PEAKLIFE

Music often speaks in spaces where words might fall to. Siddhartha Jhunjhunwala, Founder and Director of India’s leading music instruments brand, Kadence, understands the very connection and value that comes with music. The man behind the brand, here’s PEAKLIFE in conversation with Siddhartha on his beginnings, overcoming challenges, and more.

One of India’s leading musical instrument brands, Kadence is a legacy brand started in hopes to fill the gap in the market for musical instruments in India. Kadence with their high quality and affordable products has successfully created its niche in India, the United States of America, and soon in sixteen other countries in 2021. Birthed by Siddhartha Jhunjhunwala, Founder and Director of Kadence, here is the creative entrepreneur in conversation with PEAKLIFE…

1.) Coming from a business family, please tell us about your journey so far?

I came to Bangalore to study and with a dream of creating something of my own. While pursuing my Bachelors in Business Studies at Christ College, I fell in love with the Garden City and made it my home. Coming from a family business background, I have imbibed a sharp sense of business and a keen interest in studying different markets.

Music was always close to my heart while growing up. We started Kadence in 2010 as a company that manufactured lights and equipment for stage, then we expanded our portfolio and started manufacturing musical instruments for the Indian market in 2015. Kadence was started to fill the gap in the market for musical instruments in India. Most musical instruments were primarily by foreign brands, which were highly-priced and were not an ideal option for people who just wanted to add music to their lives and explore a new hobby.

2.) What made you choose the name ‘Kadence’?

Selecting the name for the company was a drill. I had this fun idea to actually run a competition between my friends to suggest names for my brand. Then one of my friends suggested KADENCE. It immediately caught my attention. Kadence means “with rhythm” that is related to the Latin names Kadenza and Cadence and that’s the story of how the name Kadence was chosen.

3.) What makes your instruments different from foreign brands?

We have instruments like ukuleles, guitars, cajons, pianos,and saxophones to name a few. We are the homegrown brand in India with the largest footprint across the country and we manufacture high quality instruments for the audience in India at an affordable cost. Now with our first manufacturing unit in Bangalore, our products will be available for the consumer in India at a much lesser cost along with a faster delivery. Our USP is that we have very durable, quality, aesthetic products and with even better after sales service. We treat each and every customer as equally important for our brand.

4.) What have been the biggest challenges you’ve had to overcome?

The pace at which the consumer needs are changing every day is our biggest challenge. We believe this is also our strength as it helps us to deliver our consumers with the best everyday. India is an introverted society. It is a notion in our society that learning music was only restricted to music classes. But music is meant to be enjoyed by everyone – and not just in terms of listening to music. We want people to take up instruments and make it a part of their lives.

5.) 2020 has been a year full of challenges, who/what was your motivation factor that kept you going?

The fact that music truly became a part of our lives in 2020. We saw a surge in ukulele sales from April 2020. Let me draw a picture for you – in 2019, we sold about 20,000 ukuleles. In 2020, we sold over 1,50,000 ukuleles.

The lockdown inspired people to try and learn new things. And more people wanted to make music, not just listen to music. And a ukulele is a simple instrument that anyone can learn, and learning to play an instrument makes you feel incredible! We had people all over the country tagging us in their posts playing ukulele – from a remote farmhouse, to a crowded apartment, to someone playing the uke to their child and someone to their dog, and someone just entertaining themselves when they are alone. That is inspiration for what we do at Kadence.

6) What are your expectations from 2021?

In future the music instrument industry is set to see another spike with the rise in awareness about the role music plays in reducing stress. The instruments like Cajun will become popular also because of its ability to be carried around easily and still enjoy the sound of a drum. We are also expanding our sales to other countries including USA, Europe, some regions of South Africa, Srilanka, Bhutan, and Nepal.

7.) When not working, what are the other passions you like to follow?

I derive pleasure in spending quality time with my family and friends. Cricket has always been close to my heart and I really enjoy watching the sport.

8.) If you had to recommend 5 books that one must read what would they be?

• The 5AM club by Robin Sharma

• Zero to One by Peter Theil

• Good to Great by James C Collins

• Connect the Dots by Rashmi Bhansal

• My Life and Work by Henry Ford

9.) What advice would you like to give to budding entrepreneurs?

It is very important to have the right team for a successful company. Focus on building a good team who can execute your ideas and also take necessary steps to solve problems. Make sure that you manage your cash flow diligently as this is very important for a budding entrepreneur.

Explore Kadence here: https://kadence.in/