On September 22, 2023, a momentous occasion unfolded as Mr. Vivek Dhawan, CEO & Chief Coach of Mega Lifesciences Public Company Limited and Founder of the Wellness We Care Center, was awarded ‘The Iconic of Life’ accolade by the Thai Lifestyle Medicine Association.

The award ceremony was a highlight of the 1st Thailand National Conference on Lifestyle Medicine and Holistic-Integrative Wellness Care, organized by the Department of Health under the Ministry of Public Health. The groundbreaking conference provided a platform for experts and leaders to share their wisdom and strategies for enhancing public health through the principles of lifestyle medicine.

This story is part of Forbes’ coverage of Asia’s Best Under A Billion 2023, which highlights 200 Asia-Pacific public companies with less than $1 billion in revenue and consistent top- and bottom-line growth. See the full list, sorted alphabetically, here.

This year’s annual Best Under A Billion list recognizes 200 small and midsized publicly traded companies in the region that outperformed despite stiff global headwinds like inflation and rising funding costs. The standouts are concentrated in chipmaking and related industries. Demand for semiconductors, found in everyday items like smartphones, appliances and cars, skyrocketed in the past three years with the accelerating adoption of AI technologies—although the market is expected to soften somewhat this year as supply constraints ease. Other top performers on our list include companies delivering IT solutions that underpin the digital transformation of healthcare, logistics and manufacturing, and other industries. Meanwhile, businesses that rely on consumer spending, such as restaurants, entertainment and sports, continued to see an uptick in sales as Covid-19 restrictions faded away. This year’s list includes 58 returnees from the previous year.

 

 

METHODOLOGY

This list is meant to identify companies with long-term sustainable performance across a variety of metrics. From a universe of over 20,000 publicly traded companies in the Asia-Pacific region with annual sales above $10 million and below $1 billion, these 200 companies were selected. The companies on this list, which is unranked, were selected based on a composite score that incorporated their overall track record in measures such as debt, sales and earnings-per-share growth over both the most recent fiscal one- and three-year periods, and the strongest one- and five-year average returns on equity. Aside from quantitative criteria, qualitative screens were used as well, such as excluding companies with serious governance issues, questionable accounting, environmental concerns, management issues or legal troubles. State-controlled and subsidiaries of larger companies were also excluded. The criteria also ensured a geographic diversity of companies from across the region. The list uses full-year annual results, based on the latest publicly available figures as of July 22, 2023.

The above article originally appeared on Forbes.com Asia.

SET announces 170 companies listed in sustainable stocks THSI 2022

BANGKOK, October 10, 2022 – The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) today announced the list of Thailand Sustainability Investment (THSI)2022, comprising 170 listed companies–an increase from 144 in the previous year. The higher number of companies in the sustainable stock list underscores Thai listed companies’ commitment to a continuous growth which takes into account risk management with readiness to deal with social and environmental changing factors, sharpening competitive edge and prioritizing stakeholders across all sectors.

SET President Pakorn Peetathawatchai said that SET has initiated the THSI list since 2015, with increasing number of participating and selected companies. This year’s THSI list reflects listed companies’ focus on business operations in a sustainable practices. At the same time, all groups of market participants in the ecosystem have also placed greater importance on sustainability, including investors who are enthusiasts and make sustainable investments by taking into consideration the environmental, social, and governance(ESG) aspects for their investment decisions, along with financial performance results.

Institutional investors particularly the Government Pension Fund (GPF) has used the list of THSI to make informed decisions. Furthermore, investment analysts use ESG factors as well as the THSI list as tools to analyze and advise investors via their stock analysis reports.

“SET encourages business sector in operating business with responsibility for stakeholders, taking into account ESG to build strong, stable and sustainable growth, in line with SET’s vision “To Make the Capital Market ‘Work’ for Everyone”. This year, a total of 170 companies on the THSI list has demonstrated a significant development in the disclosure of environmental and social information such as policies and targets of environmental management; performance and efficiency in the management of resources related to energy efficiency, water and waste management, and in terms of employees, communities and society through business processes,” added Pakorn.

“Listed companies have also assessed climate change risks by firmly establishing policies and measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Furthermore, there is still room for improvement by adding human rights due diligence process to ensure no human rights violation throughout the supply chain.”

The 2022 THSI list consists of 157 SET-listed companies and 13 mai-listed companies. The top three industry groups in the sustainable stock list by number of companies are Services at 33 companies, Resources at 28 companies, and Property & Construction at 27 companies. Notably, listed companies in the THSI list has a total market capitalization of THB 14 trillion(approx. USD 375.88 billion), representing72 percent of the total market capitalization of SET and mai (as of October 3, 2022).

