The world of management in a store
As soon as you step into The Management Shopee tucked away in a quiet Miramar lane, you can’t help but feel comforted by the coziness the place exudes. Initiated by Kishore Shah, director of ideaz Unlimited, The Management Shoppee has given business and other professionals much to cheer about.
Coming from an engineering background, but specializing in marketing, human resources and organizational development, Kishore has previously worked with some of the top names in the industry including Wipro, Infotech, Tatas, Mahindra, Syngenta, Kimberly Clark, etc. to provide extensive organizational development activities. It was during his stint as a management consultant that he discovered there was a gap between professionals and the literary world and decided to bridge this gap. In 2010, he opened The Management Shoppee.
He initially started it as a competency based library, where business professionals could find some of the latest books based on topics varying from business strategy to time management and leadership. Overwhelmed by the response he received, mostly by word of mouth and via monthly newsletters, Kishore decided to expand his venture. Today, The Management Shoppee is a full-fledged book store which is not only management specific, but covers almost every topic possible, right from fiction to food and even autobiographies. Interestingly, they were the first bookstore in Goa to stock Wendell Rodricks’ Moda Goa. “If a customer wants a particular book and we don’t have it, we make sure we get it, even if we have to import it. Though at times it may not be profitable, I do this out of love and passion for what I do,” says Kishore.
Another unique venture of The Management Shoppee is its tie-ups with various government colleges. “The procedure is quite lengthy for a government college to purchase books. Through tie-ups with colleges, we lend books based on trust. This way the lecturers can read the particular books and then decide whether or not they need to purchase it for the college. This mainly helps in reducing the risk of purchasing wrong or irrelevant books,” he explains.
Their main aim at The Management Shoppee is to bring in new books every month. Through their networking connections with various publishers from around the world, the store is able to obtain books from leading publications such as Cambridge, Yale, John Wiley and Sons etc. Over the last two years it has grown by leaps and bounds and now includes sections on project management, healthcare management, IT and rural management among others. Motivational products like posters and greeting cards on a range of themes are also available here.
But that’s not all there is to this place. An adventure enthusiast himself, Kishore has encompassed this passion, too, stocking and selling high-end adventure gear like ropes, harnesses, pulleys, safety helmets and tents. The store also has some never before seen products on offer like foldable buckets and portable and foldable geysers.
Apart from the amazing range of products you’ll find here, a very commendable feature are the employees. Mostly school drop-outs, Kishore has taken them under his wings, providing them not just employment, but also encouraging them to complete their studies side by side. “Not only are they enthusiastic about the job, they read a lot when they are here. They help customers find exactly what they are looking for and many times also refer other similar or interesting books,” he says proudly.
The future seems set for this enthusiastic entrepreneur. Kishore is currently working towards setting up mobile book stores that will visit various companies and thus enable business professionals to purchase necessary books out of the comfort of their own offices. On the adventure gear front, he says they will soon be offering end-to-end adventure gear solutions and even suggest agencies that specialize in organising hikes and other adventure sports. With all these interesting plans, Kishore is all set to create a revolution in the business world through literary knowledge while also enhancing adventure sports in the state