Food
King Sarath Babu :
I am very much privileged and proud to share about the
Successful entrepreneur and the wonderful Human Being – Food King Sarath Babu
sir. I am really lucky to have him in my friend list and luckier to have got
the opportunity to meet him some 3 years back. He is also a inspirational and
motivational speaker, and have made an impact on the lives of many young
entrepreneurs. He is also a Social Activist, and helping the poor in many ways. He also ventured in to politics. He is one of few persons
who worships their parents, and make them proud . Really happy to share about
him in my blog today.
Sharath Babu is not just the star of a true underdog story he is
also an inspiring entrepreneurial tale for those who come from similar
backgrounds. This is the story of someone who dreamt big, and gained an
incredible education while living in a slum. Today he is a successful
entrepreneur and proud owner of ‘Foodking’ with branches in five cities across
India. Sharath Babu was also adjudged the Pepsi youth icon in 2008.
When 27-year old Sarathbabu graduated from the Indian Institute of
Management, Ahmedabad , he created quite a stir by refusing a job that offered
him a huge salary. He preferred to start his own enterprise -- Foodking
Catering Service -- in Ahmedabad.
He was inspired by his mother who once sold idlis on the pavements
of Chennai, to educate him and his siblings. It was a dream come true, when
Infosys co-founder N R Narayana Murthy lit the traditional lamp and inaugurated
Sarathbabu's enterprise.
Here is the Abstracts of His interviews in Rediff , yourpost and
other sites which will definitely motivate us.
Childhood in a slum
I was born and brought up in a slum in
Madipakkam in Chennai. I have two elder sisters and two younger brothers and my
mother was the sole breadwinner of the family. It was really tough for her to
bring up five kids on her meagre salary.
As she had studied till the tenth standard, she got a job under
the mid-day meal scheme of the Tamil Nadu government in a school at a salary of
Rs 30 a month. She made just one rupee a day for six people.
So, she sold idlis in the mornings. She would then work for the
mid-day meal at the school during daytime. In the evenings, she taught at the
adult education programme of the Indian government.
She, thus, did three different jobs to bring us up and educate us.
Although she didn't say explicitly that we should study well, we knew she was
struggling hard to send us to school. I was determined that her hard work
should not go in vain.
I was a topper throughout my school days. In the mornings, we went
out to sell idlis because people in slums did not come out of their homes to
buy idlis. For kids living in a slum, idlis for breakfast is something very
special.
My mother was not aware of institutions like the Birla Institute
of Technology and Science, Pilani, or the Indian Institutes of Technology. She
only wanted to educate us so that we got a good job. I didn't know what I
wanted to do at that time because in my friend-circle, nobody talked about
higher education or preparing for the IIT-JEE.
When you constantly worry about the next square meal, you do not dream of becoming a doctor or an
engineer. The only thing that was on my mind was to get a good job because my
mother was struggling a lot.
I got very good marks in the 10th standard exam. It was the most
critical moment of my life. Till the 10th, there was no special fee but for the
11th and the 12th, the fees were Rs 2,000-3,000.
I did book-binding work during the summer vacation and accumulated
money for my school fees. When I got plenty of work, I employed 20 other
children and all of us did the work together. That was my first real job as an
entrepreneur. Once I saw the opportunity, I continued with the work.
Life at BITS, Pilani
A classmate of mine told me about BITS, Pilani. He was confident
that I would get admission, as I was the topper. He also told me that on completion
(of studies at Pilani), I will definitely get a job.
When I got the admission, I had mixed feelings. On one hand I was
excited that for the first time I was going out of Chennai, but there was also
a sense of uncertainty.
The fees alone were around Rs 28,000, and I had to get around Rs
42,000. It was huge, huge money for us. And there was no one to help us. Just
my mother and sisters. One of my sisters -- they were all married by then --
pawned her jewellery and that's how I paid for the first semester.