The THSI list has been selected from listed companies that voluntarily responded to the sustainability assessment form, consisting of 19 general sets of indicators for all companies, as well as indicators according to the nature of business in eight industries, such as Agro & Food industry group having additional indicators to assess the responsible sourcing of raw materials and the risks of water usage; the Financials industry group having indicators on data security and IT systems, responsible financial or insurance business operations, and financial inclusion, in accordance with the key issues for investors’ consideration and for the company’s long-term competitive capabilities, etc.

The listed companies with a score passing the 50 percent-threshold in each dimension (economic, environmental and social dimensions) and meeting the set qualifications requirements, for example, a company with a CGR rating of three stars or more, not being a company that has been accused or convicted of an offense by a government entity, with net profit in three out of the past five years, etc. will be selected to be included in the THSI list. The sustainable investment working group consisting of experts in the capital market sector will ensure transparency in the whole process of screening and selection. The THSI list will be used as constituents for selecting members of the SETTHSI Index to promote sustainable investment. The review of the constituents of the SETTHSI Index is conducted semi-annually on a regular basis.

Please find details of the list of sustainable stocks at www.setsustainability.com.

This story is part of Forbes’ coverage of Asia’s Best Under A Billion 2022, which highlights 200 Asia-Pacific public companies with less than $1 billion in sales and consistent top- and bottom-line growth. See the full list, sorted alphabetically, here.

As Covid-19 restrictions ease across the Asia-Pacific and people adapt to the new normal, this year’s annual Best Under A Billion list highlights the shift to discretionary spending. While healthcare and pharmaceutical-related companies were standouts last year, the post-pandemic return to daily life has benefitted apparel makers, mall operators, restaurants, consumer electronics and entertainment companies, among others.

This year’s list includes 75 returnees from the prior year, reflecting their resiliency in a fast-changing environment, such as Mega Lifesciences, which has made Best Under A Billion for a second consecutive year.

 

 

METHODOLOGY

This list is meant to identify companies with long-term sustainable performance across a variety of metrics. From a universe of 20,000 publicly traded companies in the Asia-Pacific region with annual sales above $10 million and below $1 billion, these 200 companies were selected. The companies on this list, which is unranked, were selected based on a composite score that incorporated their overall track record in measures such as debt, sales and earnings-per-share growth over both the most recent fiscal one- and three-year periods, and the strongest one- and five-year average returns on equity. Aside from quantitative criteria, qualitative screens were used as well, such as excluding companies with serious governance issues, questionable accounting, environmental concerns, management issues or legal troubles. State-controlled and subsidiaries of larger companies were also excluded. The criteria also ensured a geographic diversity of companies from across the region. The list uses full-year annual results, based on the latest publicly available figures as of July 11, 2022.

Vivek Dhawan, the founder, CEO and Chief Coach of Mega We care, is today seen as a visionary entrepreneur in the pharmaceutical, supplement and wellness industry. Recently, he invited the Elite+ team to his beautiful home on a hilltop in Muak Lek to share his experiences, knowledge and commitment to “Help People Stay Healthy as Long as They Live” by promoting “Good Health by Yourself”, particularly, through the Wellness We care Center just down the hill that he helped to establish.

We began our interview with Vivek telling us something of his background and education. “I was born and grew up in India, moving to different locals around the country every three or four years as my father, who was a chemical engineer, was employed to build new chemical factories. Then, in 1977, he was sent to Thailand to expand business and establish new chemical manufacturing facilities here. I followed a year later and enrolled in Ruamrudee International School where I finished my secondary school studies. As my father was an engineer, it was expected I would become one, too. I then returned to India where I earned a Bachelor’s in Mechanical Engineering at Delhi College of Engineering, now known as Delhi Technological University. Upon graduation, I returned to Thailand, but my heart what set on continuing my studies in the US. Before I could do this though, my father wanted me to marry to be sure I would come back after I completed my course, and so a marriage was arranged with the daughter of another Indian family, close friends of my own, as was the custom. While I knew my wife, Rashi, we weren’t yet in love, which did happen over time. After this, I travelled to Carbondale, Illinois, where I spent the next two years studying for and earning an MBA at Southern Illinois University. Then, I spent some time travelling around America and Europe before returning to Thailand to begin my career.”

So, what was your first job?

Well, you must understand that my father always dreamed of having his own company, something to build and leave to his children. So, in 1986, he formed a joint venture with a Thai Indian family, the Shah, who were involved in trading, but wanted to diversify into manufacturing. They, then, provided the major portion of capital while my father invested what he could and brought his invaluable expertise, becoming the managing director of this enterprise. Among their assets was a small soft gelatin manufacturer with two machines and 10 employees located in Bangphu, Samut Prakarn, and my father asked me if I wanted to work there. I knew nothing about the pharmaceutical industry. Remember, I was a mechanical engineer and recent MBA graduate, but I went and had a look and thought, Okay. And now, I can honestly say that this was the beginning of my journey to where I am today.

