First offices: How Amul, Marico, Emami, and other conglomerates started out

Marico Industries

The initiation of a young Harsh Mariwala, founder of fast-moving consumer goods company Marico, into his family-run business was tough. Mariwala began his career in 1971 with Bombay Oil Mills, which manufactured and traded in oils, spices and chemicals. Their first office was at Kanmoor House—a five-storey building built by Mariwala’s grandfather in South Mumbai’s Masjid Bunder area. “Just getting to the office was a nightmare. The entire area, with dingy lanes, was crowded and jammed with warehouses and grain depots. One could park one’s car about 15 minutes from the office premise,” recounts Mariwala. The premises, however, were massive—8,000 to 9,000 sq ft. Mariwala started a consumer goods business in 1975 and made its two flagship brands—Parachute coconut oil and Saffola refined oil—best-sellers. By 1992, Mariwala decided to move out of the congested Masjid Bunder to an open-plan office in Bandra.

—Salil Panchal