It's easy to mistake Hans Straberg for an American. The occasional burst of aggression and the candour are not qualities associated with stern and formal European CEOs. But when you are running the world's biggest consumer appliances company (the Stockholm-based AB Electrolux raked in $17 billion in revenues last year), aggression is not just desirable, but required. For instance, Straberg, who manages businesses across 150 countries, must keep an eye on both brand competition from Whirlpool and General Electric and cost competition from others such as Haier of China. It's tough work and "not always very pleasant" says a candid Straberg. On his maiden visit to India after taking over as CEO in April 2002, the 47-year-old Straberg, in between taking stock of his still-ailing Indian subsidiary and announcing a $300-million outsourcing deal, met with BT's Shailesh Dobhal and Sushma Subramanian to talk about Electrolux's plans for India and elsewhere. Excerpts from an exclusive interview:

Your predecessor, Michael Treschow (now Chairman) was known as Mike the Knife, because of his focus on cost-cutting. How would you like to be remembered?

I would like to be remembered for being the CEO who, along with the Electrolux team, built the Electrolux brand into the leading global appliance brand.

How do you plan to do that?

Through products that are developed based on consumer insight marketed under the Electrolux brand and then delivered and sold to the consumers at a very efficient cost. And when I talk about products developed based on consumer insight, that's what is the basis of Electrolux. We, as Electrolux, don't ask consumers to be engineers. We do consumer interviews. We study trends. We ask consumers what problems and desires they have, and then we innovate.

There is some concern that the company (internationally) has too many brands. What's your view on this?

Well, we have set 2007 as a target to have two-thirds of our sales on the Electrolux brand. And we're well underway. We don't take away brands. We build Electrolux as our global brand and also build on the strong local brands.

If you promote one brand, doesn't another one get pushed down? Like it happened with Kelvinator in India. You almost phased it out here.

That has to do with the situation that Kelvinator is known for a certain type of product. And now we're trying to go in for a wider product range. Electrolux is a brand that has a very good (wide) connotation, and therefore, we take that advantage to build Electrolux. Otherwise we would have had to introduce Kelvinator into new segments and reposition it, and it's not natural to do that. And at the same time we're building Electrolux because that's our global brand.

"We ask consumers what desires they have, and then we innovate"

In the US market a few years ago there was some talk of consolidation in the industry. Electrolux buying Maytag etc. Is the sentiment very much the same today or has it changed? Do you think consolidation will still happen internationally?

We are in such a position today that it probably will be difficult because of anti-trust rules to buy one of the big competitors. We today are interested in different areas to acquire companies. We already have the size today that (consolidation) is not going to determine our future.

But doesn't a lot of the growth in developed markets, like the United States, depend on consolidation?

Well, if you look at our marketshares in the US, in 1995 we had about 13 per cent. Today we have 23 per cent without buying any companies. And there's still 77 per cent, isn't it?

How do you view the threat from new entrants like Haier?

First, I would like to say that we are very much focused on the consumer. It's the consumer who pays our salaries. So we need to fulfill their needs. At the same time, we are taking this very seriously. We have been in business for 85 years, and I have been 20 years with Electrolux, and this has been happening all the time, whether it's Eastern Europe or Turkey, whether with Koreans or Chinese (competition). It is not something we are panicking about.

What are the areas of growth and concern for Electrolux in India?

We were early in and at that time we saw the world was going to globalise over time. That's why in many places we went in the 1980s and the early 1990s. But we treated these different markets quite separately. Today, globalisation is here. And we have built a position where we can take advantage of this. In India we have gone through a period of restructuring.

A very long one at that.

I admit, in hindsight, we probably should have done things a bit differently. We have learned from this like we have in many markets and we are now changing pace. I know we have had a lot of negative press and I regret that, but we are taking the necessary steps and as you can see, we did not bail out. We are committed to the Indian market because I am a firm believer in India. And I can tell you that belief was raised 10 times after I met your President yesterday.

How was the meeting?