How did this venture evolve?

The company, as I said, was quite small and was losing money. And while I knew something about machinery, there was a lot more we had to consider to produce a top quality product that we could sell. This meant we needed to procure the best materials and ingredients as well as take into consideration the climate here. You see, we weren’t competing against local companies, but against foreign, Australian and German manufacturers, the best in the world. At that time, we were supplying one drug manufacturer and distributor here, Berlin Pharmaceutical Industry Co, Ltd, but we needed to provide them with a quality capsule that they could sell to hospitals in Thailand, and this is what we did. At first, we threw out as much as 30% of what we were producing to ensure we only sold them the best standard product. As we got better, we improved in our procurement and production, and started looking at foreign markets. To enhance our marketing, we invited the Australian TGA (Therapeutic Good Administration) to come to Thailand to inspect us. They taught us a lot of what we needed to do and by following their instructions, we became the first in the region to receive GMP approval, after which we began exporting to Australia. As we earned more, we reinvested, expanding our operations, always focusing on raising our standards and producing the highest quality products. For this reason, Medicap is today one of the largest producers of soft gelatin capsules for export and the Thai market and is GMP accredited in Germany as well as ISO 9002 accredited. Rather than waiting for companies to contact us, we began to approach others in line with the slogan we still adhere to today, “We share ideas”. We develop new products and then bring them to our customers, telling them this could be a great innovation for you. We are introducing newly registered products and continue to raise the bar for what is available.

How then did Mega Lifesciences PCL and the brand Mega We care come to fruition?

This was the point when I arrived at another crossroads. As we continued to expand our Medicap operations, I began to question whether we should persist as a contracted manufacturer or begin to produce and sell products under our own brand. As a contract company, we were competing against other manufacturers and if they can produce the same product cheaper for the contracting company, we would be out of a job. Thus, we would always be dependent on someone else. I knew I didn’t want to be left in this position. At the same time, I was travelling a lot and looking for what could be attractive opportunities. I saw how the vitamin and food supplement sector while developing around the world, in Thailand, it was still quite young, and regulations, what there were, were still quite vague, and there were few companies to compete with.

So, in around 1995, I found a shophouse on Sukhumvit Soi 33, bought out one of our other companies that wasn’t doing well and set up Mega Lifesciences to market our own brand of products, Mega We care. At this same time, I saw how long established European trading and distribution companies in Thailand had established branches in many other countries around the region, and I thought, why can’t I do the same thing First, I opened an office in India. Then, as Myanmar began to reduce restrictions and welcome foreign enterprises, I hired a few people and opened up a branch in Myanmar; then did the same in Vietnam and later Cambodia. After gaining some success marketing our own brand of products, I approached established brands, like Johnson & Johnson, to act as their representative and distributor. I developed software to handle this business and procured warehouses and developed distribution channels in these countries. Today, this accounts for about 49% of our business with 51% still under our own branding, and while we now operate in as many as 33 countries, 70% of our business remains in Indochina outside of Thailand. While we have expanded and established new divisions and related entities, we continue to adhere to one philosophy, “Help People Stay Healthy as Long as They Live”, by providing good quality products at the right, affordable price.

To do this, wherever we operate, whether it be in Asia, Africa or Europe, we have always maintained the same high quality even before governments were setting similar standards. We offer the best product to provide maximum benefits. We also don’t sell just pharmaceuticals, but also a wide range of what we call complimentary medicine, herbal remedies and supplements so people can try these before turning to drugs if they want. Then, our third product line is what they call in the West over-the-counter pain relief medicine or I call self-medication for minor ailments. And, like I said, all are products are designed to help people stay healthy so they can enjoy their lives as long as they live.

You also describe your company as a wellness provider, or practitioner; can you tell us about this and the social enterprise, Wellness We care Center, that you established with Dr Sant Chaiyodsilp, MD?

You must first understand that I am a curious individual; I am always looking around, reading and investigating things that catch my attention and interest me. About 10 years ago, I began to research how lifestyle modification could improve one’s health. One reason was because I developed heart disease and needed to undergo coronary angioplasty and have a stent inserted into my artery to remove blockage that was hampering my circulation. While this condition was partially genetic as I inherited this from my father as he had from his father. I learned; however, genetics is only 20% of the cause; the remaining 80% is dependent on lifestyle. In my reading, I came across the writing of Dr Dean Ornish in the US and his study on how lifestyle modification, which included a lot of exercise, and adopting a plant-based, whole food, low-fat diet can open up arteries and decrease heart pain. And because of this and other research, I was inspired to make the necessary changes and begin a new journey into plant-based diet and lifestyle modification as I learned this doesn’t just prevent but can reverse chronic diseases. As I continued to read and research, in addition to developing a business model to produce related types of products, I also thought about opening a wellness centre to teach and promote this philosophy.

