Bhubaneswar: Slowdown woes

The capital city of Orissa, Bhubaneswar boasts of an immensely rich heritage, being home to a large number of beautifully sculptured temples and monuments. It is also an important economic center for Orissa attracting large number of tourists, historians and scholars. The city is an amalgamation of ancient and modern Orissa. The Adivasi Mela, held in Bhubaneswar every year, depicts the rich artifacts, tradition, culture, and music of the tribal inhabitants of Orissa. Besides being rich historically, the city is also booming in other sectors, also being the Information Technology hub of Orissa.

Clouds of slump, like most of the other cities, are looming over the Bhubaneswar market too. "Business is very mild and the market is obviously not in flow. It is lying dead since Dussehra," lamented Arun Kumar Sutar of Global Systems & Services. Similar views were expressed by Debashish Patra, CEO, Emart 4 You and Brahma Prakash Mishra, CEO, Targous Technology. "Our market is no different than what is happening in other parts of the nation. There is almost a zero customer footfall," commented Mishra.

Education is a prominent business vertical, owing to a good number of engineering and other colleges in the capital. Bhubaneswar roughly witnesses a sale of around 5000-6500 laptops and 3000 desktops annually. Products of preference include laptops, tablets, and peripherals. "Laptop to desktop ratio stands at 98:2. Brandwise, Lenovo is doing a better business," informed Sutar. According to Patra, who is into retail, customers generally eye for tablets and laptops, the ruling players being Dell, HP, and Sony.

The market has around 400 active dealers, of which 196 are members of the Information Technology of Odisha (ITAO). The association, as per most of the dealers, is quite active and aids in solving issues. However, there are some who are not happy with its operations. On the vendor-dealer front, there are currently no major problems faced by the dealers have amicable ties with the vendors.

Stumped by a bleak market, dealers and distributors refrain from making any predictions about the market in the coming times.

Market Name: Bhubaneswar
Market Location: Orissa
Surrounding Markets: Cuttack, Sambalpur, Kolkata
Computer Association: Information Technology Association of Orissa (ITAO)
Prominent Dealers: Global Systems & Services, Emart 4 You, Targous Technology, E Square Systems & Technologies, Info World, SA Infosys, Suyog Computech, Portal Infotech, Printlink Computer and Communication
Business Verticals: Education
No of dealers: 300-400

Interview 1:
Arun Kumar Sutar, CEO, Global Systems & Services and executive member, ITAO

What is the market scenario at present?
The market has been in a very bad shape, lying dead almost since Dussehra last year.

What are the leading products in your city?
Laptops and peripherals sell more.

Do you face any problems with the vendors?
Right now, I am not facing any problems.

Interview 2:

Debashish Patra, CEO, Emart 4 You

What are the brands of preference in the city?
Dell, HP, and Sony

What are your market predictions for the year?
Market is dizzy; it is very difficult to predict how is it going to be in the coming times.

Interview 3:

Brahma Prakash Mishra, CEO, Targous Technology

How is the market faring right now?
It is not faring good at all; customer footfall is poor.

What are the business verticals of our city?
Education is the primary vertical.

How many units of laptops and desktops are sold annually?
Around 5,000 and 3,000 units of laptops and desktops respectively.