62, who last appeared in 2015, and
Kishore Biyani, 56, who is back on
the list after a five-year hiatus.
Radhakishan damani
Rank 12 | $9.3 billion
It was in 1995 that Radhakishan
Damani, a successful investor at the
point, decided to try his hand at retail.
Unlike other retailers, he was clear
that he would stick to value retailing—
he knew he had to make money.
Damani took over two franchisees
of Apna Bazar and made sure he was
at the small 7,000 square feet store
in Nerul every day, interacting with
customers and understanding what
they were looking for. But as Damani
went about his business, he realised
that to be a successful entrepreneurhe needed more freedom—something
he didn’t have as a franchisee.
About half of his assortment
was dictated by Apna Bazar.
As a result, by the time he set up
the first DMart store in Powai in
2002, Damani’s initial thoughts on
retail had already been formed. He
developed a model and for the most
part stuck to it. Neville Noronha, chiefphotogrAphs:mexyxAvierthe radhakishan
damani-owned dmart
has a valuation of
`69,000 crore as
of mid-octoberdecember 29, 2017 forbes india | 81