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| Tuesday, 4 November 2003 |
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Lanka's wood carving industry faces major problems - Kanwod MD by Shirajiv Sirimane
The Sri Lanka wood carving industry is facing major problems, said internationally acclaimed local woodcarver and Managing Director Kanwod (Pvt.) Ltd, Sanjaya Dolapihilla. The main reason for this is the fact that there are so many wood carvers and the high competition is bringing prices down. He said that he too is facing major financial problems as loans taken from banks have accumulated. "I am now being issued red notices one after another."
He said he started his business over 15 years ago in Homagama with an initial capital of Rs. 25,000. "The business was good and I employed nearly 50 employees." He undertook many projects including furnishing a part of the Trans Asia Hotel and the Army Camp in Homagama. Dolapihilla said that his wood creations were also used for a French film which was shot in Sri Lanka and for a US film which was shot in Malaysia. "I received many international orders and I knew that without new machinery I cannot supply these orders." Inspired by this success he went in for a major expansion program and obtained loans from banks to invest on new machinery. He went through painstaking procedures to obtain loans and he was sent from one bank to another to obtain this loan. "It took me nearly six months to obtain this loan and finally when I got the loan at very high interest I had lost some of my overseas orders." In a bid to cut down expenses he did away with some of his employees. "They started on their own and he lost some of his regular clients to his former employees." This did not bother him, as he was happy that at least they were prospering from the techniques he taught them. Dolapihilla said that a time came where he had no alternative but to sell his industry and settle the bank loan rather than ending up in jail. "With this in mind he placed an advertisement in the Sunday newspapers last month to sell his industry. "It was very surprising that on Saturday morning I received two calls simultaneously from Rome and Spain that two of his creations, which he forwarded to international woodcarving exhibitions, had won awards. He said that he has won the international award for the best trade name (New Millennium Award.) "This was awarded after opinion polls that were carried out among the 15,000 members of the Trade Leaders in 115 countries. Kanwod (Pvt.) Ltd was selected as a company with the best brand image from Asia. The awards ceremony for the international award for the best trade name will be held in Rome on November 19. The Editorial Office and the Trade Leaders' Club will make a public award presentation of the trophy to the selected companies during the lunch to be held of Hotel Melia Roma Aurlia Antica (Rome, Italy) on November 17. The ceremony will be presided over by the trade authorities, diplomatic representatives of the participating companies and representatives from forty countries. There will also be a working session to make a public presentation of the companies receiving awards in order to promote mutual knowledge and commercial relationships among all of the attending businessmen. The 'International Quality Crown' award is the second award won by this local entrepreneur from the Business Initiative Directions in Spain. The awards presentation will take place in London during the International Quality Crown Convention on Monday, December 1 at 6.30 p.m. in the Convention Hall at the Thistle Tower Hotel, one of the most modern and spectacular hotels in the United Kingdom. It will be attended by other companies from all over the world who will receive the awards in the gold, platinum and diamond categories, together with outstanding leaders from different business fields, quality experts, personalities in the realm of culture and members of the diplomatic corps. With its corporate programs, B.I.D., Business Initiative Directions, provides continuous endorsement to companies in 166 countries awarded in previous years which have benefited from the promotion generated by the B.I.D. International Quality Award. The award serves to increase public awareness of your company's commitment to quality, he said. He spent nearly Rs. 600,000 to attend these two ceremonies and he doesn't have money to even pay his visa fee. This is the plight of most of the Sri Lanka entrepreneurs who have launched self-employment projects. "They have the talent and innovation to match any international product but do not have the funds to forge ahead." |
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