Anil Rai Gupta, chairman and Md of Havells India, got a bird’s eye view of how businesses are built, thanks to his father’s vision and leadership

In 1984, when Anil Rai Gupta was given his first business assignment by father Qimat Rai, he was all of 15. The founder of Havells India Limited had decided to host a meeting of the 70-odd dealers of his company and had tasked his son with scouting for a five-star hotel.

Though Havells—which manufactured industrial electrical products such as rewirable and changeover switches, HBC fuses and energy metres at the time—was a relatively small business, clocking annual revenues below Rs 50 lakh, Qimat Rai Gupta had the disposition of the big leaguers. “QRG [as he was fondly known in industry lore] told me, ‘Larsen & Toubro hosts its dealers’ meets at five-star hotels, so we should do the same’,” recalls Anil, who took over as the chairman and managing director of the company following his father’s death in November 2014.

Eager to earn his stripes, Anil negotiated a deal with the Taj Palace Hotel in New Delhi’s diplomatic enclave—a transaction he recalls with pride, even today. “I still remember the person at the hotel… I told him, ‘Look, I might be young, but I want to make sure I get the best rate’, to which he replied, ‘You are doing a very good job at that’.”

Three decades since that meet, the company is no longer the minnow that it was. Havells today has a 6,500-strong dealer distribution network. Its product basket has also diversified to include cables and wires, motors, fans, power capacitors, lighting (CFL and LED), water heaters and domestic consumer appliances such as iron, mixer grinders and air coolers.