Untiring perseverance!

Ramani Kangaraarachchi

In any country giant companies emerge, flourish and perish after sometime.

Thereafter small companies take up those positions and take the lead role. If a country has a system to groom and guide new entrepreneurs not only the people but also the country will flourish as a nation.

SM Enterprises is an upcoming company manufacturing steel furniture which has a huge potential to grow. Daily News Business interviewed its Chairman Mahinda Amarasinghe at his factory in the Industrial Park in Homagama.

Amarasinghe ,the youngest of the family of nine from Borella had his primary education at Borella Susamayawardana Vidyalaya. That time he was living closer to the Golfclub and became friendly with the then Chairman Arpico Ian Pieris when he came to play Golf. The 19 year old Amarasinghe was offered an employment at Arpico which he readily accepted and worked for four years.

Then he got the opportunity to go abroad for a better job in a company in Middle East with the help of Senaka Senanayake where he worked for another five years.

On his return in 1994 the son of Ian Pieris, then CEO of Arpico Ranil Pieris called him back to Arpico and gave the responsibility of handling the labour issues in the company. Amarasinghe was able to win the confidence of the management by working very hard with utmost loyalty and dedication. Fortune may have struck him as a result of his genuineness and good work.

"That time Arpico had a steel furniture manufacturing plant in Maharagama which was running at a loss. The management decided to sell that plant and asked whether I could buy it. I did not have sufficient money and the CEO Ranil Pieris helped me to a greater extent financially and with necessary infrastructure.

Finally I accepted the task and the steel furniture plant continued to operate under me at the same place. I absorbed all the employees worked and my total production was purchased by Arpico and sold under their brand name and the market for my products were readily available. Up to date ninety nine per cent of my products are sold at Arpico showrooms with the support of the present management, explaining how he gained access to a higher echelon in the business arena, paying a sincere tribute to all those who helped him to reach that position.

"I have always supplied high quality products on time and never let down the management, he said. His initial investment was Rs. 300 million to purchase the machinery and put up a factory at the present location which he owns.

His monthly turnover is about Rs five million but with a small profit margin.

Amarasinghe is happy that he has never applied for a bank loan to develop the business and has paid all dues to individuals who helped him. "I don't owe anything to anybody today and because of that I have peace in mind and my business is steady although slow.

His steel furniture products include over fifty items ranging from tables and chairs to beds and ornamental items. He has been able to give about forty direct employment opportunities and around twenty five indirect employment in his company.

Asked about the barriers or bottlenecks he had from the inception he said that he could not get electricity supply to the new factory for six months and had to borrow a generator from a generous person called Tissa Jayasinghe who helped him.

Questioned about his future plans he said that he loves to have his own brand name for his products in the market but this is not the time to do it. And he has no idea about what should be done.

There are number of organisations in the country who should support medium category entrepreneurs but unfortunately any of those organisations have not even seen or heard about SM Enterprises up to now. If more support is given to rising entrepreneurs like us, I would have been in a better position, Amerasinghe said in a sad note.

However, if I came across a such a business minded person with perseverance I would definitely help him Amarasinghe concluded.