Today’s success story revolves around a man whose name might not be familiar to you but his work, his brand is something no Indian is new to. The biggest groups of the world keep a close eye on Indian retail market and are looking for an opportunity to tie-up with a desi company. But there are some Indian heavyweights who have built a massive empire from scratch all on their own and now rest of a wealth of crores of rupees.
The man under the spotlight today had begun his career by selling dhoti with his grandfather. He is now attributed for revolutionizing the Indian retail sector and boosting Indian economy.
The man is the photograph is none other than Kishore Biyani who is the patriarch of Future Group. He was born into a middle-class family from Rajasthan who began assisting his grandfather in trips to Mumbai where they sold dhotis and sarees. He decided to stick to this business and began manufacturing trousers at the young age of 22. He gradually furthered on the path of success and became owner of a company which does an annual turnover of Rs 18,000 crore.
Since his teenage days Kishore was more interested in business than his academics. However, he wanted to enter the retail sector rather than continuing his family business. He understood the intricacies of business while helping his grandfather and alongside started reading books on marketing and advertising. He was quick enough to sense a business opportunity in the retail sector but hadn’t even imagined that one day is his idea will be instrumental in deciding the way Indian retail market will function in the future.
While giving shape to his idea he thought of a place where Indian consumers could but everything under one roof. To get an initial feedback he shared his idea with his close friends and received a lot of appreciation. This boosted his confidence and he was sure of his success.
It was during this time when Kishore got married and all his plans to venture into the retail sector were stalled. After marriage he decided to stick to the business of manufacturing trousers and other clothes. In 1987, he named his clothe manufacturing company Pantaloon which was very close to the Urdu world ‘Patloon’ meaning pants. The quality of his product made them famous among the customers and every retailer had extra stock ready for sale. The initial success and hefty profits convinced Kishore to open his own store.
In 1991, he opened his first store in Goa and by the next year he swept money from the share market and launched a retail chain. Kishore brought together Big Bazaar, Food Bazaar, Pantaloon, Brand Factory, Home Town, E-Zone etc and made them reach small cities of the country. Pantaloon became India’s largest retail chain and its enormous success made Aditya Birla Group to acquire it.
Since then the tale of Future Group has only seen an upward trend. It has established its distinct image in the Indian fashion sector and does an annual turnover of Rs 18,000 crore. Kishore has chalked out a more aggressive plan for future and eyes a turnover of more than one lakh crore rupees by the year 2021.
Kishore recognized his talent and gave it a right direction. He did not have a big degree to show off but only his confidence and grit to built this huge empire.
Share the story and leave your comments in the box below.
