manufacturers in our industry is up to the mark. Some traders are importing wires from China & Taiwan, which are of very poor quality.

Our commitment to quality has garnered trust and recognition and last year we have been awarded prestigious awards for excellence in quality – the ‘Quality Mark Trust Award’ by the government of Rajasthan, the ‘National Industrial Excellence’ award & the ‘Quality Brands India Award’.

If you talk about turnover, in our first year of business we had a turnover of 46 lakhs. In the second year we doubled it to a little more than a crore. In the third year the turnover grew to 2 crores. This year we are well on our way of exceeding last year’s turnover by a considerable margin.

Ours is a semi-automatic plant, so we don’t require huge manpower. However, we have ensured that our team is made up of skilled workers who have at least 10 years of experience in this field. This ensures that our team has the technical know-how to maximise production and maintain high quality standards.

Our plant capacity is around 24 tonnes per month.  At present we are manufacturing around 12-13 tonnes per month and the aim is to soon double our output.

GL: What are some of the challenges that you have faced in your business journey?

SP: Every business has challenges. I believe that there is no shortcut to hard work. Since our product is not very well-known and vastly produced item in India, the demand is huge but there are limited manufacturers. Initially we had to work hard to capture the market share and establish our product credibility. But now in our industry, everybody knows about ‘A R Wires’.

For Zari wires, Surat is the only market in India. We provide the base German Zari wire to manufacturers in Surat. Zari wires demand in the Surat market is approximately 40 tonnes per month, of which we have captured around 8-10 tonnes per month market share. There are only three major manufacturers in India for Zari wires and one of them is us.

GL: Who are some of your major clients?

SP: We have a wide range of clients including HPL, Kapson, Maruti India, Bhillai Steel Plant, Minda Group of Companies, RK Zari Traders (Surat), Rajvi Zaris, Shri Mahalaxmi Zari to name a few.

GL: What is your big business dream?

SP: We have a grand vision for the future of our company. We are working towards greater innovation and manufacturing more types of products. Our aim is to increase our production and market share. In the near future we would also like to export our products. India is known for its quality products as compared to countries like China and I believe we have a huge potential to expand our market base overseas.

GL: What is your advice to aspiring entrepreneurs?

SP: My first piece of advice is that as an entrepreneur there is no shortcut for hard work. You have to be dedicated and committed to your project.

Second, if you have an idea you should know what the market is because people may have ideas, they may have money but if they don’t have knowledge of their market, they cannot succeed.

Third, if you have a product and if you can’t make it unique, ensure that your product is of high quality and stands the test of time.

You should have a highly skilled team who can give you the best from their experience. All my labour has at least 10-15 years experience. If you want to produce a quality product, you need to have a skilled team. They can give you valuable suggestions for improvement.

Lastly, you must make allowances for human error or poor judgment and know how to fire-fight difficult situations.

Remember, you can write your own destiny through commitment and hard work.

Disclaimer: This article is based solely on the inputs shared by the featured member. GlobalLinker does not necessarily endorse the views, opinions & facts stated by the member.