Cover Story

Car market flips over as sales fall for the first time in a decade

Car market shrinks; Confusion reigns; Petrol cars lose market; Diesel prices rise; Higher excise hobbles SUVs; Hatchbacks hit a wall; and new capacity may lie idle.

Review: Portronics Pure Sound Pro and Dell Latitude 6430U

Phone docks and sounds bars are becoming more popular than traditional music systems, thanks to their size and the multiplicity of connectivity options they offer. The Dell Latitude 6430U is sleek, lightweight, stylish, and above all, powerful

People who made news last fornight

Starring: Pat Gelsinger, Chitra Ramkrishna, D. Shivakumar, Anant Agarwal, Tony Tyler

Su-Kam Power Systems Kunwer Sachdev shares notes on his leadership style

Kunwer Sachdev, MD, Su-Kam Power Systems Ltd shares notes on his leadership style.

Book review: How Stella Saved the Farm

A fable about both the need for innovation and the challenges in implementing it.

Transiting from the digital to the physical world, and vice versa, getting easier

Transiting from the digital to the physical world, and vice versa, is getting easier.

EID Parry case study: Best response

BT receives scores of responses to its case studies. Below isthe best one on EID Parry (March 3, 2013)

Readers views on magazine stories

Your cover story (Face Value Rs 100 crore, April 14 ) highlights how aspiration and consumerism are driving the holy grail of celebrity branding.

Global policies should shift resources from investment to consumption

For domestic demand to act as an engine of growth, policies should shift resources from investment to consumption.

Novartis case judgement strikes the right balance between public and inventor interest

The apex court's judgment in the Novartis case strikes the right balance between public and inventor interest.

Indian handset makers may have to pay for patented technologies

Indian handset makers may have to reconcile themselves to paying for patented technologies.

Advertising industry's obsession with awards may prove costly

Increasingly, submissions for annual advertising industry awards are created for the sole purpose of entering events, a trend that is proving costly in many ways.

Centre partially decontrols sugar, states must now act

In a historic move, the Centre lifts some of the controls on the sugar industry. The states must now act.

Why the current-account deficit has ballooned to record size, and the danger this poses.

Among the various measures government has suggested is banning gold imports for 6 month to a year. Experts say the government should take measures to boost exports as well as raise fuel prices and open up mining of coal and iron ore to attract foreign investment.

Novartis ruling sets the tone for other patent disputes

The Supreme Court decision on Glivec sets the tone for other patent disputes and puts global drugmakers on the back foot.

Is the telecom pact between Mukesh and Anil Ambani a beginning of mutually beneficial deals?

The telecom pact may just be the beginning of mutually beneficial deals between Mukesh and Anil Ambani.

News that you may have missed last fortnight

Broadcaster Multi Screen Media has roped in 11 sponsors and 80 per cent of its ad inventory has been sold.

How ISKCON is trying to raise the culinary consciousness

Its Bangalore temple offers 1,200 recipes all of which promote what it calls sattvic vegetarianism. ISKCON's cuisine includes no garlic, onion, high-protein pulses and caffeinated drinks. Various centres of the movement run 100 such restaurants around the world.

Private equity fund Actis Capital has helped Indian companies scale up to the next level

Private equity fund Actis Capital has helped Indian companies such as Paras Pharmaceuticals and Nilgiri's, which were stuck in a groove, scale up to the next level.

Big studios find low-budget movies an attractive proposition

The film industry transforms as big studios find low-budget movies an attractive proposition. The success of low-budget films has prompted big studios and production houses to take a new look at their business models that until a couple of years ago bet mostly on big budget films involving top actors.

Economic conditions are picking up, says Business Confidence Survey

The grey clouds may not have disappeared, but optimism has risen for the third quarter in a row, finds the latest Business Today-C fore Business Confidence Survey.

How hotels are coping with the downturn

As the hospitality industry struggles with declining occupancy and rising operating costs, it is investing in mid-market and budget categories and working out new models to keep growing.

Narendra Modi vs Nitish Kumar: Who makes for a better PM

Who makes a better choice as prime minister: Narendra Modi or Nitish Kumar? Examine their track records.

Was Rahul Gandhi able to impress business tycoons

Business tycoons were looking for clues to Rahul Gandhi's economic vision, but he did not go into specifics in his address to the CII.

Why cross-badging or selling the same car with cosmetic changes does not work in India

Cross-badging,or selling the same car with cosmetic changes under different brand names, has not worked so far in India. This case study looks at where the problem lies: is the strategy at fault or the execution?

Ankur Scientific Energy Technologies wins in Star SME (Small) Star SME Manufacturing (Small) categories

Ankur Scientific has now become a well-recognised name in gasifiers not just in India, but also in Europe and the rest of Asia. It closed 2011/12 with sales of Rs 34.7 crore and profit after tax of Rs 4.6 crore.

DFM Foods wins in Star SME (Medium) Star SME Agriculture (Medium) categories

Today, the company makes packaged snacks under three main brands - CRAX corn rings, Natkhat wheat puffs, and CRAX Namkeens - at its two plants in Greater Noida and Ghaziabad, on the outskirts of Delhi.

BT-YES Bank survey of India's Best SMEs

The cachet of the BT-YES Bank Best SME Survey and Awards has grown over the years: the number of companies applying for this recognition jumped to 410,000 in 2012 from just 8,000 when the awards were started in 2009. Here is a look at the star performers. Full coverage

Best SME for Innovation (Medium) 2013: Emmbi Polyarns

Emmbi Polyarns company profits from plastic's capacity for endless recycling

Best SME Social and Environmental Responsibility (Medium): Omega Elevators

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Star SME Services (Medium): Shalby Ltd

Shalby has enormous room to grow: the Indian health-care delivery market is poised to expand more than six times between 2011 and 2021 to $84.2 billion, according to a December 2012 report by PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Aastha Minmet India Ltd gets Star SME (Medium) award

Quick returns from trading coal on the commodity exchange have made the difference.

Chem Process System wins in Star SME Manufacturing (Medium) category

This maker of engineering equipment has been growing rapidly.

North Eastern Medical Research Institute wins in Best SME in Northeast India category

Complete transparency in financial dealings sets Arya Hospital apart.

Yennai Hydrocarbon wins in Best SME Social and Environmental Responsibility (Small) category

Staff safety and a sustainable environment are the company's top priorities.

SL Packaging Pvt Ltd wins in Star SME Trading (Small) category

This Kolkata company is eyeing the global market and expanding domestic operations.

Best small and medium enterprises 2013: How We Did It

The scale of the annual Business Today-YES Bank Best SME Survey and Awards gets bigger with every passing year.