dear panditji and others,
i am not the type who reads or follows such web sites not because of any particular reason but just because i don't have the time to read or write on them. however as i was browsing for something else, i found this thread about panditji feeling "sad" about me and "who made his money in india" sets up a retail shop in recession hit uk....etc etc.
truth is bitter but has to be told.for me cadence is not just passion but something for which i have now dedicated 25 years of my life and continue to do so.
coming to the various comments i have to set the record straight.
india is a very strange and difficult market for high end audio to grow let alone flourish in the medium term.
there are various reason in my opinion for that. apart from you audiophiles there is very little understanding of what high quality audio is,what joy it can provide and what it truly means. more so in this age of instant gratification what with downloads,rip rap and the other.therefore market segments and categories get blurred. i am sure many of you will remember the days when the opel was launched in india as a premium luxury car!
second cadence never made any money in india in all its years of existence and that is when after about 16 years of working in india we took the decision to grow through acquisitions with out global partners. it is only then that the business really has seen the light of viability.
india as a market is also fraught with a lot of other issues peculiar to this market. first the high import taxes and duties and other local taxes. but that is something the government has decided as a policy, so there is very little that anyone can do much about,let alone a micro industry like high end audio.
then of course the lack of a well established trade and trade channels. point me to 5 dealers who will invest in product and gear and a proper place to afford the intending buyer to experience the products in a proper environment and i will open the 5 spendor dealerships tomorrow..again a proper dealer who will put his commitment behind the product both financial and support wise.
then we have the proverbial issue of the indian buyer and his obsession with discounts!
or, of course there is always the option for many who have friends/relatives/wellwishers living abroad and they can always bring in stuff during their next vists to india for their beloveds, neatly packed in their suitcases and exit through the green channel!
and then, of course if we do find someone who is immune to these issues he or she in most cases, when the time does come to put one's hand to the wallet will always ask the question...."can i pay in cash.....so i will at least save the vat and entry tax"
the global high end audio business and i speak of high end,where a typical system price i consider to be of the order of 5 lacs of rupees or above, is growing only at the rate of 1 to 2 percent annually,closer to one than 2.
within that 1 to two percent growth, lost somewhere is the indian market.
25 years of presence and trying to tap it in every which way has made us wiser that for the moment at least it is a waste of effort and energy given the returns it provides.so those who still want a cadence family product will find their way to us, and we try to do our very best for them.
this may sound arrogant but believe me it is not. it is a summation of someone who has been in this business for almost a quarter of a century now.
so given the peculiarities and very different circumstances that we find we are unfit to cope with, and run a fair and ethical business, we chose to do it our way.
finally the only thing that to my mind is sad is that instead of being happy that cadence is the only indian company that encompasses research,development,production,and now retail spanning three continents with four production facilities,and owns historic brands that have been around for over 4 decades and more at the top,panditji is sad!
sincerely,
ajay shirke
) had a splendid Quad pre/power setup with Tannoy speakers. I didn't know enough about anything at the time to have any idea what it was worth, and I suppose I still don't know --- but, here was a guy who was professionally and personally seriously into sound. 
