The Jouney From Wiping Tables To Becoming The Idly King Of The World

Once upon a time, there was a 7th grade school dropout who worked in a small restaurant wiping tables to earn his livelihood. He was uneducated, poor and clueless. But one thing that was extraordinary about him was his audacity to challenge his destiny and fearlessness to take bold steps in life. Today, he is known as the Idly king of India. Yes, we are talking about P. Rajagopal, the founder of South Indian outlet famous with the name “Saravana Bhawan.”

Rajagopal was born in a mudhouse in the year 1947 in a small village known as Punnaidi in Tamil Nadu. While working in a loss incurring grocery shop opened with the help of his family members, he once in an impromptu conversation with one of the sales persons discovered that there was dearth of good vegetarian restaurant in his locality, which made many to travel Chennai. Sarvana Bhawan was born out of this idea 30 years ago in the year 1981 by this ordinary shopkeeper who with his extraordinary will and passion has taken his venture to the global space today. The initial few years were quite challenging for this one army man who had to run his business on a loss of Rs. 10, 000 every month for several years. He was even advised by one of his mentors to use cheap ingredients for cost cutting, but Rajagopal did not waste much time to fire him as for him, quality was his utmost priority and he wasn’t ready to compromise on it even it meant loss. But with good quality of food and great customer experience at the time when these things were not mainstream, his reputation gradually grew and soon all his loss started converting into profits. After his success in India, Rajagopal started expanding his horizons in the global market with opening his first international outlet in Dubai in the year 2000. There was no looking back from there, Saravana Bhawan today has 33 branches in India and 47 branches overseas.

The success of Sarvana Bhawan does not only lie only in good quality food but also in having high workplace standards. With extra care and attention to each employee, it ensures productivity in the most ethical fashion.

This story undeniably seems straight out of movie containing all the elements of success, a spectacular rise from bottom to top, a one man empire and more.