Sanga inspires at COYLE forum

From left: Moderator Dr. Arittha Wikramanayake, KIK Group of Companies Chairman Lalith Kahatapitiya, Freight Links International President Niral Kadawatharatchi, Interpharm and Gamma Pharmaceuticals Chairman/MD Kalana Hewamallika, McLarens Group of Companies Chairman/MD Rohan de Silva and Past Cricketer Kumar Sangakkara – Pic by Krishan Ranasinghe

By Shiran Illanperuma

Speaking to an enraptured audience of Sri Lanka’s elites, retired cricketer and former captain of the Sri Lankan team Kumar Sangakkara inspired with stories of his struggle to the stage of international cricket and insights on success and entrepreneurship at the Dare to be Different forum organised by the Chamber of Young Lankan Entrepreneurs (COYLE).

A characteristically affable Sangakkara shared his insights on success, stressing the importance of hard work and determination. “We often get carried away with talent and potential but that is not an indicator of success,” he said. Instead he emphasised the importance of transforming such qualities into something ‘tangible’.

Following the opening ceremony, addresses were also given by KIK Group of Companies Chairman Lalith Kahatapitiya, Freight Links International President Niral Kadawatharatchi, Interpharm Ltd. and Gamma Pharmaceuticals Chairman/MD Kalana Hewamallika and McLarens Group of Companies Chairman/MD Rohan de Silva. The four successful businessmen-entrepreneurs elucidated the audience about the trials and tribulations they endured on the path to success.

Kahatapitiya, who kicked off the talks, spoke about his childhood passion for the practical side of engineering and his entrepreneurial spirit – having started a watercolour making business as a schoolboy. Kahatapitiya critiqued traditional employers’ aversion towards experimentation and innovation; “Self-employment gives you the freedom to make many mistakes. As an entrepreneur you need to make many mistakes before you make it,” he said.

Kadawatharatchie, who spoke next, discussed his humble beginnings as a high-school dropout. Despite pressures from his father, Kadawatharatchie failed to perform well in his education but proceeded to make a name for himself after a stint working on board a ship, after which he worked for John Keells. At Keells he wound up rejecting an offer to join the board of directors and instead opted for freight business on the island. “I believe you need to have hard work and people skills, I don’t believe a lack of formal education has held me back,” he said.

The third speaker, Hewamallika had a markedly different experience from his contemporaries as someone who inherited the family business in tobacco and pharmaceuticals. Hewamallika spoke on the challenges of marketing in his industry and the rarity of a Sri Lankan company formulating its own product. He spoke of the importance of Sri Lanka producing its own drugs. “We need to move into exports and my company is currently awaiting approval by the Maldives FDA,” he said.

Finally de Silva spoke of his time at McLarens and the challenges he faced in breaking into the shipping business. “At the time our challenge was to acquire a single shipping line,” said de Silva who went on to say that over the years the company sees a traffic of 5,000 ships a year, employs 1,300 people and has 30 directors.

The Dare to be Different forum which was organised by COYLE and sponsored by Sampath Bank emphasised a theme of ‘Inspire. Encourage. Empower’. Established in 1999, COYLE is a leading association of Sri Lanka’s most influential businessmen and entrepreneurs who hold frequent talks with local politicians and the diplomatic community.