A Sage and a scorpion!

We have come to a quiet moment in our home this evening where my wife is, once again, chiding me for my stubbornness. "When will you learn?" she asks gently, seeing the exhaustion on my face. 

She is referring to my pathological habit of helping professionals in need. 

Over the last six months, I have provided employment, stability, and opportunity to eight different professionals. They were searching for a breakthrough, and I believed I could be the one to give it to them. 

Since July 2025, I have invested over INR 30 lakhs of my hard-earned capital into these individuals.

Today, not a single one is standing with me.

The journey was a painful lesson in human nature. I had to shake hands and part ways with several who simply remained unproductive. I let go of others because they failed to add value to my vision or—more importantly—to my clients. 

And then there were those who simply sat on the fence, watching other birds fly and conquer the world, doing absolutely nothing to progress. They consumed resources, but lacked the fire to build.

It deeply reminds me of the ancient fable, “The Sage and the Scorpion”.

As the story goes, a sage keeps rescuing a drowning scorpion, only to be stung each time. When asked why he continues, the sage replies that it is the scorpion's nature to sting, but it is his nature to save.

I am no sage, make no mistake. But these professionals bit me, one after the other, regardless of the lifeline I threw them.

Yet, as I sit here reflecting on the lost capital and the broken trust, I know my answer to my wife won't change. I will continue to help those in professional need. 

The scorpions will remain who they are, but I refuse to let their sting change who I am.

Offline Retail is here to stay!

We have come to a Tier 3 town for our summer vacation where my wife has built her small, retirement home.

Srirangam is an island which houses the oldest temple shrine on earth, feat. Lord Vishnu in reclining form.

 

HE was the kula devata of none other than Lord Shri Rama during Treta Yuga.

 

As we had guests coming home, I placed a request with the senior management of Vasanth and Co. on Sunday morning.

 

Within a few mins, the Area Manager called me, shared models and prices and within an hour, I had placed the order.

 

This was at 12 noon.

 

The unit from BlueStar arrived by 1pm, the cashier from the store arrived a few mins later - yes, you read that right.

 

By 5pm, two boys came to install and by 8pm, the unit was functioning.

 

Meanwhile, the Area Manager and the store manager called me to follow up on the installation work being carried out.

 

Now, this is not just efficiency.

This is culture.

 

A culture of Customer-first approach.

A culture of walking the extra mile.

A culture of do what you can to delight them.

 

A salesman turned entrepreneur, Late Shri. Vasanth Kumar was considered the epitome of hardwork and dedication.

 

Now, his children Ms. Thangamalar Jaganath and Mr. Vijay Vasanth are continuing the tradition.

 

100s of e-commerce or quick commerce companies cannot solve this.

 

Why?

 

Most Apps do not have a human interface. And that makes all the difference.

 

While this is not new, many CDIT players are not embracing this level of customer excellence.

 

I hope they do more. Not just to acquire new customers, but also to retain existing ones!

Indian Recession 2026?

4 Key states in India - Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Assam and Kerala go for polling during April 2026. The two-phase elections will be over by end of April. Results shall be announced on 4 May 2026.

In a recent report, Kotak Corporate, Institutional & Investment Banking projects a steep increase of a Rs 25–28 per litre of petrol and diesel. The crude oil is staying close to  USD 120 per barrel and given the situation, the cost of refining and selling fuel far exceeds current retail prices.

India’s Modi Government is funding INR 27,000 cr pm to bridge the gap between crude costs and retail prices, a figure that is simply not sustainable over an extended period.

In the days and weeks to come, expect a raise in transportation expenses, increased delivery charges, and influence demand in sectors like automobiles and rural markets.

To begin with, fruits and vegetables will get more expensive. And disproportionately This will impact what the Indian middle class households will buy; and how the Summer (vacation) of 2026 will unfold at homes. 

Eating out will become more expensive, with Restaurants passing over the incremental (procurement and distribution) costs to diners. 

Ordering food home will be a lot more expensive - expect additional delivery charges as the Gig workers will require higher incomes to cover higher petrol costs. 

With FMCG companies unable to increase distributors and retail margins immediately, the supply chain ecosystem will face a huge short- to mid-term (say 6 months) challenge, until MRP of products is revised in a phased manner ahead of Q3 Festival season. 

Vacations would get costlier. A 300-km drive to hometown during May and June will increase the cost of travel will setback the family by (300kms /15 kmpl = 20 litres * INR 25 incremental) INR 500 on an average. Toll rates across India have already been increased on 1 April 2026. 

While State Government-led transportation could increase the ticket prices a little, private bus operators will jump in! That means train tickets (for summer travel) would get more scarce, especially Tatkal bookings, even as more families would prefer train travel instead of buses or by taxis or personal vehicles. 

Expect a situation where the waiting time for EVs would get longer. Once the prices of fuel go up, more car owners would opt for a new or a second car for the family being an EV; upgrades from hatchbacks will now move towards EVs. 

Luxury cars (priced over INR 75 lakhs) & Premium passenger vehicles (priced between INR 30 - 75 lakhs) would upgrade only for a similar sized EV, with their ICE vehicles’ mileage already low and a disproportionate increase in fuel costs.

With a huge round of job losses recently in IT, Banking, FinTech and BPO looming large in India, several lakhs of people will find it difficult to demand an increment in salaries from their employers as part of revision for FY 26-27.

Are we headed for a recession?

Perhaps not immediately. 

It would take 3 months for Indians to adjust to the increase in fuel prices, with the already-high gold prices. But the shock will settle down in 4-6 months ahead of the festival season beginning August.  

Mind you, however, the fashion industry and Organised Retail - comprising largely apparel, accessories and footwear will take the worst hit over Q2 mostly. 

Brace up for a severe turbulence.