Destination Inbound

A fruitful journey

What started out as a small scale, home-made jam business 49 years ago has today grown into a brand synonymous with jams in India. Mayur Vora, owner of Mapro, takes us on a trip down memory lane as he talks about the company's long history and future plans. By Beryl Menezes

"My initiation into the jam business came when I took over Mapro from my grand-uncle many years ago," says Mayur Vora. "For him, making jam and selling it was a hobby, because during fruit season in Panchgani, the markets were overflowing with strawberries, and due to the fruit's short shelf-life, much of it would be wasted," he continues. As the popularity of the jam grew, the business expanded to a commercial scale while still retaining its original quality. The name MAPRO stands for Mahabaleshwar products, as the Mapro property lies between Panchgani and Mahabaleshwar.

The business is now being run by Vora who is helped by his son Nikunj, who is a business student. "I have mainly learned on-the-job, just like most of the 60-odd employees we have here. We also employ a number of summer interns from surrounding colleges, and schools also bring their students here for field trips from time to time. This all counts towards hospitality education," remarks Nikunj.

Keeping with the tag of a 'family-run' business, Vora's wife, Rajvi also helps in looking after the nursery and gardens, and sometimes appears during crisis situations in the kitchen. "In '97, we started a restaurant at the Garden selling sandwiches, pizzas, cold drinks and ice-creams, which was basically supervised by Rajvi. We also started making our own high-fibre bread for the restaurant, which also houses a greenhouse contributing to the greening of the place," says Vora.

In 2006, Mapro started a factory in Shendurjane that was segregated from the Garden a short distance away. The latter eventually became a retail outlet where customers could taste and buy products, grab a quick bite at the restaurant, or alternatively patronise the mehendi artist or fortune teller permanently posted there. The factory is spread over an area of nine lakh sq ft and also manufactures products for the likes of Café Coffee Day, Betty Crocker, General Mills, Walls, Pilsbury and Kissan besides producing Mapro products like jams, jellies, squashes and crushes. Today, the factory is managed by Mayur Vora, while Nikunj manages Mapro Garden.

A brand name in its own right

So what makes Mapro different from other brands? "We strictly believe in quality control, which means directing farmers to use organic fertilisers, which although give lesser yields have zero chemicals. Besides, unlike other industries, we have altered our methods of preservation, wherein fresh fruit picked seasonally is frozen solid in 30,000 sq ft of cold storage space at -20'C all year round, to be used as and when needed," he says. This ensures that the fruit stays fresh and its original taste, quality and natural colour is maintained, requiring no preservatives or artificial colouring for the final product.

Another feature that has contributed to Mapro's success is the way the company treats its employees. "We know each of the employees by name and contribute towards their children's education as well as medical expenses. I strongly believe that keeping employees happy is the key to a good work environment and also helps towards quality control. Thus we have zero attrition, as employees are always treated like family," Vora says.

As far as the future is concerned, Vora plans to expand Mapro's geographical reach in the retail sector by starting a separate division by the end of this year that will supply to hotels and catering units. He has also published a book, 'The Blue Mountains of Panchgani' which describes at length the beauty of the hill station. Also in the pipeline is a chocolate factory at Mapro Gardens which is due to start in November. It will supply fine chocolates made by an international chocolatier to top hotels across the country. However, the chocolates will not be marketed under the Mapro brand. Apart from that, operations at the factory are running full steam ahead. "Our aim is to make Mapro the most respected fruit brand in the country in the next decade," concludes Vora.