Jyothy M.R. on learning the trade by watching her father build Jyothy Labs

It is hard to chart a career path when in grade eight or nine. For Jyothy M.R., Chairperson and Managing Director of the Rs. 3012-crore Jyothy Labs, it was an easy decision. “I told my father (M.P. Ramachandran, the company’s founder) that I wanted to be in business,” she says. Her father, it now seems, took

Her seriously.

Ramachandran started Jyothy Labs in 1983 with a loan of `5,000. Everything changed with the success of Ujala, a fabric whitener, and more brands came into the portfolio. Today, Jyothy Labs has Exo, Maxo, Margo, Henko, to name a few.

“I have always been interested in marketing,” says Jyothy. We are seated in the company’s office in western Mumbai, and the room is simple and functional. She joined the company in 2005-06 when it had Ujala, Exo (a dishwashing product) and Maxo (a mosquito repellent), with Crisp & Shine, a fabric enhancer with a small regional presence. Watching Ramachandran (now Chairman Emeritus) from close quarters, especially the way he motivated his team or how he spoke to distributors, was a good learning experience. An MBA (she is an alumna of Welingkar Institute of Management and Research) was useful in putting the marketing basics to good use.

“The brand’s market share in Kerala was 30% and moved to 50%. Today, it is 55% in the state and across the south,” she says.

Jyothy moved into the corner office during the pandemic. Reflecting on the phase, she thinks it was great for team building and bonding. A lot of her efforts have gone into dealing with rising input costs and two brands—Pril and Fa—exiting the portfolio after the licensing deals with Henkel were not renewed. There will be a lot of interest on how she navigates this phase. Looks like Jyothy is up for it. 

@krishnagopalan