It was fantastic. It is one thing that I will tell my grandchildren about. I was told that the meeting could last between 10 minutes and 45 minutes, depending on the interest, and it lasted close to an hour, and we discussed various issues. You have a remarkable President. I am only the president of 80,000 people. Here I met a legend who is the President of a nation of a billion people. And he pulled the computer screen to me and started to present his vision for India, and it was very interesting, and in a number of things that he talks about are core values for Electrolux like environmental consciousness and connecting people and businesses.

What is your impression of India?

I have been here several times, but this is my first time as president of the company. I think India is now moving very fast and only in five years time I see a lot of change.

Has growth in India been a disappointment for you?

I think India is about ready to take off. When more and more people can afford refrigerators and washing machines and things like that, and then it begins to take off. I made a home visit yesterday and this person was actually very satisfied with our products.

"I think India is moving very fast and in five years I see a lot of change''

Were there competing products in the home?

Yes, because we have not sold televisions or microwaves before, but it was very interesting to hear the views of a real consumer.

How long do you give your Indian company to break even?

We have a plan that is working. We have stability here, and the next thing is profitability. Management (Indian) is confirming to me that at the very end of 2005 we will break the waterline. We're also introducing new products here. The Indian middle class' consumption pattern is changing. The mood is changing. People see an opportunity to grow in the world. The newer generation that has travelled and looks at products on the Internet, they see it and they want to have it, too.

How important is India in your global strategy?

India is actually very important going forward for us because of its growing market, very competitive market, but not only as a market to sell products in, but also to utilise the human resources in it, in the call centres and we see the industry is becoming more and more competitive in providing components and even finished products over time.

But you're sourcing (from India) only for your professional outdoor division and not consumer durables?

The components are for outdoors products, and we're looking at an opportunity for lawnmower engines and such, but we are also looking to export, in a small scale, products out of India, too. For our Indian operations and for any nation, you have to earn the right to grow.

How big are your operations in China?

We have sales close to $250 million, but we also source vacuum cleaners and small appliances from there.

What is the vision Indian Management gets from you to achieve profitability?

To earn the right to grow, improve. If you ask me for a marketshare target, I'll give you one and that is, more. It's important to grow in India, and we want to grow. But marketshare is one piece of the puzzle for us, because I could grow tremendously just giving products away. Well, when the prices come down, we said let someone else give away the product. In the end, if you're not getting paid for the materials, no one can make money. If you think you will be able to compete on low cost alone, then I'm not sure you will be so successful.

There's a price erosion also happening in this country. Do you see that affecting you?

This is not too bad for business. If you look at flat screen TVS and CD players, where there is 50 per cent growth in one or two years-this is good business. But it's a tough business, and I think we can see it grow by continuing how we're doing.

How is that?

For the consumer, it's all about "me". If we can become consumer-centric, then consumers feel that we understand them and they can relate to what we give them, then they're prepared to pay a premium for it.

How difficult is it to manage the labour/political opposition to outsourcing?

We have to stay competitive, and today consumers don't pay extra because the product is made in a certain place. Of course, it puts a lot of strain on countries that lose manufacturing to find new opportunities, and of course that is an issue, and it's an issue of globalisation. I have the deepest feeling for people who lose their jobs because jobs are moving. At the same time, consumers expect prices to go down. And they are prepared to buy products made with consumer insight.

How do you, as CEO, who has to make these decisions, deal with it?

It is very tough. It's not always very pleasant, but I'm employed by Electrolux, and if I don't make those decisions, then I jeopardise the future of the company. When I do (make such decisions), I do my best to explain to people in the company that we have to cut costs. It's tough and it's a lot of work and then when we go home and buy a new TV set we expect the price to have come down. We are, in a way, our worst enemies. But at the same time when prices come down, volumes have increased, new markets have opened up. So it's a positive thing, but of course, it's tough to explain to Mr. Smith in this place that you're losing your job because of this. It's very tough. And I'm also a human being.

How do you feel about your competitors? Whirlpool, for example, is in a better position than you are here?

India is not the only place where we have lots of competition. I think about the consumer. I don't spend much time thinking about the competition.