I then asked an agency I was working with if they knew of anyone in Thailand who was also interested in this, and they told me about Dr Sant and his blog where he was writing and promoting plant-based diet and lifestyle modification. Here was a highly respected cardiac surgeon who, when he began to suffer from cardiac disease, did not want to undergo surgery and began to search for alternatives. When we met, I saw that we had come to many of the same conclusions, and we then decided to join together to open up the Wellness We care Center, where we could teach people how to stop and reverse diseases they were suffering from as well as prevent ever suffering from inherited genetic conditions. In addition to adopting a plant-based diet, we teach and provide those who come with the opportunity to exercise, to walk and then walk longer, to ride a bike and over time, ride it further. We also offer Ayurvedic and homeopathic diagnoses, prescriptions and treatments. All is aimed at teaching people how to achieve good health by themselves and enjoy this as long as they live.

This is also what we encourage at Mega We care. We offer a program like one offered at the centre called “Good Health by Yourself”. We also bring our employees here to learn and experience more. If people feel healthy, they will be happier; they will enjoy coming to work. Life will feel more fun, and if they are happy, they will perform better; so, it’s good for business. If they are healthy and happy, they’re family won’t need to worry and will be better off. Furthermore, the government won’t need to spend as much on health issues. So, everyone wins.

As I saw on your name card, in addition to being the founder and CEO of Mega We care, you also call yourself Chief Coach, can you please explain what this entails?

I guess I should begin by saying that many bosses like to set up a strict hierarchy, controlling things from the top down. I myself, like I said just before, don’t think this way. I first and foremost want to provide a comfortable working environment where people can enjoy themselves and excel, achieve and surpass their potential. This means giving them mutual respect. It means listening to them and trusting in them. It means giving them opportunities to try new things, even if this sometimes leads to failure. Because we can learn from this and use this new knowledge and experience to move forward. We haven’t succeeded in all our endeavours, no company has. You just don’t hear about the failures. But my philosophy is to always look ahead to the future, not dwell on mistakes, learn from them to improve one’s performance.

My job then, as Chief Coach, is to guide and support our people as best I can. For example, at the start, when I assigned people to set up a branch in Vietnam and later in Myanmar, I looked for someone I felt had the skills and potential and then let them do their thing. Not everyone is right for the same position, just like in an orchestra and football team. As their leader, it’s my job to manage our people so together we achieve much more than what is expected. To build the organisation we have grown to become, I could not have accomplished this alone. It was a unified effort after finding the right persons for the right positions.

Mutual respect, support and enjoyment are at the core of our corporate culture. And while I am the chief coach, our top level management serve as head coaches, the next level down as partners and then associates, all with the aim of giving their people the opportunity and support needed to excel.

I, myself, also do not believe in competing with others. I think it’s better to challenge oneself and motivate each person to better themselves and go beyond expectations. This is the way we think at Mega We care. Our concern is our people. It might be described as a love affair. We want the best for those we care about. This can then be expanded to include not just our management and employees but our customers as well. We want them all to be healthy and happy. This is why we produce the products we do and why we have opened the Wellness We care Center and why we are promoting and working to help people stay healthy as long as they live through events, like the Asian Plant-based Nutrition Healthcare Conference we hosted in Bangkok this past January and the online programs and courses we are offering. I have been very fortunate. I love what I do. It isn’t in anyway a burden, and this is what I want to share with anyone and everyone who is interested.

Despite the global spread of Covid-19, this year’s annual Best Under A Billion list highlights the resilience of 200 publicly listed small and midsized companies in the Asia-Pacific region with sales under $1 billion. Their sound financial figures reflect how well these companies coped in the midst of a global pandemic. No surprise: Healthcare and pharmaceutical-related companies were standouts while tech and logistics firms linked to the global e-commerce boom also benefited. As proof of BUB companies’ sustainable success, 42 were returnees from the previous year. This includes Taiwan’s Aspeed, now on the list for a notable eight years in a row.

We’ve highlighted eight companies from the list with businesses that helped alleviate the pandemic’s effects.

Kilpest India

While its agrochemical business faced a tough year, sales of this India-based agri-biotech company were up 12% and net profit surged for the year to March, thanks to a real-time Covid-19 PCR detection kit developed by a subsidiary.

