HE HAS spent most of his life in the children's education business even as he pursued his own education.
A fortnight ago, Dr T. Chandroo threw a big party for his many friends to celebrate his doctorate in Business Administration from Australia's Southern Cross University.
The euphoria had long subsided when we met in his office at the MMI building in the heart of Chinatown and he was in a reflective mood. Asked for his success formula, this self-made millionaire points not to the degrees on the wall, but to the lessons he learnt from the School of Hard Knocks or the University of Life.
Whatever you call it, a few things are certain as he will tell you - anyone can enrol, there are no fees and graduates don't receive certificates.
'Please don't get me wrong,' he says, the smile suddenly vanishing from his face.
'I'm all for getting an education and I firmly believe in lifelong learning. But the hard lessons I learnt knocking on doors as a door-to-door salesman, for example, no university can teach you.
'People slam the door in your face and they let their dogs loose. But you grow the thickest of thick skins, learn to deal with the disappointments, and move ahead.'
You have to look deep into his past to fully understand what drives this man, the eldest of seven children who grew up poor in a Bukit Gombak kampung house.
'I would wake up at 6am, wash my father's taxi, have a quick breakfast and rush to school. My family kept goats and after school I would tie them up - about five to seven of them - and take them to a field nearby to graze. These were my daily chores. On Saturdays I would pluck curry leaves and take them to Bukit Panjang market to sell for one or two dollars to earn some money for the family. It was a tough life and I developed a hunger to do better when I grew up.'
After his O Levels at Boys' Town (now Assumption English) he worked for a short time as a dumping ground superviser while awaiting enlistment in the army where he became a gunner in a tank unit. He also took up boxing during his National Service, idolised Muhammad Ali and learnt to pick himself off the canvas and continue fighting. Although his boxing days are well behind him, Dr Chandroo, 55, tries to maintain the training regimen of a pugilist in his regular gym workouts.
After NS, he worked as a High Street textile salesman but soon found the job boring and quit after learning the finer points of salesmanship. He continued studying for his A Levels in night school where he met Sheila, who would one day become his partner in both life and business.
After being jobless for three months, he saw an ad in The Straits Times which changed his life. 'It said: 'Born Losers Arise',' he recalls. 'I was fascinated and went for the interview. It was for a job to sell Encyclopaedia Brittanica door to door.
There was no salary, only a 12 per cent commission but I decided to give it a try.'
His friends told him there was no future but he was determined to prove them wrong. He diligently worked the phone and spent his nights and weekends trying to convince potential buyers. At $1,750 for a set of 32 volumes, it was not an easy sell in the 1970s. But by then Dr Chandroo had expunged the word failure from his book and grown a thick hide.
Thus armed, he sold six sets in the first month, eight in the second and nine in the third. On a roll, he decided to invest some of his savings in a second hand Ford Escort so that he could make more house calls.
By the fourth month he was promoted to field sales manager with four salesmen reporting to him. Within three years he became regional sales manager and, at its peak, his salary was $35,000 a month.
'One of my more memorable sales was to SM Goh (Chok Tong) in 1976. He was a young minister. It was so many years ago, I don't think he will remember me. He bought a set for his children. I closed the deal in just 10 minutes.'
After six years, Dr Chandroo decided to call it a day to start his own company selling encyclopaedias. 'I wanted to be my own boss. That was my dream from young.' But with the arrival of CD-Roms, encyclopaedias began to lose their appeal and so he branched out into selling Sesame Street books for kids.
That was when he realised there was a shortage of good pre-school centres and, after some research, contacted the MMI headquarters in London. Montessori is a teaching method for pre-school children and recognises each child's pace of learning. It was developed by Italian physician Maria Montessori.
After convincing MMI that he would maintain the quality of teachers, he began operations at a small Victoria Street shophouse in 1989. Under his stewardship, MMI has grown into one of the leading pre-school education providers with 32 schools in Singapore and 50 in the Asia-Pacific region.
His time is now divided between MMI and community and charity work aimed primarily at needy children. 'I want to help disadvantaged children. That's my way of giving back for everything I have been blessed with,' says Dr Chandroo who is also chairman of the Sri Mariamman Temple, located a short walk from his South Bridge Road office.
Wife Sheila and older son Sanjey, 27, who has a Masters in investment banking, help him run MMI. Second son Diresh, 23, is in Manchester studying aerospace engineering and daughter Roshini, 19, is pursuing a psychology degree in Sydney.
His idea of relaxation is a Saturday night movie with Sheila followed by a visit to one of the Jalan Kayu prata shops. He may be walking on air these days, but the kampung boy is determined to keep his feet firmly on the ground.
