Ratan Tata - a visionary mentor, partner to 40-odd start-up entrepreneurs
When Dr. Rashmi Barbhaiya, a renowned drug discovery scientist and research and development head of Ranbaxy Laboratories (now merged with Sun Pharma) quit his job by the end of 2008-09, decided to go back to the US to pursue his career. A meeting with Ratan Tata made him change his mind and the Tatas decided to fund his dream of 'Advinus Therapeutics' an end-to-end global drug research and development organisation (CRO) from India. The company was eventually sold off in 2017 to Eurofins, a global leader in the same field, after emerging as a major Indian CRO and Dr. Rashmi Barbhaiya did return to the US.
Post his retirement as Tata Group Chairman in 2012, Ratan Tata was eager to nurture new technologies and entrepreneurs and invested in over 40 start-ups. Riding on his fame, many of them got fame, good valuations and went on to become highly successful. Some of them include eyewear company Lenskart, app-based services provider Urban Company, online baby products company FirstCry, app-based taxi Ola, electric scooters maker Ola Electric, B2B industrial goods platform Moglix, online marketplace platform Snapdeal, fitness and wellness online platform Curefit, stock trading app Upstox etc.
Healthcare was one of his favourite areas of interest and focus. When Arjun Deshpande, a 17-year-old Mumbai kid with parents working in the healthcare industry, approached Ratan Tata and explained how he is building a unique pharmacy-aggregator business model that sources generic drugs directly from manufacturers and sells to pharmacies eliminating 16-20 per cent wholesaler margin, Ratan Tata not only liked the idea, mentored him over the years, but also took a substantial stake in the venture. Today, after 3-4 years, Arjun Deshpande's company Generic Aadhaar has opened more than 1500 medical stores giving direct and indirect employment to around 10,000 people. Like Generic Aadhaar, Ratan Tata invested in many healthcare start-up firms like cancer research company QikPod, medical devices firm Axio, nutritional and wellness firm BOHECO, genetic testing and diagnostics provider MapMyGenome, comprehensive cancer care platform Karkinos Healthcare, primary healthcare platform iKure etc. He also invested in many tech-assisted start-ups like rental properties online app NestAway, web-based platform CashKaro, online market data firm Tracxn, telemedicine company Lybrate, online entrepreneurial publisher YourStory and publishing firm The Print, electric motorcycles makers Tork Motors and Ampere Vehicles, space tech firm Team Indus etc.