Kilpest became the first Indian company to get approval from the Food & Drug Administration for emergency use of this kit in the U.S.

 

Mega Lifesciences

This Thailand-based pharmaceutical company’s revenue grew 11% to $402 million in 2020 as demand for its dietary supplements, drugs and vitamins rose during the pandemic.Last year, the company acquired Futamed Pharmaceuticals, now renamed Mega Lifesciences Indonesia.

 

 

Optim

Working from home during the pandemic spurred demand for Optim’s remote working tools.As a result, the Japanese company’s net profit rocketed tenfold to $12 million for the year ended in March. Aside from its telework-support software, its AI camera gained traction last year, used for tracking areas of congestion like staff canteens.

 

Prodia Widyahusada

This clinical laboratory company’s 2020 net profit grew 28% to $18 million. The company introduced new services last year such as drive-in services and teleconsultation, and it is the first private company in Indonesia to use an automated system to help the government increase Covid-19 PCR testing.

 

 

Riverstone Holdings

This Singapore-based company’s 2020 revenue climbed 85% to an all-time high of $435 million, based on robust sales of its gloves, used in healthcare, tech and other sectors. Cleanroom glove sales grew 65% year-on-year, and medical glove sales increased 16% as Covid-19 boosted demand.

 

Vincent Medical Holdings

Hong Kong-based respiratory device maker’s 2020 revenue doubled to $149 million as sales from its respiratory business soared by 286% due to pandemic demand. Last year, the company tripled its production capacity in two months and doubled its workforce.

 

 

Wisetech Global

This Australia-based logistics software developer saw a 23% revenue increase in 2020 to $288 million as the logistics industry got a boost from pandemic. The company’s logistics platform is used by top global freight forwarders such as DHL Global Forwarding and Yusen Logistics.

 

WuXi Biologics

China’s WuXi Biologics’ 2020 revenue soared 41% to $813 million as it expanded capacity to develop new treatments and vaccines for Covid-19. Last year, its vaccine manufacturing business signed contracts valued at over $3.2 billion.With reporting by John Kang, Danielle Keeton-Olsen, Zinnia Lee, Ramakrishnan Narayanan, Amit Prakash, James Simms and Yue Wang.

 

METHODOLOGY

This list is meant to identify companies with long-term sustainable performance across a variety of metrics. From a universe of 20,000 publicly traded companies in the Asia-Pacific region with annual revenue above $10 million and below $1 billion, only these 200 companies were selected.

The companies on this list, which is unranked, were selected based on a composite score that incorporated their overall track record in measures such as debt, sales and earnings-per-share growth over both the most recent fiscal one- and three-year periods, and the strongest one- and five-year average returns on equity.

Aside from quantitative criteria, qualitative screens were used as well, such as excluding companies with serious governance issues, questionable accounting, environmental concerns, management issues or legal troubles.

State-controlled and subsidiaries of larger companies were also excluded. The criteria also ensured a geographic diversity of companies from across the region.

The list uses full-year annual results, based on the latest publicly available figures as of Aug. 12, 2021 compiled by FactSet. All other research was done by Forbes Asia. The editors reserve the right to amend or remove any data or companies in light of new information after the list’s release.

Anyone who has ever exchanged business cards with Vivek Dhawan will be puzzled by one of the positions he holds at Mega LifeSciences Plc. Beside the word CEO is the title of “Chief Coach”. The latter is equally important to the people who work with Mr Dhawan at the company he has led since 1986.

“Where does the word coach come from? Football?” I ask him. “No,” he answers, though he is a big fan. It is team sport in general that inspires him. “I watch football. I love to watch Arsenal. I love to watch Barcelona. I love to see the way they play. From the movement of the ball, you can say everybody is involved in the game. There’s no one hero.”

Making sure everyone is involved is the way Mr Dhawan runs the business of Mega LifeSciences, the company that has transformed itself from a contract manufacturer of medicine capsules. Over the past three decades it has evolved into a major producer and exporter of branded pharmaceuticals and health-supplement products, with 6,600 employees and a presence in 33 countries.

Listed on the Stock Exchange of Thailand since November 2013, Mega last year earned 1.14 billion baht in net profit, down 5% from the year before, on revenue of 11.13 billion, a gain of 9.3% from 2018.

“I’m not a hero in this company,” Mr Dhawan tells Asia Focus. “In a team, everybody is good. A good company can only succeed when we have people who are better than me. … You need good people around who can actually pass the ball to somebody else, not you. If you do that then you are selfish. You can’t win.

“Creating a good team is what I’m thinking about; that’s where the word coach came from. You found that at Barcelona when Pep (Guardiola) was there. You found that at Arsenal with what (former manager) Arsène Wenger used to do,” he says.

