This IIM grad sells idlis

AHMEDABAD: E Sharathbabu’s life has come a full circle. He started off with selling idlis in the slums of Madipakkam in Chennai, then left it to graduate from IIM- Ahmedabad. He hit headlines for refusing a lucrative job offer and starting a catering company. He recently inaugurated his first outlet on the IIM-A campus and he’s back to selling idlis.

The first outlet of his catering company, Foodking, inaugurated on the lawns of IIM-A’s new campus last week, is already a hit with the students. The menu is mostly south Indian food, with the most expensive item on the menu priced at Rs25. “Foodking Catering Services provides value-for-money, multi-cuisine, packaged meals to corporate houses like BPOs, pharma companies, educational institutions etc. I know how it feels to sleep on an empty stomach. I will generate as many employment opportunities as possible. If I employ one person he will support five others,” Sarathbabu said.

His new venture has already provided jobs to 20 people. “Foodking will be worth Rs500 crore in five to eight years employing over 15,000 employees,” he added.

Not just another enterprising IIM-A student, Sarathbabu’s is a rather heartwarming story. Admitted to IIM-A under the SC/ST quota in 2004, Sarathbabu’s mother PE Deeparamani has been selling idlis on the streets of Chennai for the past thirty years earning Rs30 a day. She also worked as an ‘aayah’ with the Tamil Nadu government’s mid-day meal scheme. Estranged from her husband, she saved every single penny and educated her five children.

In early April, Infosys chief Narayana Murthy had released the business plan of 27-year-old Sarathbabu’s catering business. Sarath’s company has already bagged three catering contracts, from two banks and a software company. He has established a manufacturing unit with plans to expand it.

However, this is just the beginning. “We will launch our next project in Chennai and Hyderabad. Within five years, Foodking  will be a well-organised industry, ” he says.

Talking to DNA, IIM-A director, Professor Bakul Dholakia, said, “What Sarath has done is very encouraging. He will have a great learning experience here as IIM people have a reputation for being a tough clientele!”