If you are satisfied you cannot grow, writes Chhaya Momaya

He chose his own, unique path rather than joining his family's food grains trading business. From towels to pipes to solar energy, this visionary has made his presence felt in so many arenas thanks to his single-minded devotion, perseverance and his family's unstinted support. He may not have gone to a la-di-dah business school but his success saga proves that all you need is a vision and a strong work ethics to carve your business and identity. In this riveting encounter, the risk-taking Bal Krishna Goenka, head of Welspun Group of Companies (the US$ 3.5 billion group) underscores the fact that nothing beats the age-old value system and willingness to succeed. The ability to learn from your mistakes, the guts to take risks and an unshakable belief in your self - are the three pillars for any successful business foundation.

BK Goenka is different things to different people - a great leader to his group, a supportive husband to wife Dipali, a loving father to his two daughters - Radhika and Vanshika and a warm friend to many in the chic corridors. Well-spoken, approachable and grounded - meeting him is truly a humbling experience. In a candid chat, he talks about his early days, the risks he took and his support that he got from his inspiring father. The shy-yet-eloquent man is one of the most loved and respected figures in the business circles. Over to him...

At what age did you start and how?

I started business at the age of 18, as I had a business background. When you come from a Marwari-Baniya family, it's in your DNA. Family discussions primarily revolve around business. So you learn business from a very tender age and you are always inquisitive to learn more. That's what you have been taught, whether on the dinner table or during travelling together with your family.
I was very close to my grandfather. When I was in the 5th standard, he used to tell me how to write accounts in old red books, there were no computers, cash books or ledgers. He used to tell me - how to do entries, cross entries, what is the meaning of ledger, what is the meaning of cash book, why is it important and what are the key things?Those are the things you learn at a very tender age and which go into your head and into the system. Also, how you establish credibility? These are the things which you don't learn in school but from your parents. Back then, we were taught not to waste food, the importance of money and certain things, which are very important to present yourself in the society. I used to go with my grandfather to his office when I was 14. It was a typical set up with mattresses - there was the main gaddi, where my grandfather sat and there was my father's gaddi and then the general public would sit in front of them. I learnt much more from my grandfather initially and then my father taught me how to think big. My father was the one who first shifted to Delhi from Hisar in Haryana where the rest of the family lived. I had four uncles. I was born and bought up in Hisar. From Delhi I came to Bombay in 1985 and started Welspun. We were the first one to start a texturising plant so the name Welspun came. I always had a dream to do something big. I was the first boy in my family to go out of India alone. In 1979, when I was a 14-year-old, I was sent to Europe with $400-500, which was a big thing. I went around the whole of Europe even though I wasn't fluent in English. Entrepreneurship is what? It is a risk - you can pass or fail. My father gave me a lot of morale support and was with me through thick and thin. I always took big risks and my father gave me a free hand. I was never stopped - for instance, the first public issue I came out with, nobody thought I could do it. I did it. In my family everyone opposed the IPO but my father said, 'no you do it'. He said, if you do not get freedom you cannot grow, if you do not trust and believe in others you cannot go to the next level. I am never satisfied. If you are satisfied, you cannot grow.

You have built this empire on your own. What is your future vision and where is Welspun heading to?

There is a fire in my belly. I am very hands-on and get into nitty-gritty of work. Let's say, I go by my instincts, do not waste time, and make instant decisions. We all have seen rainy days, but you learn with every mistake you make.At Welspun Group, we are very clear that in every sphere where we operate, we want to be the global leader. We started in home textile way back in 1993-94. We were very focused from day one. Till today, our focus has been very clear - home textiles. We could have gone into denim, apparels, anything but our focus was very clear. We went into towels, bed sheets and rugs. Today, we are globally number two player. We are doing billion-dollar sales but more importantly, you have to create your positioning with customers. Otherwise you are just one of the many supplier for your buyers. Whether we are dealing with Walmart, JC Penny or Kohl's or any of the global retailers, they look at us as a partner because we are very focused. We have a global scale, we have done our own independent research, we develop designs and products and we know what customers from different countries want so we offer a complete bouquet of products and services.
Secondly, in Pipes – oil and Gas we are very focused. We are the world's second largest pipe company. We have a capacity of 2.5 million tons across the world. We are in Saudi Arabia, USA, Little Rock, Arkansas. Similarly in our Renewable Business we have emerged as India's largest solar company. Our vision is to invest close to Rs 10,000 Crores and create 2000 Mw capacity of renewable energy and become one of Asia's largest solar companies. In each business, I try to create a professional team, to be run by separate CEOs -- experts from the respective industry. I am not looking into day-to-day work except corporate strategy and visioning. I am not a boss, but a trustee.

How were you as a student?

When I was a student, I was never interested in studies and thus did not obtain any professional degree. It was business and business from the time I could breathe.

Share a life changing moment with us.

I would say - coming to Mumbai and starting an independent business.

What is that one lesson you remember from your father you so loved and respected?

His way of looking at things was different. He was not a highly educated person but he had several life experiences and would deep dive into situations and come up with solution. The most important thing I learnt from him is the significance of common sense - which is uncommon. If anyone sees the meaning of this, it is very deep. You may not be the master of anything but if you use your common sense and logic, you can find a lot of solutions.

You have two bright, well-educated beautiful daughters, how do you see their future?

Radhika is more interested in the arts and fashion designing, so that is her way of looking at things. I do not want to change her mind and involve her in the business. We should let kids do whatever they are passionate about. Vanshika is more business-minded. She understands it and gets into the more commercial side of the business. But it is difficult to say what they will do. I do not want to force them - if they want to come and join the business it's good and if they do not want to join, it is up to them.

Dipali, your gorgeous, intelligent wife and life partner is heading a very important vertical in your business; in a typical Indian Marwari business family a decade ago was unheard of, so what brought her into this business?

Once Radhika and Vanshika were grown up, she was more interested in designing. Initially, for 10 years, she was involved with designing of home textiles. Today she handles the entire home textile business. She comes from a family where her mother was the chairwoman/trustee of a bank they were running. She has seen it in her mother's side of the family. Her mother was keenly involved in the businesses because of her father's unfortunate health. She is a rare combination of life partner and business partner. All credit goes to her - she works nearly 12 hours a day.

What would you like to advise the young of the country to deal with a failure?

With every failure or success, you also learn something. In fact, in my business career, I also made mistakes. I also saw failure but I learned a lot of lessons. In my opinion, one should not get depressed, but should evaluate what went wrong and work on that and remain always positive. If you are not positive in your thinking, you are anyway going to fail.