Tycoons That Maruti Made ; Beginning the 80s, Over Half-a-Dozen Local Entrepreneurs Hitched Their Stars to a Relatively Small Global Car Maker with Big Plans for India. Since Then, These Vendors of Maruti Udyog (Read: Suzuki) Have Gone On to Create Sizeable Business Empires of Their Own. This Is Their Story.

Summary

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ASAHI INDIA GLASS

The Giant from Nowhere

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Tycoons That Maruti Made ; Beginning the 80s, Over Half-a-Dozen Local Entrepreneurs Hitched Their Stars to a Relatively Small Global Car Maker with Big Plans for India. Since Then, These Vendors of Maruti Udyog (Read: Suzuki) Have Gone On to Create Sizeable Business Empires of Their Own. This Is Their Story.

GROUP: Asahi India Glass

PROMOTER: B.M. LABROO & SANJAY LABROO (above)

REVENUES: Rs 591 crore (2005-06)

MARUTI'S STAKE: 11.11 per cent in Asahi India Glass

Back in 1983, the newly set up public sector car maker Maruti Udyog had a peculiar problem. When it approached Allahabad-based Hindustan Safety Glass (HSG) for supply of automotive glass, it just got rebuffed. The vendor, which used to supply to dominant car makers such as Hindustan Motors and Premier Automobiles and was the largest manufacturer, didn't want to upset its big customers by signing on an upstart. Besides, HSG wasn't prepared to believe that Maruti could actually manufacture 100,000 cars by 1990 as it was promising.

Lucky Sanjay Labroo. In 1984, the then 22-year-old had just returned to India after completing his MBA from Wharton, but did not want to join his fami...

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