Tuesday 10 May 2016

He begged on the streets once. Today, this entrepreneur has a turnover of Rs 30 cr and dreams of an IPO

His company today has a turnover of Rs 30 crore and employs 150 people. This by no means is the finishing line even though 50-year-old Renuka Aradhya started life’s race with a major handicap.
Renuka Aradhya in his office.
Renuka Aradhya in his office.
Renuka was born poor. Very poor. He has seen the kind of poverty that put him on the streets to beg. The poverty that kept him hungry both literally and metaphorically.
Where does one begin to tell this entrepreneur’s story? From pushing a handcart under a blazing sun to now owning a fleet of 1000 plus cars? Or from transporting 300 dead bodies to ferrying foreign tourists who left tips in dollars? Or from failing to clear class X exams to now rubbing shoulders with the industry’s who’s who?
Or the fact that with his foresight he was able to ward off Uber and Ola poaching his business, and is making the next generation ready to dream big by bringing his daughter-in-law (who comes from a poor family) into the business.
Ernest Hemingway wrote a long time ago, “It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end.”
Here’s Renuka’s roller coaster journey in his own words because no other words will do it justice.

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