How 18 Year Old Boy Turns His Family Ordinary Business Into A Company With A Turnover Of Rs 170 crores?

Paras Kumar did exceptionally well when, at the age of 18, he took over the management of Hathi Brand, a Delhi-based family business that produces Chana Dal and Atta (flour). At the time, he was pursuing his B.com from the University of Delhi through the Open School.

"I entered the business with an expansion vision and invested around Rs 20 million in building a set up semi-automatic plant for maida," explains Paras, explaining how he took the business to another level.

“The unit started operating in 2010 and we quickly got into the production and sale of Maida, Sooji, Dalia, Besan, and Poha. When he joined in 2009, the company only sold Channa Dal and Atta."

Hathi Brand has a legacy that can be traced back to the days before the split. Paras' grandfather Jugal Kishore started selling gram, pulses, and gram flour in Lahore in 1942 and moved to Delhi during Partition.

He started a flour mill on Lawrence Road with a wholesale store at Naya Bazar in Lahori Gate. His son Jagmohan Kumar, Paras's father, joined the company in 1972.

“We sold around 400-500 Chana Dal and Atta jute bags in our store every day. When my father asked me to handle sales at the counter, I took the position seriously and quickly became the face of the brand.

Previously, the company was registered as a real estate company, but became a limited liability company - JJ Foods Pvt. Ref. - in 1991.

Initial Days 

Paras Kumar studied at Mount St Mary's School in Delhi, finished 12th grade in 2008 with 68% in Commerce. He then enrolled in B.Com through the Delhi University Open School and joined Hathi Brand in 2009.

"I used to visit the factory with my father as a child and wanted to join the business from a young age," said Paras. And when he joined, he had a plan.

By 2012, turnover had doubled to 100 million leases. Paras followed a simple method to keep up to date with market trends and competitors.

"I used to visit shops and shopping centers and keep an eye on the products in the market," he reveals. "We are studying the products on the shelves and the sought after. I soon realized that we can easily expand our product range."

In 2017 he introduced Hathi Brand Dals and a wide range of products. Today, the company manufactures Moong Sabut, Moong Chilka, Moong Dhuli, Arhar Dal, Urad Sabut, Masoor Dal, Mix Dal, and many other products.

"For rice, we are affiliated with two factories in Haryana, where production and packaging are outsourced. We send four of our employees to these factories to monitor quality control," said Paras.

In the market, Hathi Brand has the strongest presence in UP and Delhi NCR, where they have around 75 distributors. The company will also relocate to Kolkata, Guwahati, and Rajasthan.

"The Hathi brand is extremely popular at UP, as 60% of namkeen producers in the state buy from us," Paras said.

In mid-2018, Hathi Brand started exports, which accounted for 5% of its business but slowed down due to Covid.

But total production increased over the past year as demand for its products increased in the domestic market during the closure of Covid.

"We increased our production as demand for basic needs increased. We faced work problems during those days as many of our workers migrated back to their villages. "But we achieved 15% more production during Covid," said Paras.

Hathi Brand also sells online through the Udaan B2B app and Kendriya Bhandar's government affairs, although they make up a very small portion of sales.

"Selling on Amazon and Flipkart was not a good idea, as they serve classy customers while we focus on the B&C segment, the middle and lower classes," says Paras. 

Paras' wife, Diksha, is his assistant at the company and oversees the brand's presence in online media. She is also his main source of motivation and works with him to develop growth plans for the company. The couple is fortunate to have a two-and-a-half-year-old son, Dhaarv.