A giant in electronics retail

Being a junior officer at a multi-national bank back in the 80s didn't satisfy C V Rappai's thirst for innovation; he instead focused on a startup business in electronics. What started out as a small store in Msheireb with three employees has now expanded to over 15 retail outlets and 1,000 employees in a span of 30 years. The journey has been exciting, tiring and extremely satisfying, he says. There have been countless challenges to bring as many as 30 brands under one umbrella, but the passion for innovation prevailed. "We believe in offering personalised service and retaining customers," he says.

Customer satisfaction Innovation, service, growth and customer satisfaction are the four important pillars of success, according to Rappai. At a time when trade exhibitions were the only way to communicate with other businesses, Jumbo Electronics made a name for itself in this niche market by being the only store to provide customised solutions to households and become a one-stop shop for Qataris and expats alike. The first brand to be retailed at their stores was the Italian brand Indesit. "Once you have a distributorship of a brand, it literally means ownership," says Rappai. The store then added LG (Goldstar at the time) to their portfolio in 1986; today the group holds a major market share in consumer electronics. Other major brands associated with the group being their sole distributors are JBL, Harman Kardon, Brother, Kenwood and Ariston. With emphasis on making the store a destination for every household, it became even more important to retain customers. "Once a customer, always our customer," is the motto of personalised shopping that all employees at the group's retail stores follow. Showroom visits, home delivery, service calls, installations and retail outlets all add up to the 2,000 customers who are served on a daily basis. When it comes to handling customer grievances, everyone from top level management to the salespeople in the outlets are involved, according to Rappai. The group also owns warehouses and logistic facilities which spread to over 20,000 sqm with a fleet of 150 vehicles for delivery, distribution and after-sales services. The estimated turnover for the year 2014-15 was QR 635 million and the projected turnover could rise up to QR 750 million for the current year of 2015-16. "Our goal is to become a billion dollar company by 2017-18," he says.