M Purushoutham
Darshan Joshi, Founder, ULTRA WATER PURIFIER
Clean, potable water is a necessity anywhere in the world. But in most parts of India, it’s a luxury. Water scarcity is one of the reasons, the bigger problem is that of water filters and purifier not performing as desired. Products simply copied from the west are sold as solutions here. When problems arise, clients are asked to call a number only to be passed on to an AMC team which knows nothing about the product and is interested only in an AMC!
In all, a necessity becomes a luxury in the Indian context.
In Pune and some parts of Maharashtra, this situation is being challenged by a home-grown enterprise Pure H2O which has in its driver’s seat, an Indian technocrat-entrepreneur Mr Darshan Padmanabh Joshi. With 17 years spent in the water treatment & purification industry with known names like Ion Exchange and Millipore, he has no shortage of the right kind of experience.
He planned to be a businessman right from his first job. Gaining knowledge and relevant experience, he took the plunge in 2004 from a small room and just one assistant. Today, a decade later, he has over 15 employees occupying a fully functional office. In some years, he plans to double his staff strength which shall include his very own R & D dept!
With more than 10,000 regular clients, he is a known name in the industry where clients value his good work and amazing product and who these days are his biggest salesmen! His products are used in homes, offices, hotels, malls and canteens, hospitals besides schools and purely industrial set-ups.
Water for purification typically comes from two sources. Municipal corporations and directly from wells and other ground-water source. The latter in most cases yields hard water. Pure H2O customizes its products to fit the clients’ needs using membrane technology, the best and latest in water purification which in addition does not need electricity. While keeping costs low, it yields water of the purest quality. This technology incidentally remains miles ahead of what others in the field, including known MNCs sell and is their highest USP! Besides, water filters and purifiers, their products also have refrigerators-cum-water heaters.
An in-house testing lab to test water before and after their product is installed for issues like alkalinity and bacteria loads is another high-point. Alkaline water being the new “in” thing, Mr Darshan Joshi also lectures his clients on the need for alkaline water and how best to use it.
Other USPs include an extensive CRM system to keep track of client’s service visits besides informing them on topics of interest, and a service card system keeping track of clients’ expense and service requests for the past 5 years. Something very unique in this competitive industry is the emphasis on service deliveries. Cold called from clients are attended almost immediately.
India’s thirst for clean drinking water will continue for quite some time guaranteeing a YOY growth of 20%- 25%. Pure H2O intends to be in this space with a bigger set-up, higher production and newer strategies to take up newer challenges. Their latest offering is water purifiers with steel tanks to counter Government’s demand for zero plastics in potable water& shall be launched during the Navaratras.
The industry being promising, competition isn’t far. Experience has taught Mr Joshi to take competition in the right spirit. Pure H2O doesn’t sign contracts just to increase sales but to give people genuine solutions. Here, everything from product installation to after-sales for years takes place in-house with Pure H2O’s own staff– reason no client ever leaves them. In fact, they only get more! Complexity of a job interests him which he has learnt to breakdown into manageable parts to be approached one at a time. In time, things fall in place and work get done. As for his Clients, they remain with him!
Ask Mr Joshi who his ideal client is. According to him, it’s the one who remains informed about their needs. We over emphasize on the performance of cars and bikes but under-emphasise on water purifying systems! Copied products are then sold by competitors because right questions are never asked. To this end, he takes great pains to inform his clients, and all those ready to listen, about the right technology in water filtration and purification- another USP of Pure H2O!
His vision and success mantras aren’t written on a wall but in his heart. He forever questions his products and services quality, and their prices and is sure of one thing. To be there with his clients and helping them choose the right water filtration system remains his endeavour.
Despite the presence of MNCs, Pure H2O has held its ground by advertising on e-commerce platforms like indiamart, sulekha, justdial etc and extensive presence on facebook besides their own website.
As for the role of money in business, he says business is for money though initially it may seem tight to come by. But with the right strategies, product mixes and excellent customer services, clients can be developed and retained leading to monetary growth. Things though change when plans are to go big. One must then prepare well taking into account every aspect. Loans and equities bring not only money but also responsibilities for which one must be prepared.
His Success Mantra? Do your job well and then sit before the client for their feedback. Continue this practice forever.
His words for any budding entrepreneur: Gain knowledge of the market including competition, their products and sales strategies, know your product inside-out including its life-cycle and peg your margins right. Most of all, DARE! It helps!
pureh2osystems1@gmail.com
www.pureh2osystems.co.in
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