INDIA: Mukesh Ambani on Monday introduces his daughter Isha as head of Reliance Group’s retail business; in another sign, the billionaire is advancing a succession plan in one of Asia’s wealthiest families.
The announcement follows Akash Ambani’s appointment as chairman of Reliance Jio’s telecom unit Infocomm in June.
At the 45th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of Reliance Industries, which was introduced as the leader, Isha Ambani gave a presentation on placing food orders online using WhatsApp and making payments and said that Reliance Retail will launch FMCG (Fast Moving Consumer Goods) business.
The business will aim to develop and supply products and address the daily needs of every Indian with high-quality products at affordable prices, she said.
In addition, Reliance Retail will start selling goods made by Indian artisans.”As part of our commitment to India’s rich culture and heritage, we will soon launch quality goods made by tribal and other marginalized communities across India,” said Isha Ambani.
This will not only provide an income-generating opportunity for employment and business but will also help preserve the talent, skills and knowledge base of Indian artisans, especially women.
Reliance Retail has opened over 2,500 stores this year, taking its store count to over 15,000 in an operational area of 42 million square feet.
“During the year, we strengthened our brand presence by launching several new products across the Staples, Home, Personal Care and General Merchandise categories. We also launched our WhatsApp-JioMart partnership,” Isha said.
Isha, 30, is a graduate of Yale University and is married to Anand Piramal, son of Ajay and Swati Piramal of the Piramal Group.
This suggests that Mukesh Ambani has started another phase of leadership transfer after giving his son the reins of Reliance’s telecom division.
Monday’s announcement is another sign of change in the Ambani empire after the billionaire said last year that his children would have a significant role in the business, adding that Reliance was “in the process of a significant leadership transition”.
Reliance Retail and Reliance Jio are subsidiaries of the family-owned oil-to-telecom conglomerate whose flagship company is Reliance Industries Ltd. with a value of USD 217 billion. Mukesh Ambani is the Chairman and Managing Director of Reliance Industries.
Mukesh Ambani, 65, has three children – twins Akash and Isha and youngest son Anant.
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