Mr. Harsh Mariwala, the Chairman and Managing Director of Marico Limited, addressed the IIM Lucknow community on “The Journey: Pioneering the growth of an FMCG”.The Leadership Series was organized by the Industry Interaction Committee at IIM Lucknow. The two hour session was well received by the students and faculty of IIM Lucknow. The audience was inspired by the story of how a commodity company was transformed into India’s leading branded FMCG Company. Today, Marico is one of India’s largest FMCG companies in beauty and wellness space with brands like Parachute, Saffola, Hair and care, Mediker, Kaya Clinics under its portfolio.

Mr. Harsh Mariwala narrated his story of as to how he started his career in 1971 by joining the family business of chemicals, spices and edible oils at Bombay Oil Industries Ltd (BOIL). He was promoted to the consumer product division in 1980. His entrepreneurial spirits led to the formation of Marico in 1990 when he brought Parachute and Saffola in prominence. Completely restructuring the organizational structure of the firm from a family run business to a more professional entity, Mr. Mariwala played an instrumental role in increasing the turnover from Rs 5 million in 1971 to Rs 19 billion in 2007-08.

The high point of the session was when budding MBA students interacted with Mr. Mariwala and asked insightful questions to the great business leader. They were eager to know about the magic behind the success story of Marico. Mr. Mariwala shared Marico’s growth strategy and challenges faced by FMCGs in the current economic slowdown. Through different examples, Mr. Mariwala explained the importance of a good leader in guiding a company to success. Mr. Mariwala deftly answered each and every question and shared his wisdom with the students.

The audience was highly inspired by his life and words and was left wanting to learn more about his initiatives at the end of session.

The session concluded with a vote of thanks.

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