Global cable and connectivity solutions provider LAPP has completed 30 years of operations in India, cementing the country’s position as its largest market outside Germany and a key pillar of the family-owned group’s global growth strategy.

 

LAPP’s India journey began at a time when international businesses were increasingly turning their attention to other Asian markets. But the company, guided by founder Ursula Ida Lapp and her sons Siegbert and Andreas, identified India’s long-term potential early and began investing ahead of the curve.

 

“When my grandmother, my father and my uncle came to India in the 1980s, they saw something that many others overlooked”, says Matthias Lapp, third-generation CEO of LAPP Group. 

 

“At the time, most westerners had a very shallow impression of India, seeing mostly hardships and challenges. My family saw something different. They saw the energy of the people, the richness of India's culture, the democratic institutions, and the extraordinary economic potential. They chose to invest in the country’s future.”

 

After several years of working with local partners, LAPP established its India headquarters in Bengaluru in 1996. Two years later, it opened its first cable manufacturing facility in the nearby Jigani industrial area.

 

Since then, the company has steadily expanded its manufacturing footprint and invested in local talent. Today, LAPP operates three manufacturing facilities, three warehouses, two harnessing plants and nine regional sales offices across India.

 

Its latest expansion in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, has transformed the facility into the largest manufacturing site in LAPP’s global production network. The plant also houses some of the company’s most advanced manufacturing capabilities worldwide.

 

“Localisation is important”, says Matthias Lapp. “We develop and manufacture in India for the Indian market. At the same time, we draw on the LAPP Group’s global network: product managers in Germany work alongside materials experts in Switzerland and Indian engineers to develop the best possible solutions for our customers.”

 

The strategy has helped LAPP India emerge as one of the country’s leading cable and connectivity providers. The business now employs around 500 people and serves customers across industrial automation, manufacturing, infrastructure, rail, renewable energy, oil and gas, food and beverage, e-mobility and other sectors.

 

For LAPP, India’s importance extends well beyond its manufacturing capabilities. The company sees the country’s economic expansion, industrialisation, infrastructure build-out and energy transition as closely aligned with the markets it serves.

 

Matthias Lapp: "India combines strong economic growth, rapid industrialization, infrastructure development, and energy transition. These megatrends closely align with the industries LAPP serves. And that is exactly why India will continue to play a central role in our global growth strategy. Not merely as a manufacturing base, but as a core strategic market.”

 

The Lapp family’s ties with India run deeper than its commercial interests. Matthias Lapp travelled extensively across the country during childhood family vacations, giving him a personal connection with the market from an early age.

 

The family’s engagement with India has also extended into diplomatic and cultural ties. Former LAPP CEO Andreas Lapp has served as Honorary Consul of the Republic of India in two German states since 2000. He also hosts the annual “Stuttgart meets Mumbai Wine Fest”, which has developed into an established platform for Indo-German dialogue.

 

Three decades after formally establishing its Indian operations, LAPP is betting that the country’s next chapter of industrial and economic growth will be just as significant as the opportunity its founders identified decades ago.