Liquid Instruments is an Australian test and measurement company that has developed a revolutionary all-in-one test and measurement device for professional scientists and engineers. Prof. Daniel Shaddock, CEO, Liquid Instruments, shares with Baishakhi Dutta, senior business journalist, Electronics Bazaar, how the company is set to foray into the highly competitive Indian market and bring about a change in the T&M domain.
EB: How do you view the Indian market?
With the world’s second largest population of over 1.3 billion people and one of the world’s top ten economies, India is certainly a market to watch out for. India’s growing focus on and increasing investments in advanced technologies, along with highly promising economic and political reforms, are the major contributing factors in attracting companies like us to explore the Indian market.
EB: What potential do you see for your products in India?
With about 50,000 higher education institutions and R&D centres investing an excess of US$ 66.5 billion, the Indian market is extremely lucrative for our company as the education and R&D sectors are our key target segments.
EB: For how long have you been doing business with Indian companies?
The Indian market has been on our watchlist for about a year now but we started getting involved actively only a few months back. We have just signed a distribution agreement with a highly reputed company based in Bengaluru.
EB: How has business in India been for you so far?
Having entered this market very recently, we are yet to see our strategies unfold in reality. However, since our product has already been sold to prestigious institutions including the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) and the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), we are highly optimistic about making many more such sales in the upcoming months.
EB: What markets do you plan to target?
Due to the all-inclusive nature of our product, the target markets include electronics, industrial, automotive, aerospace and defence.
EB: Which are the top three countries that you export to?
At present, USA, Germany and Japan are the countries we export the most to.
EB: What are the typical roadblocks you feel you could encounter in the Indian market?
A major challenge we anticipate in India is the high import tariffs. Despite our product pricing being highly competitive, the high import tariffs could potentially deter some clients from the non-profit segment.
EB: How do you promote your products in India?
Exhibitions are at the core of our sales and marketing promotion strategy, in general. As an example, we recently exhibited at an Indian show. This was the first time our company participated in a trade show and the results exceeded our expectations. Exhibitions are giving us massive brand awareness and exposure, and are helping us launch our products in India.
EB: How many local partners do you have in India now?
Like I mentioned earlier, we currently have only one local distribution partner in India (Bengaluru). However, we have been approached by several potential distributors. Currently, we do not offer exclusive distributorships but, at the same time, our strategy is not to engage multiple distributors within the same region.
EB: Are you seeking to further increase your presence in India?
Geographically, India is a huge country for any one distributor to fully conquer. As such, we are very keen to establish our presence in different states all over India with trusted distribution partners.
EB: What qualities do you look for in distributors that you hope to work with?
Ideally, we are looking for distributors in the test and measurement (T&M) space. However, distributors with businesses in the electronics and semiconductor industry or with a similar background, as well as the vision to sell our products across a wide range of applications, are certainly favoured.
EB: Are you planning to set up your own office in India?
That really depends on how successful we are in the Indian market. In the short to medium term, we envisage working very closely with local distribution partners to build a strong brand equity through high quality products and after-sales support. In the long term, contingent upon business success, we potentially could set up our own office or branches throughout India.