My mother then found out about an Indian government scholarship
scheme. She sent me the application forms, I applied for the scholarship, and I
was successful. So, after the first semester, it was the scholarship that
helped me through.
It also helped me to pay my debt (to the sister who had pawned her
jewellery). I then borrowed money from my other sister and repaid her when the
next scholarship came.
The scholarship, however, covered only the tuition fees. What
about the hostel fees and food? Even small things like a washing soap or a
toothbrush or a tube of toothpaste was a burden. So, I borrowed more at high
rates of interest. The debt grew to a substantial amount by the time I reached
the fourth year.
First year at BITS, Pilani
To put it mildly, I was absolutely shocked. Till then, I had moved
only with students from poor families. At Pilani, all the students were from
the upper class or upper middle class families. Their lifestyle was totally
different from mine. The topics they discussed were alien to me. They would
talk about the good times they had in school.
On the other hand, my school years were a big struggle. There was
this communication problem also as I was not conversant in English then.
I just kept quiet and observed them. I concentrated only on my
studies because back home so many people had sacrificed for me. And, it took a
really long time -- till the end of the first year -- to make friends.
The second year
I became a little more confident and started opening up. I had
worked really hard for the engineering exhibition during the first year. I did
a lot of labour-intensive work like welding and cutting, though my subject was
chemical engineering. My seniors appreciated me.
In my second year also, I worked really hard for the engineering exhibition.
This time, my juniors appreciated me, and they became my close friends, so
close that they would be at my beck and call.
In the third year, when there was an election for the post of the
co-ordinator for the exhibition, my juniors wanted me to contest. Thanks to
their efforts I was unanimously elected. That was my first experience of being
in the limelight. It was also quite an experience to handle around 100
students.
Seeing my work, slowly my batch mates also came to the fold. All
of them said I lead the team very well.
They also told me that I could be a good manager and asked me to
do MBA. That was the first time I heard about something called MBA. I asked
them about the best institution in India . They said, the Indian Institutes of
Management. Then, I decided if I was going to study MBA, it should be at one of
the IIMs, and nowhere else.
Inspiration to be an entrepreneur
It was while preparing for the Common Admission Test that I read
in the papers that 30 per cent of India's population does not get two meals a
day. I know how it feels to be hungry. What should be done to help them, I
wondered.
I also read about Infosys and Narayana Murthy, Reliance and
Ambani. Reliance employed 20,000-25,000 people at that time, and Infosys,
around 15,000. When a single entrepreneur like Ambani employed 25,000 people,
he was supporting the family, of four or five, of each employee. So he was
taking care of 100,000 people indirectly. I felt I, too, should become an
entrepreneur.
But, my mother was waiting for her engineer son to get a job, pay
all the debts, build a pucca house and take care of her. And here I was
dreaming about starting my own enterprise. I decided to go for a campus
interview, and got a job with Polaris. I also sat for CAT but I failed to clear
it in my first attempt.
I worked for 30 months at Polaris. By then, I could pay off all the
debts but I hadn't built a proper house for my mother. But I decided to pursue
my dream. When I took CAT for the third time, I cleared it and got calls from
all the six IIMs. I got admission at IIM, Ahmedabad.
Life at IIM, Ahmedabad
My college helped me get a scholarship for the two years that I
was at IIM. Unlike in BITS, I was more confident and life at IIM was fantastic.
I took up a lot of responsibilities in the college. I was in the mess committee
in the first year and in the second year; I was elected the mess secretary.
Becoming an entrepreneur
By the end of the second year, there were many lucrative job
offers coming our way, but in my mind I was determined to start something on my
own. But back home, I didn't have a house. It was a difficult decision to say
'no' to offers that gave you Rs 800,000 a year. But I was clear in my mind even
while I knew the hard realities back home.
Yes, my mother had been an entrepreneur, and subconsciously, she
must have inspired me. My inspirations were also (Dhirubhai) Ambani and
Narayana Murthy. I knew I was not aiming at something unachievable. I got the
courage from them to start my own enterprise.
