Shivratan Agarwal is the founder and director of Bikaji. He only studied until the 8th grade. Bikaji is a well-known brand in India. They make bhujia, namkeen, sweets, papad, and other snacks. Agarwal’s success shows how experience and determination can lead to success in business.
Bikaji is an Indian snack company. They started exporting to Australia in 1996. In 2006, they partnered with other companies to expand. They opened their first store in Mumbai in 2008. Over the next few years, they opened more stores across India.
Bikaji has six factories. They are in Rajasthan, Assam, and Karnataka. They also have a contract factory in West Bengal. The founder of Bikaji wanted to share the taste of India with the world. They are known for their innovative snacks.
A report from Moneycontrol said that Bikaji’s sales increased by 30% in 2022. They made Rs 1611 crore mainly from selling snacks like bhujia and namkeen. Their profit for the year was Rs 76 crore. In the three months that ended in June 2022, they made Rs 419 crore in sales. Their profit was Rs 15.7 crore.
Early life of Shivratan Agarwal
Shivratan Agarwal was born into a family that made bhujia. His grandfather was ‘Gangabhisan Haldiram Bhujiawala’ and his father was ‘Moolchand’. They both loved making snacks. In 1987, Shivratan started his own Bikaneri Bhujia business. He changed the name to Bikaji in 1993.
Shivratan had to overcome many challenges to make his brand successful. It was hard to introduce his brand to the world. There were not many technological advancements at the time. But Shivratan did not give up. He used machinery to make more snacks. He also went to other countries to learn how to make snacks.
The Journey of Bikaji
Shri Shivratan Agarwal started Bikaji in the 1980s. He wanted to make Bhujia on a big scale. He looked all over the world for the best technology. He was successful in the end.
Building the Base
Shri Agarwal started Bikaji even though there was not much technology. He researched and came up with new ways to make Bhujia. In 1986, he started Shuvdeep Food Products with a partner. This was the start of Bikaji’s future.
Bikaji Comes to Market
Bikaji started selling in 1993. It became popular quickly. In a year, they started selling in the UAE. Shivratan saw that Bikaji needed to be its own company because it was so popular.
Bikaji Becomes a Company
In 1995, Bikaji became a public limited company. This made it a real company. It also helped it grow and become successful.
Bikaji: Top Bhujia Maker
Shivratan led Bikaji to change the bhujia making sector. It was not organized before. Now, Bikaji is one of the biggest bhujia makers in the world. They sell their products all over the world.
Bikaji also got Amitabh Bachchan to be their brand ambassador. They started the ‘Amitji Loves Bikaji’ campaign. This made their brand even more popular.
Bikaji’s IPO
Bikaji also started selling shares in the stock market. They did this on November 3, 2022. This shows that they want to grow and expand.
Shivratan started with a small business. Now, he has a business that makes many crores of rupees. His story shows that experience and hard work can make dreams come true. It inspires people who want to start their own businesses.
