After Kasparov, Checkmate turns to Indian market

After making its presence in the global market, the Chandigarh-based exporter of chess pieces Checkmate International will focus on the domestic market.

"With the kind of money Indians are spending and multinational retail chains venturing into the Indian market, we will concentrate on the domestic market too," said Satish Mehra, managing director, Checkmate International. The chess sets' prices vary from $10 to $300, which, according to Mehra, were earlier a deterrent for Indian consumers.

The company had a modest beginning in 1978 with the first order of 30 sets. Currently, the company is exporting 30,000 sets annually. The annual turnover of the company in 2004-05 was Rs 2 crore.These are both 32- and 34-piece sets and are being manufactured in various shapes, from 2.5 inches to 6 inches.

"The sizes of our sets increase by a quarter inch," said Mehra. The pieces are made of Indian-grained hardwood such as boxwood, rosewood, ebonywood, and sheeshamwood.

According to him, the demand and market for the Indian sets started in the 1970s, when the company introduced Indian chess sets in the UK, Germany, Holland, Belgium, Norway, Denmark, Italy, France, followed by the US in 1980.

The chess sets have travelled even as far as Greenland and Alaska. Checkmate International products have been exhibited at the Nuremberg International Toys Fair, Germany, New York, and Birmingham.

Mehra, a 55-year-old law graduate, has received the distinction of being the "highest exporter of chessmen and chess board" continuously. Apart from this, Mehra has supplied world champion Garry Kasparov chess pieces. "It was a challenging task and took us six months and six samples to finalise the chess pieces," he said.

Kasparov provided the drawings, looking into the minutest details of dimension, diameter and weight, and the pieces came in bright green and red.

Terming chess as an evergreen industry, Mehra said three years ago chess was at its peak, but not so now, in the export market. "It is a cycle and the industry and the game will take some time to revive."

Mehra has plans to create a museum in his home to promote the game and showcase the 100-odd sets he has collected from all over the world.