Nobody at my institute discouraged me. In fact, at least 30-40
students at the IIM wanted to be entrepreneurs. And we used to discuss about
ideas all the time. My last option was to take up a job.
Foodking Catering Services Pvt Ltd
My mother is my first inspiration to start a food business.
Remember I started my life selling idlis in my slum. Then of course, my experience
as the mess secretary at IIM-A was the second inspiration. I must have handled
at least a thousand complaints and a thousand suggestions at that time. Every
time I solved a problem, they thanked me.
I also felt there is a good opportunity in the food business. If
you notice, a lot of people who work in the food business come from the weaker
sections of the society.
My friends helped me with registering the company with a capital
of Rs 100,000. Because of the IIM brand and also because of the media attention,
I could take a loan from the bank without any problem.
I set up an office and employed three persons. The first order was
from a software company in Ahmedabad. They wanted us to supply tea, coffee and
snacks. We transported the items in an auto.
When I got the order from IIM, Ahmedabad, I took a loan of Rs 11
lakhs (Rs 1.1 million) and started a kitchen. So, my initial capital was Rs
11.75 lakhs (Rs 1.17 million).
Three months have passed, and now we have forty employees and four
clients -- IIM Ahmedabad, Darpana Academy, Gujarat Energy Research Management
Institute and System Plus.
In the first month of our operation, we earned around Rs 35,000.
Now, the turnover is around Rs 250,000. The Chennai operations will start in
another three months' time.
Ambition
I want to employ as many people as I can, and improve their
quality of life. In the first year, I want to employ around 200-500 people. In
the next five years, I hope to increase it by 15,000. I am sure it is possible.
I want to cover all the major cities in India, and later, I want
to go around the world too.
I have seen people from all walks of life -- from the slums to the
elite in the country. That is why luxuries like a car or a bungalow do not
matter to me. Even money doesn't matter to me. I feel bad if I have to have
food in a five star hotel. I feel guilty.
Personally, I have no ambition but I want to give a house and a
car to my mother.
Appreciation
I did not expect this kind of exposure by the media for my venture
or appreciation from people like my director at the IIM or Narayana Murthy. I
was just doing what I wanted to do. But the exposure really helped me get
orders, finance, everything.
The best compliments I received were from Narayana Murthy and my
director at IIM, Ahmedabad. When I told him (IIM-A director) about my decision
to start a company, he hugged me and wished me luck. They have seen life, they
have seen thousands and thousands of students and if they say it is a good
decision, I am sure it is a good decision.
Reservation
Reservation should be a mix of all criteria. If you take a caste
that comes under reservation, 80 per cent of the people will be poor and 20 per
cent rich, the creamy layer. For the general category, it will be the other way
around.
I feel equal weightage should be given for the economic
background. A study has to be done on what is the purpose of reservation and
what it has done to the needy. It should be more effective and efficient. In my
case, I would not have demanded for reservation. I accepted it because the
society felt I belonged to the deprived class and needed a helping hand.
Today, the opportunities are grabbed by a few. They should be
ashamed of their ability if they avail reservation even after becoming an IAS
officer or something like that. They are putting a burden on the society and
denying a chance to the really needy.
I feel reservation is enough for one generation. For example, if
the child's father is educated, he will be able to guide the child properly.
Take my case, I didn't have any system that would make me aware of
the IITs and the IIMs. But I will be able to guide my children properly because
I am well educated. I got the benefits of reservation but I will never avail of
it for my children. I cannot even think of demanding reservation for the next
generation.
His Dream : A Hunger Free India.
He has started the Hunger Free India Foundation
with to ensure his dream of People in India do not die of Hunger. This dream
enabled him to lay the foundation stone for Foundation to be celebrated on
every 10th of October. If you want to support his cause, click on https://www.facebook.com/HungerFreeIndiaFoundation.
Source : Rediff, Businesline, Moneycontrol, Wikipedia etc
