BS People: R Dinesh

Blending logistics & M&As to build a spare parts business

The $6.6-billion TVS Group was always seen as a conservative group in the country, especially when it comes to expanding global footprint through acquisitions. However, in the past years, a few leading companies in the group went ahead and established their presence in several overseas markets.

While several TVS family members as heads of different companies have been charting growth plans, one person, who has been hitting the headlines in the recent times is R Dinesh (46), who hails from the TVS family and is the managing director of TVS Logistics Services Ltd, since 2008. Besides, he also serves as the Joint Managing Director of TVS & Sons Ltd and heads various other businesses that come under these companies. Currently, the companies under his management have a turnover of around Rs 6,000 crore.

One of the core businesses, he heads is TVS Logistics, earlier a business unit of TV Sundram Iyengar and Sons. TVS Logistics was established as a separate firm in December 2004. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and TVS Capital Funds Ltd are minority stakeholders. The company made two acquisitions; one is in US and other in Europe in the last three years.

A soft-spoken Dinesh is on the forefront of acquisitions in a couple of businesses of TVS Group. It recently acquired Universal Components UK Ltd, a wholesale distributor of commercial vehicles' parts and accessories in Britain, for Rs 100 crore. The acquisition was made by TVS Europe Distribution UK Ltd, formed by the Group companies, Srichakra Tyres and Associated Autoparts.

“The acquisition will bring in its marketing, forecasting and IT capabilities in commercial vehicle parts business to TVS' after-market component business in India,” said Dinesh, a day after announcing the deal.

The deal is also expected to help TVS develop its business in the LCV spare parts range in other Asian markets such as Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. “We want to be an Asia-focused after-market distributor with global scale and strong in marketing,” said Dinesh. Universal Components acquisition will be the second by the TVS Group after the buyout of Multipart Holdings in 2009. “With these two acquisitions, the group's turnover will cross around Rs 1,000 crore in the UK,” said Dinesh.

TVS Europe is now looking at acquisition opportunities in Turkey and in Scandinavia, said Richard Slee, CEO, TVS Europe.