“But there are different models. I’m not saying the other model is wrong but our model is that as a team, we win together. Everybody is important, the goalkeeper or the front guys, not that there is one hero.”

At Mega, which includes the fast-growing Maxcare logistics business serving Vietnam, Cambodia and Myanmar, Mr Dhawan’s goal if for everybody to enjoy coming to work.

“Work should not be painful,” he says. “The first thing I would say is that if I can enjoy it, everybody should enjoy work. They are smiling. If they are having fun then they give their best. Actually they are owners (of the company) so we make them feel they are the real owners, make them really feel good and they respond with honesty. (When we fight), we fight for the right reason. We don’t fight for politics.”

The company has four levels of staff — coaches, partners, associates and colleagues. This corporate culture, he says, was established 25 years ago.

“Most of these people have worked with me for a long time and they know what we have been through,” he explains. “We have decided that as a company, rather than having a director or vice-president, now we have coaches, partners, associates and colleagues. People can change from colleagues to associates, to partners and then they grow up to become coaches.

“What is my biggest job? It’s like playing (football). If we look at Arsenal, Manchester United or Barcelona, the coach is doing what? They let people play. Pep could not play for (Lionel) Messi. … Messi is one great player but you still need other players. He can’t play alone.

“I’m a coach. What does the coach do? They help people play as teams. Twenty-five years ago, I said we should have a model that says your job is to help other people to succeed, not me. If they succeed, I will succeed anyway, right?”

He offers an example of how the team should work. “I have a person who is very good in Thailand, I have a person who is good in manufacturing, regulatory affairs, people who are good in digital, and some who are very good in finance. All of them are good but they have to work together; then you can create a magical outcome.

“My job is to make sure that all of them work and play together for one reason because they love Mega. … That’s why I think my job is more like a coach, less like a CEO,” he says.

“I cannot tell them … do it now, shut up. That model doesn’t work anymore. That’s why I thought the coaching model is a better way. If they believe in the culture, then they will do the right thing. So creating that belief system is very important.”

The corporate culture was clearly illustrated when the Covid-19 pandemic started to seriously affect businesses all over the world including Mega. “When Covid happened, our factories were working every day. Our team in Thailand, with 2,000 people, had to come to work. They go to pharmacies, to hospitals, to deliver products. They do this all the time.”

“Even with Covid, nobody says, ‘I’m going home’. It’s people’s passion. They love what they’re doing. They do wonderful things. We’re not in a hurry to create sales, we are first creating belief. If there is belief, they will love what they do.”

STRATEGIC SHIFT

Born in India, Mr Dhawan earned his MBA in the United States and joined Medicap, a producer of soft pharmaceutical capsules in Thailand, in 1986. The company, with a plant in Bang Pu, Samut Prakan, later became Mega LifeSciences after it began to branch out into own-brand products in the mid-1990s.

In 1992, Medicap became the only Thai company with approval from the Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration, the country’s food and drug regulator. Since then Mr Dhawan has built a large, publicly listed company that is the number one supplement maker in both Thailand and Myanmar.

“This business was started in 1984-85 by two partners — a Thai group and an Indian partner who had technology. It was called Medicap. I came in 1986 after finishing my MBA. My father is an engineer who was based in Thailand. We joined them with some ownership and to manage the business,” he recalls.

“At that time, it was 10 people and maybe US$100,000 (2-3 million baht) in turnover, two machines, losing money. That’s where my journey started, as an engineer. My life began there from slowly, little by little growing and building it. We learned and we grew.”

From 1992-94, the company had to decide whether to continue being a contract manufacturer or pursue building its own brand. It chose the latter path.

“In the following 5-10 years, we did less and less OEM (original equipment manufacturing) and more and more of our own brands. We expanded to more and more markets,” says Mr Dhawan. “Then we started distribution. We went to Vietnam in 1993, then we opened Cambodia.”

Australia was the first foreign country where Mega set up manufacturing, on a site about 80 kilometres outside of Melbourne. With an investment of around 450-500 million baht, the company has also invested in a new plant in Bang Pu.

In February this year, Mega acquired a plant in Indonesia, outside Jakarta, as its third manufacturing facility. In Myanmar, it has a joint venture with an Indian partner to make new drugs. The project, however, is under review as Myanmar passed a new patent law last year.

“That plant is designed to produce new molecules. There have been some changes with medicine patents. And because of Covid, we cannot have meetings so we cannot get together with the team and can’t go to Myanmar but the land is there,” says Mr Dhawan.

