Big Interview
India’s exhibition
tiger king
avinder Sethi is an icon
in the global exhibition
industry; a man of
immense business
acumen, he has played leading roles
in a range of industry associations
over many years. As well as building
his own logistics company in India,
he has played a key role in lobbying
to raise the industry’s interests with
government and to raise standards
across the board.
His story began in Cairo, where
he was born the son of a career
diplomat. He travelled extensively in
his early years and gained a Masters
in Business Economics from Delhi
School of Economics, University of
Delhi.
Sethi says that the various
travelling experiences of his youth
both enhanced his knowledge and
helped him mature. “It was a practical
education which is unattainable in
any university in the world.”
For long now a familiar face at the
exhibition industry high table, he tells
EW he first got into the exhibition
logistics arena in 1977, going on to
establish R.E. Rogers India in 1986,
along with his wife, Kiran.
So, how did R.E. Rogers come into
being?
“China opened up in the early ‘70s,
with the UK government supporting
groups taking part in exhibitions
there. Five disgruntled employees of
a UK forwarding company, sitting in
a bar in China, decided to set up an
exhibition logistics company in 1975
to service these groups. One of them
was R.E. (Bob) Rogers. The true form
of exhibition logistics was born right
there.
“Bob’s initial expansion was
in China and the Far East. Things
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changed in the early ‘80s, when India
opened up. RER UK got appointed for
some shows in India and worked with
an agent, Continental Carriers, where
I was General Manager.”
RER UK later realised it was
preferential to have their own
India set-up. At that time local laws
prohibited foreign equity in the
service sector (this restriction has long
gone) but Bob Rogers had total faith
and trust in Sethi. Indeed, ‘fate’ and
‘trust’ have been key watchwords for
Sethi throughout his illustrious career.
He confesses that with no real
business background at the time he
was hesitant to take the step. “But,
with a bit of persuasion, I formed a
100% Indian company in May 1986,
with me, my wife, and father as the
key promoters.”
It didn’t take long for RER to
become a force to reckoned with and
market leaders in India.
He says all credit for him being
referred to as the ‘King of Logistics’
goes to his “great team”.
“I’ll be seen as being prejudiced in
saying it but they’re the best in the
world and I’m so proud to captain
them.”
The captain, today, has more than
one string to his exhibition bow, of
course, and is a founder member of
the IEIA (Indian Exhibition Industry
Association).
As he built the organisation,
Sethi said a goal was to ensure new
entrants didn’t get bogged down
with bureaucracy and logistics. “It
wasn’t easy. We evolved new rules
and systems in play with government
support – to make it less bureaucratic.
At the same time we introduced the
Western site logistics concept. In fact,
we perfected it.
Ravinder
Sethi’s
‘mantras’ of
success:
— Lead the
way and set
the rules
— Set quality
standards
for others to
follow
— Keep pace
with the
technical
and digital
revolution
— Maintain
relationships,
both
internally and
externally
— Retain our
culture and
humility.
“But, at the macro level, something
big was lacking. Some years had
passed and I saw that organisers,
venues and service providers were
not acting together in doing things for
our industry.
“That is when a few of us got
together and formed the IEIA. With
my global exposure, I was able to
attract several inputs to bring about a
right association mix for our needs.”
He has clearly spent a lot of time,
effort, and money on the IEIA over
the years. Why?
“One simply had to invest back into
the industry for us all to benefit,” he
says.
Sethi is also active in UFI, AFECA,
IAEE and more, and is often referred
to as India’s global industry brand
ambassador.
“My initial involvement in
global associations was limited to
networking and picking up bits and
pieces of knowledge,” he admits.
“That changed fast when I saw the
extent of negativity about India at
these forums. My patriotism would
get the better of me.”
Sethi has been flying the
flag strongly ever since, giving
presentations, bringing in delegations,
and, of course, holding top positions
in global associations.
He was on UFI’s Executive
Committee and now chairs its
Industry Partners Working Group;
he is on the AFECA Board and is one
of its Vice-Presidents; is prominent in
the IAEE and its Indian activities; and
is IEIA Vice-President.
“In the initial years, I was literally
the sole proponent of India. Things
have changed. We now have the IEIA
upfront at these forums, and Anbu is
soon to become UFI President.”
w w w.exhibitionworld.co.uk