THE MELCOM STORY. 5 LESSONS TO LEARN.
Welcome to 10th January and the 10th Day of 2023. Following yesterday’s Melcom discussion on my Timeline, I feel the need to take a closer look at their Success Story and share some useful nuggets that will help entrepreneurs and individuals on their own journey to success and building a legacy for generations.
So here we go with THE MELCOM STORY. 5 LESSONS TO LEARN.
Please note that information shared here on the Melcom Group is not proprietary. It’s sourced from sources available to the public on their website.
Melcom was founded in 1989 by the late Bhagwan Khubchandani and Join Managing Director Mahesh Melwani who established and opened the doors of the first Melcom Limited store in Accra Central. Ever since, it’s evolved over 3 decades to a 51+ Superstores and Mini stores in 11 Regions out of the 16 Regions in Ghana.
Though Melcom started in 1989, the founder’s journey in Ghana actually began in 1929 in the then Gold Coast where he worked as a shop manager for 17 years before starting his own business called Glamour with his brother. In fact their history is well written on their website under the Founder’s Memoirs tab. That is one of the things I love about Melcom Group, they have documented and made public a lot of information. Whether for transparency or investors, it is a good practice worthy of emulation by other businesses.
Melcom Group with 5+ Subsidiaries and 30+ years in business serve over 20,000,000 clients annually with over 1 million of these clients being members of their Super Saver Loyalty Program. Melcom has over 50,000 customers entering their 12,500,000 retail space daily and also has 200% active user growth on their online platforms.
Indeed, the Melcom Success Story is truly inspirational and has so many lessons that are worth learning and imbibing in the way we do business. Below are my 5 lessons from their story:
1. LESSON 1 – VISION: Regardless of all the challenges the founder had from the beginning, losing their first Glamour store due to the Christiansborg Crossroads Shooting of 1948 that ushered in Ghana’s quest for independence resulted in the loss of law and order. Widespread looting caused them to lose everything and they became penniless overnight. Regardless, his vision persisted and today, the evidence of it is seen everywhere.
2. LESSON 2 – TRUST: When they lost everything without any money or insurance to start over with, it took the trust of one of their English suppliers who agreed to ship them goods without payment, trusting that they would honour their commitment. Trust in business is paramount to our success.
3. LESSON 3 – LEADERSHIP: Everything rises and falls on leadership; John C. Maxwell says. The success of Melcom is largely based on the excellent leadership of their founder and heads over the years. The success of leadership is evident in growth of the organisation which is what we see today.
4. LESSON 4 – CORPORATE CULTURE: Corporate culture refers to the beliefs and behaviors that determine how a company’s employees and management should interact and perform. It can affect employee hiring and retention, performance and productivity, business results, and company longevity. Melcom clearly has a culture of continuous growth and excellence, one of collaboration demonstrated through the Melcom Plus initiative which accommodates other brands and companies under one roof.
5. LESSON 5 – SUCCESSION PLANNING – In spite of the demise of the Founder in 2021, Melcom has continued to see tremendous growth and expansion at an astronomical rate and still succeeding in devise business and economic conditions. A quick look at their leadership on their website shows 2 Next Generation Leaders that are being trained and groomed to take up the mantle when the time is right. Unlike most businesses in Ghana that experience a decline when the founder passes on, Melcom’s succession plan continue to ensure sustainability and continuous growth.
So these are my 5 lessons learnt from the Melcom Ghana Success Story. I hope it helps you on your legacy building journey.
Is your ONE GOAL FOR 2023 to build a successful business? Join the One Goal for 2023 Campaign here: https://ripplesleadershiphub.com/onegoal2023/ and get access to the support you need to achieve your goal from mentors, coaches and consultants.
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