Mega’s Maxcare division, however, has a major presence in Myanmar with warehouses covering 50,000 square metres in Yangon. Serving both pharmaceutical and fast-moving consumer goods, Maxcare represents companies including L’Oréal and Osotspa, as well as other food and cosmetics makers with coverage of 35,000 sales outlets in the country. “In total, we are in six cities and cover 60% of the country directly,” he says.

Beyond Asia, Mega has developed a presence with its own brand in sub-Saharan Africa with offices in Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Ethiopia. Its other markets include Ukraine and Uzbekistan, and some parts of Latin America such as Peru and Colombia.

“We’ve invested in the countries where we are because we want to make our brand strong,” he says. “Wherever we are, we have a reasonably good presence. We have good brands. If you go to that market, you’ll find Mega WeCare in most of the markets.

“If you are in Myanmar, you will see Mega brands everywhere, so we are building long-term brands in the country. Brands that are part of your life, brands that consumers actually love.”

Nowadays, 95% of Mega’s manufacturing is for its own brands, thanks to the strategic shift it began pursuing more than 25 years ago. “It was our strategic shift. We shifted our business model to marketing our own brands.”

And while Covid has hit every business badly, Mr Dhawan says Mega has been quite resilient in the face of the ongoing crisis given its low debts, diversified markets and credible products. “Mega went through a lot of these difficult times [in 1997-98] when we borrowed some money in dollars and it became 56 baht to the dollar, but this is a part of life, right?

“We lived through it and we learned. It taught us. Every time you have something, you get to learn and you get better. But by building a resilient company, when you do the right thing in the same business again and again, you have a good chance of doing better. We get better by the day.”

But the more challenging task is to create something that can live and grow beyond his era. “I have written down my company philosophy, which is to build a thinking organisation that we can change before being forced to change,” he explains.

The key is to create a learning culture so that people in the company want to seek more knowledge. “We must start to question, to ask why. And when we ask why, we can make the right changes. Change before you are forced to, not when you have problems,” he points out. “Today everybody can change but can we do it before it’s too late?”

For example, Mega has been moving into digital marketing, and had already built a digital ecosystem before the pandemic happened. “How can you create something that is going to live on even when you are not here? It’s an ecosystem where good people will come and new things will happen and carry on even after I’m gone. That’s the biggest challenge for me these days.”

LEISURE TIME

When he has free time, Mr Dhawan reads avidly. “There is a lot to read and I read everything. I read philosophy, for example, The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying by Sogyal Rinpoche. We say that people prepare in this life to leave but they never prepare to die. Imagine today is your last day in this world, what will you do? You will do things differently. You will do good everyday,” he says.

“I also read a lot of philosophy, from Buddhism to Hinduism, and history.”

To keep in touch with what is happening in the business world and gain new insights, he also reads the Harvard Business Review and magazines.

“At the moment I’m fascinated by behavioural science. I read a book called Nudge by Richard Thaler (and Cass Sunstein), about rationality in behaviour. We think people’s behaviours are rational but in fact they’re not. I’m reading a lot of studies by behavioural scientists now to get into human behaviours.

“Now that Covid has shaken the world, the way people behave in a time of pandemic and what kinds of responses they have in their behaviours, are interesting. For example, how do you spend your money during such a time?”

Another area he is attracted to is creativity. “I just heard about another interesting book called Creative Confidence by Tom and David Kelley. It’s about how everybody has a chance to be creative. How can we help people to bring that out in them?”

Wellness is another interest, and a book entitled Undo It (by Dean Ornish and Anne Ornish) struck a chord. It proposes that you can “undo” your diseases if you make changes in your daily life.

As Mega’s business is well diversified, Mr Dhawan has a lot of chances to travel, and that is another thing he is passionate about. “Every country is so beautiful. When I went to Vietnam 25 years ago, in Hanoi, there was a small shop and they make only one dish called cha ca. (noodles with fish) and it’s 100 years old,” he recalls.

In Bhutan, he remembers walking for five days on a winter trek from Thimphu to Paro. “Every day, I walked 10 kilometres and slept in a tent, freezing. But Bhutan is so beautiful.”

He finds Italy lovely, particularly the countryside. In India, he rode the Maharajah Express for six days to see many cities. Business has also taken him to African nations such as Tanzania and Ethiopia. “In Ethiopia you eat corn on the street — they roast it for you over charcoal. I think every country got some magic in it.

“Beauty is everywhere. Stop measuring it. If you compare — this is better or I love this more than something else — that’s a challenge. Beauty is what you enjoy when you are there. Wherever you are, that is beautiful.”

His next trip is to Latin America, which offers a lot of ground to cover. “Everything in Latin America needs time. I want to travel around, have more time to do that. Today with work, I don’t go (on holiday) for a month. I go for two weeks. I do two two-week holidays a year at least.

