Gen Next Business Leaders of India

Anant Goenka:

Anant Goenka, son of Harsh Goenka of RPG Group, has no airs of a rich kid but, instead, is a very humble and down-to-earth person. He still carries with him a steel tiffin box, a bottle of water and a duffle bag, which only add to his modest demeanor. Unlike other billionaire kids, he has made his way to the top by beginning small. He worked at Hindustan Unilever as an Area Sales Manager on the outskirts of Mumbai. After various stints at business and engineering schools in the US, he was appointed as the Deputy Managing Director of his family-owned business. His style, as he says, is collaborative because he is still young. He has got to learn from people who have put so much into the business.

Goenka is also the Deputy MD of the group’s flagship company, Ceat, and is looking to turn around the fortunes of India’s fourth-largest tyre-maker. He is focusing on profitability and exports to revive the company. The idea is to change the product mix, that is, to make more tyres for passenger cars, utility vehicle and two-wheeler and to identify export destinations with high growth potential in Asia, Africa and Latin America. “We are in the process of identifying key markets in various geographies and charting out long-term growth strategies in those regions,” he said, identifying several regions. He feels Brazil and Bolivia in Latin America, Cameroon, Nigeria and Ghana in Africa and Malaysia and Indonesia in Asia show promise.