Karsanbhai Patel – The Man Behind ‘Washing Powder Nirma’

The company started in 1969 with just one man, today employs around 18,000 people and has a turnover of more than 7,000 crores

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He was a qualified Science graduate, Karsanbhai, who tried mixing Soda Ash and a few ingredients to make detergent produce

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One fine day, he got the formula right and it was then that he started producing detergents in the 100sq ft backyard of his home as an after-office business in Ahmedabad and then sold it from door to door

At the time, detergent and soap manufacture was dominated by multinational corporations with products like Surf by Hindustan Lever, priced around Rs. 13 per kg.

He used to give a money-back guarantee with every pack that was sold. He offered his detergent powder for Rs. 3/ kg. Thus, he successfully targeted the middle and lower-middle-income segments.

Thereafter, in April 2003, Nirma University was established by the first three institutions, under a special act passed by the Gujarat State Legislative Assembly.