Anish Shah, the Managing Director and CEO of the Mahindra Group, firmly believes that companies like the one he leads have the immense potential to compete against global giants, not only in the domestic but also in the overseas markets. According to him, it marks the beginning of a new era where Indian brands are now aspirational and can even be featured among the global pecking order across various categories.
“We are clearly seeing premiumisation (among Indian brands) but India is much more than the consumption story. India is taking leadership in the world today and the key area that we are seeing is with regard to combating climate change. That is creating a whole lot of opportunities in India,” affirmed Shah during the 19th edition of the Indian Business Leaders Awards (IBLA) deliberations hosted by CNBC-TV18 Managing Editor Shereen Bhan.
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During the interview, a business leader talked about the "Solar Challenge" or "Renewable Challenge" initiated by the Indian Prime Minister, which is helping companies like Mahindra to significantly increase their solar business. He expressed his belief that many other companies will also start contributing to renewables.
When asked about the key opportunities that he foresees for business leaders in India and the decisions that his company will make, he stated that one of them is related to the "Make in India" initiative. According to him, Indian companies are currently manufacturing world-class products and surpassing global leaders in India. The next step for the country is to become a global leader in the world, and that is the path that India Inc is currently taking.
During an interview, Shah mentioned that Indian companies have a strong desire to export their products globally. He believes that many local companies across various industries will rise to the challenge and become large multinational corporations. Shah gave the example of Mahindra Tractors, which has become the world's leading manufacturer of tractors in terms of volume and is gaining significant market share in multiple markets worldwide.
Shah stated that their tractor business has reached the top 5 in the world in terms of market share, and their SUVs are now being introduced to a few key global markets. They aim to capture 15-20% of the market share in these markets, which is a significant achievement. Furthermore, they plan to expand their reach to other global markets.
According to Shah, the process has already begun, and not only Mahindra but other companies can compete with anyone in the world. This is a significant shift from the past.
Shah mentioned that India, which has been the world's back office for a long time, has the potential to become the next tech innovator. He added that India has started taking a leading position in technology in terms of startups and IT services firms.
In his concluding remarks, Shah emphasised the significance of maintaining individual balance and highlighted the dynamic nature of this balance as one progresses through their career.
Apart from Mahindra Group’s Shah, the other jury members of IBLA were Catch Bain & Co's Manny Maceda, Zarin Daruwala of Standard Chartered Bank, Federal Bank's Shyam Srinivasan, HUL's Rohit Jawa, Zerodha's Nikhil Kamath, CaratLane's Mithun Sacheti, Meta India's Sandhya Devanathan & Olympic champion Abhinav Bindra.
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