Sometimes things don’t go according to your plan. But you can achieve everything you set your mind to if you believe in yourself even in bad times. There are no limitations out here, just have to keep trying hard until you get success.
MBA Chai Wala’s owner, Prafull Billore, was determined to pursue his dreams and succeeded today. He had his share of setbacks, but he overcame them to get to where he is now and become a successful entrepreneur. His success story serves as an encouragement to today’s young.
Prafull Billore also known as the MBA Chaiwala is the successful owner of his venture named MBA Chaiwala franchise. He started his business with Rs 8,000 investment only and is now essentially a Rs 3 crore business built on India’s all-time favourite drink tea (chai).
Born on January 14, 1996, Prafull Billore who came from Madhya Pradesh had completed his graduation in commerce. After graduation, he earned a salary of Rs. 25,000 per month and worked in Amway as a Salesman.
Just like every other student and MBA aspirant in India, he also has a dream of going to IIM Ahmedabad to pursue his MBA degree. He was attracted to the fact that MBA graduates would receive many job offers and good salary packages from reputed companies or firms.
Hence, he passed the CAT exam and secured a seat at IIM Ahmedabad. Like every other parent, his parents were eager for their son to get into the esteemed management institution.
Prafull Billore - Career
“I wanted to be a big man. Bachpan se bahut tang samay dekha tha (I have seen tough times since childhood), so my only passion was making more money and living a comfortable life.”
Prafull admits that his aspirations did not lie with his parents. He was 20 and was still struggling to understand what he could do. He travelled to various cities in India, allowing him to meet people from diverse backgrounds.
Meeting and talking to them gave him many insights and experience with jobs.
He read success stories about popular businessmen like Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson. He realized a common thread among these people. All of them had worked for McDonald's at some point in their lives.
So he joined McDonald’s in Ahmedabad and earned Rs. 300/- a day. Prafull says, “I also took a part-time job at McDonald’s to see how it feels to work somewhere. The salary was not much and it made me think (how will I become a big man if even after MBA I’d work like this}?” over here
Although he quickly rose up the ranks from the housekeeping employee to the cashier, he was not satisfied. Soon he began exploring business opportunities and quickly realized that most businesses asked for a very high initial investment.
An amount that he did not have. So, Prafull set up a simple plan.
He decided to start selling tea (chai). He called his father and borrowed Rs. 8000/- from him for false reasons.
He then invested that money towards buying the inventory he needed to launch a small roadside tea shop. All the while, he kept his day job working at McDonald’s.
Prafull says he doesn’t drink tea and he had no idea how to make it. The first day that he made tea, he could not sell a single cup of it. Not one to give up, he came up with a plan B. The next day, he started approaching people and engaging them in conversation.
The fact Prafull became popular because people were fascinated that a roadside tea seller was speaking fluent English. To top it up, he was serving tea in earthenware cups with a slice of toast and tissue paper – a completely new image of a regular tea seller. And so this tea was becoming famous, as was his conversation.
His growing fame in the market. The other tea vendors in the surrounding market area were unhappy with the new kid on the block. They conspired to close his venture and resorted to bullying and threatening him. He wanted to ensure that nobody should be able to displace him again legally or by any force and that his business shouldn’t get close.
So Prafull decided to close his stall, but, undaunted, he approached a hospital owner and with his permission and help from other authorities, opened up another stall around the hospital and had requested some space and that he would be paying rent for the place.
The hospital authorities, after much consideration of his approach, accepted Praful’s proposal and gave the nod for setting up his tea stall around the hospital. He started setting up his business. Between all the hassle of setting up the shop and boosting it up, he had forgotten to keep a name for his chai business.
So here he named it MBA Chaiwala. But he says – “MBA stands for Mr Billore Ahmedabad” for fun.
To increase his customer base, Prafull came up with a strategy to increase his customer engagement by creating a small corner for job seekers. He put up a whiteboard for the job seekers to share their details so potential companies could contact them.
