Doing Business in India For Dummies®

Plan Your Travels Carefully

If you have multiple branches or if you’re managing your Indian business from abroad, travel and logistics form an important part of your work. In Chanakya’s view, it formed an integral part of the king’s role too, and he had this advice to offer: “He should start after making proper arrangements for vehicles, draught-animals, and retinue of servants.”

These words are valid in today’s Indian business context, because transport and logistics hurdles are important ones to see and to clear. Sure, you won’t need draught-animals or a retinue of servants, but you do have to plan for your needs: look up plane and train timetables, budget for delays, book your hotel rooms in advance (see Chapter 10), and double check your product distribution and transportation structure. If you don’t plan your comings and goings (and those of your products) down to the last detail, you could have to pay heavily in terms of time, money, and frustration.