The Entrepreneurship Guru

Marico Chairman Harsh C Mariwala speaks about his appetite for business, new-age entrepreneurship, Aquacentric, and his first book due release in June this year

- Priyanca Vaishnav

Over the period of close to 40 years, Harsh Mariwala has transformed the family’s commodity business into a vibrant consumer brands company in the arena of beauty and wellness. With flagship brands such as Parachute, Saffola, and Livon having become category markers, among others. From a turnover of `50 lakh in 1971, Marico's products and services in hair care, skin care and healthy foods generated a turnover of about `6,300 crore during 2017-18 — it is little wonder that one in every three Indians is a Marico consumer, and the company has a significant international presence in Asia and Africa. We speak to Mariwala whose leadership has earned Marico awards and accolades as much as high regard in the eyes of the public.

COMMUNICATING VALUES AT MARICO

A quote from Mariwala resides on the company website’s Board of Directors page — ‘a life of purpose is the purpose of life.’ Quiz him on how this ethos is communicated and pat comes the response — “It’s not really something that came from me alone. We got an external agency to have dialogues within the organisation, conduct an insighting exerci e and arrive at an organisational purpose. A few threads of thoughts emerged based on what had already been in existence over the span of three decades. These threads were consolidated into a single statement — Be More Everyday. Make a Difference.

I was clear about reinforcing this purpose on a perpetual basis. It is not something that is put on the website or on the reception wall and forgotten.