“I love history. I love walking around. I want to see and feel the cultures of other countries,” he says with a smile. “I would love to go to all the old places where you can still feel the local energy, smell the food, enjoy the people walking around, the warmth of it. This is kind of thing I enjoy for my holidays.”

Bangkok Post : https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/1958127/team-player

Mr. Vivek Dhawan, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Coach of Mega Lifesciences Public Company Limited (MEGA), a global Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FCMG) provider, announced the company’s business strategies in all areas to support healthy living for people worldwide. MEGA is reviewing potential acquisitions to further strengthen its regional presence. The company is also focusing on developing countries in Southeast Asia, Central and Latin America, sub-Saharan Africa and CIS countries that offer strong growth potential to double its business by 2025. MEGA’s annual revenue increased by 12.1% from 2010 to 2018, while the company’s normalized net profit increased 19.4% in the first quarter of 2019.

Yangon, Myanmar, 9 June 2018 – Maxxcare Ltd, the distribution arm of Mega Lifesciences Group, has inaugurated a 120,000 square-foot distribution center in Yangon that will raise the bar for pharmaceutical distributors in Myanmar.

H.E U Phyo Min Thein, Chief Minister of Yangon Region, H.E Khun Pakainay Lengee, Minister Counsellor (Commercial) of Royal Thai Embassy, Dr. Khin Zaw, Director General of Food and Drug Administration, Ministry of Health and Sports along with Mr Vivek Dhawan, CEO & Chief Coach of Mega Lifesciences Group, and Mr Girish Wadhwa, President and Head Coach of Mega Lifesciences, cut the ribbon to inaugurate the facility.

Maxxcare’s Yangon Distribution Center is one of the largest facilities of its kind in Myanmar, stretching over 11 acres of land in northern Yangon. It currently has 120,000 square feet of warehouse capacity and another 38,000 square feet for utilities, modern office space and a canteen. It is expected to be fully operational by July 9, 2018.

Mr. Vivek Dhawan said: “Our commitment to providing the best in class distribution services for pharmaceutical and consumer goods to the people of Myanmar is affirmed by this new Distribution Center. Ensuring quality medicines and consumer goods are delivered to every corner of the country.” He added: “We remain focused on bringing new, innovative and quality medicines and products to everyone in the country.”

The Yangon Distribution Center can store about 700,000 shipping cartons in its modern, six-level, nine-meter-high racking system. Pharmaceutical products will be stored in air-conditioned warehousing space, while the center also includes a cold

chain storage facility for products such as vaccines, insulin and other drugs that require a stable temperature of 2-8 degrees Celsius.

Safety has been a primary consideration in the design of the Yangon Distribution Center, which features a fire safety system with a sprinkler system and 80,000 gallons tank.

The next initiative for the facility is to install a 400-kilowatt rooftop solar plant which is capable of generating about 600,000 kilowatt hours per year, thus preventing an estimated 11,340 tons of carbon dioxide emissions. Mr Girish Wadhwa said: “Our investment in the new Yangon Distribution Center reflects our deep commitment to the country and our vision of a strong future for our operations in Myanmar. We have designed and built this facility with a clear objective to ensure highest quality of services and to secure capacity for future growth.”

This 18.8-billion-kyat investment into the Distribution Center also includes the implementation of the solar project as well as adding another 80,000 square feet of storage capacity at the center over the next five years, an expansion that would almost double its initial capacity.

Mega Lifesciences has been supporting deserving students in Universities of Medicine and Pharmacy through the Ministry of Sports and Health since 2006. Mr Vivek Dhawan received an appreciation certificate from Daw Tin Tin Lay, Director General, Department of Human Resources, Ministry of Health and Sports for the 10.8 million kyat donated by Mega towards the scholarship for the academic year 2018-19.

Aconotin 10mg and Aconotin 20 mg (‘Aconotin’) currently sold by Mega Lifesciences Public Company Limited (‘Company’) through its 100% subsidiary Mega Lifesciences PTY Limited are controlled drugs under the regulations announced by Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of Thailand. These products can be procured by patients only under prescription by a qualified dermatologist in a hospital or clinic. These products are not over The Counter (OTC) products and may involve health hazards if consumed without prescription. Company sells Acnotin strictly according to the FDA regulations.

Company bears no responsibility For Acnotin that may be sold at any pharmacies or by any one on the internet or advertised for any properties of this product. The company has no method to dertermine that the product is genuine and the quality of such Products can not be guaranteed and the company will not take responsibility for any consequences of using the Product.

Any person who, directly or indirectly, sells of solicits to sell Acnotin without permission from the company is violation of the regulations of FDA and also the intellectual property of the Company. The Company reserves the right to take legal action against the violator(s).