WheelOCity: Riding his dream

A car enthusiast since childhood, Manoj Lalwani quit his thriving practice as an advocate and  ventured in the automobile industry. With the help of his family owned company, V J Automobiles that dealt in two wheelers, he set up Ritu Automobiles to capture the four-wheeler market. Speaking about the switch in profession, Lalwani explains, "I loved my practice as a lawyer but my love for cars was greater. When I started, I had no experience but my enthusiasm and curiosity won over the automobile brands who decided to associate with me. And till date, I have always exceeded their expectations."

His vibrant personality spills on to his business, just like the lively colours he wears, symbolising his fearless attitude and dreaming big. Talking about his family's decade-long journey in the two-wheeler business, Lalwani shares, "When we started in 2002, we started small. Now we sell about 2000 motorcycles and service 10,000 vehicles in a month. We also have two other branches at Dombivali and Badlapur." V J Automobiles has also been awarded the best dealer in the western region from Honda motorcycles for the past two consecutive years, he adds.
The chance encounter with Anil Jagtiani, a veteran in the automobile industry, at Rotary Club, who was later appointed as the CEO of Ritu Automobiles, further cemented Lalwani's decision to conquer the four-wheeler market. With Nissan and Hyundai in his kitty, Lalwani  established a state-of-the-art infrastructure for his dealerships. He says, "The Hyundai dealership at Kalyan has the four 'S' facilities—sales, services, spare parts and stockyard, under one roof. The advantage is that the customer gets to inspect a wider variety of models and colours rather than only colour plates in smaller dealerships, who cannot stock up all models."

What sets this company apart is the use of latest technology to promote transparency and efficiency in its customer dealings.

"Our workshop is fully automated and computerised. The oil management system rounds in on the exact refill required and generates a bill automatically. Thus, there is no scope for overcharging the customer. The crush repair system with robotic arms can, in a matter of minutes, get the car back to its original frame that was damaged. Thus, by exploiting the latest technology we are saving time and gaining the trust of our customers," says Lalwani. Building long term customer relations and keeping their promise has also been their key to success. "A single satisfied customer will bring in ten customers through word of mouth advertising and a single dissatisfied one will in turn, take away ten customers. So we deliver what we promise to our customers," he says. 

Lalwani believes that following the parent company's norms and policies and learning from their experience plays a pivotal role in success of his company. "I believe in my parent manufacturer's policies as its experience is vast. Because of which we are exceeding our companies’ targets and that gives me immense joy," he smiles.
Being a movie buff and a cricket fan, Lalwani believes that business is also a team game. "I could not have come this far without my family's support. My wife, Ritika is in the truest sense my better half and supports me in daily activities, Human Resource management and the overall administration. My brother Anil takes care of the two-wheeler business. My family gives me the energy to work seven days a week."

A great believer in nurturing talent and manpower retention, Lalwani swears by his staff members, who have stood by him for the last ten years. "My staff is like my family and I personally attend all their family functions. We share our highs and lows together and this is what has shaped us into a team." Talking about how he manages different brands, he says, "Everyone in my team is an expert in their own field and there is delegation and compartmentalisation of duties. As a result there is no conflict of interests while handling multiple brands across various segments."

With  ten years of experience, Lalwani says that there is a lot of potential for growth in the automobile business as the Indian economy is still booming. "We were fortunate to make an entry in this segment at an opportune moment and have been able to encash in on the aspirations of the middle-class to own a car. In  a month's time our 22,000 square feet, five storey workshop  exclusively for Honda motorcycles will be operational. We have plans to add more branches and expand our customer base," announces Lalwani, who has never shied of making his dreams a reality.