Such was his fame that YouTubers put up videos of him further helping him reach a more customer base. This was how when his parents first heard of him selling tea instead of earning an MBA degree. Initially upset with him, they, however, understood his situation and motivated him.
Challenges Faced by Prafull
Kisi motivation ki jarurat nahi honi chahiye, Tum jo bhi kaam kar rahe ho aisa karo ki tumse accha koi na kare. - Prafull billore.
Prafull intended to get his master’s degree from IIM Ahmedabad before launching his own venture. You must take the CAT in order to be accepted into a good MBA program from any university.
The CAT is one of the most demanding exams available in India. He studied for over 10 hours a day to achieve his aims.
But unfortunately, he failed the CAT exam three times out of all three attempts. Despite his failure, his parents continued to support him with his dream. Prafull became depressed due to this and could not concentrate on anything else in his career.
He travelled around Ahmedabad cities for comfort during this time and discovered that it seemed like a second home to him in the city and gained experience from the people.
His dream of pursuing an MBA from IIM Ahmedabad had been destroyed, and he didn’t know what to do next and his career.
Finally, he settled on a job at McDonald’s in Ahmedabad. He started his career as a housekeeper. He was quickly promoted to kitchen crew and began taking orders and serving customers at McDonald’s.
MBA Chaiwala's Beginnings
On July 25, 2017, he began his venture with an investment which he took from his father INR 8,000. He worked at McDonald’s from 9 am to 4 p.m. and then at his tea shop in the evening.
When you have a small business, getting customers was difficult for him. A tea shop can be located on practically every street corner in any city. Prafull served tea in earthen pots with toast and tissues to draw people interested in him.
He not only amused those who came to his stall, but he also approached those who were sitting around it. People were drawn to him because of his excellent communication abilities and the distinctive method he served his meals. Then he eventually began selling snacks and coffee on his menu.
Within a few months, his company generated millions of dollars per month by selling tea. He started a personal website and is the Facebook and Instagram manager for MBA Chaiwala. He is well-known among young youth, particularly MBA students at IIM Ahmedabad.
He’s also spoken at over 200 events, which include women’s empowerment programs, entrepreneurship events, and many more. On Valentine’s Day, he gave away free chai to single people and this strategy went viral across all social media platforms, and he gained international prominence as a result.
Prafull says, “My ambition is to sell tea in India across every city and have every Indian consume my tea.” He runs a 300-square-foot restaurant with an employee of over 20 people.
Prafull's Income
He had a revenue of Rs 3 crore in the financial year 2019-20. Today, MBA Chaiwala has opened up so many franchises and outlets across the country. Today, MBA Chaiwala’s per day income is approximately Rs 1.5 Lakh. In 2023 his net worth is 25 - 30 Crores
The total net worth of Prafull is 30 million dollars estimated. And yearly Income of 4-5 Crore in 2023. Other than that, he has his YouTube channel where the income is not mentioned anywhere.
Recently, along with some of the biggest YouTube creators he invested in SuperCluster Pi. This D2C botanical company is developing an ecosystem of health and wellness-focused brands. This company is also aiming to complete a 6-8 D2C brand within the coming year.
Prafull has 268.5k followers on Twitter, 121k followers on Instagram, and 32365 followers on LinkedIn and YouTube has 1.63 million subscribers as of 2023 which is also a source of income for him.
The story behind MBA Chaiwala's name
Praful sat down and listed down hundreds of names for the venture. He wanted the name to reflect his identity, as the tea startup was his life and all that he loved.
After striking down hundreds of names, he finally got a name that would resonate with his personal identity. The signboard read, ‘Mr. Billore Ahmedabad Chaiwala’, which is now known as the ‘MBA Chaiwala.’
Using criticism as fuel Prafull
The tea shop name gave him a lot of criticism as people started mocking him, ‘How can a person who doesn’t have an MBA degree be called an MBA Chaiwala?’. He even got criticism from his close friends too, as they mocked, ‘Kahan MBA kar raha tha, kahan chai wala ban gaya.’ Even his parents felt that he brought shame to his family’s name by doing the tea-selling business.
Prafull’s positive mindset turned a deaf ear to these comments as he considered that the ones who were not there to support him during the struggle period don’t deserve a chance to be heard during the success.
The Growth of MBA Chaiwala
Within a few years, the small tea stall was transformed into a chain of franchises and cafes in cities. Praful’s hard work and dedication paid off, and MBA Chaiwala became a name-brand name that resonated in the minds of chai lovers all over India.
Praful has graced almost 200+ events with his chai that range across women empowerment, entrepreneurship, LinkedIn program, and many more. He got invitations to cater marriage functions and even political rallies to spread his warmth and love of his tea.
Apart from focusing on the tea-selling business, Praful also supports social causes like the economic upliftment of underprivileged people and women’s empowerment by organizing fundraising social events and campaigns to support society. In 2023, he will have 200+ franchises in 100+ cities in India.
From a tea stall owner to giving motivational speeches
Praful Billore’s successful journey did not end with his chai stall. His success story reached across the countries.
He was invited by IIM-Ahmedabad, the B-school he was trying to pursue his MBA to share his business journey with post-graduate students. He also got invites from various other IIMs and Harvard Business School to share his journey.
Today MBA Chaiwala venture has over 20 employees and a business turnover of three crores. This is no ordinary feat considering the hard work and struggles prafull faced.
He believes that fear was temporary, but the mark of regret is forever in life, and one should not live with such regrets and pursue their dreams, even if it is small.
Things you learn from Prafull Billore’s Success story
Prafull’s story inspires us to work hard and determination pays off. Prafull story shows us that anything is possible if you are willing to do hard work and take risks.
He taught us the importance of learning and growing, as Prafull Billore continued to educate himself and develop new skills even after becoming a successful entrepreneur.
Through hard work, and dedication, he was able to turn his small tea stall into a multimillion-dollar company.
3 things to learn from Prafull Billore
1. In Life, try to learn from the people that are ahead of you. Be ready to take experience, wisdom or success.
2. When You know “that you don’t know, " you have better chances of Learning.
3. When you're trying to do something different, most people won't support you and might call your vision useless/crazy. But it's important that you believe in yourself & don't stop doing it.
Top 3 motivational speeches By Prafull Billore
Motivation isn't enough, but why?
Because you can't rely on motivation, it doesn't let you work on the days you don't want to, says Prafull.
Therefore self-discipline is more important than motivation and here are motivational speeches by Prafull.
3 popular quotes by Prafull Billore
1) "The biggest risk is taking no risk."
In a world that's changing quickly, the only strategy you can have is to take risks and try to move ahead only when you stop fearing negative consequences.
2) "Success comes to those who work consistently. Not occasionally."
Nothing is more effective than consistency when it comes to making your business, or any performance in life, stand out. So try to be consistent with your routine or the path you choose for your success.
3) "Sacrifices are the common component of success."
You don't have to make big sacrifices in order to be successful but sacrifices are important. Remember by sacrificing for your goals you are temporarily giving up one thing, for the long-term success of another thing.
Summary
The journey to success is never easy for anyone. It takes hard work, dedication, time, and commitment to achieve your dream. Getting an MBA from a reputed institution can be anyone’s dream.
Praful has become a millionaire several times over, and his story is an inspiration to anyone who dreams of successful venture. Through his venture, he earns an estimated Salary of 3 Crore Per Year.
FAQ's:
MBA Chaiwala's per day income is around Rs 1.5 Lakh.
Shreya Billore - Chief Executive Officer - MBA Chai Wala
Tata Tea by Tata Group is the highest-selling brand of tea in India.
