From Class 5 dropout to Lalithaa Jewellery IPO: Kiran Kumar builds Rs 11,000 cr empire with 4 gold bangles

Kiran Kumar’s journey from a financially struggling childhood in Nellore, Andhra Pradesh, to building Lalithaa Jewellery Mart is now reaching the stock market. The company has fixed a price band of ₹190-201 per share for its initial public offering, which values it at about ₹11,250 crore at the upper end.

The IPO has again drawn attention to Kumar’s rise over more than three decades. He left school in Class 5 because his family could not afford his education and entered the jewellery trade at about 12. From there, he moved from wholesale trading to retail expansion, eventually building a chain of 61 stores across 51 cities.

From poverty to the jewellery trade
Kumar was the eighth child in a financially weak family. His father worked as an accountant for jewellers, but supporting the family was difficult. Kumar has spoken about seeing poverty at close quarters and once borrowing a friend’s T-shirt to attend a wedding. With little money available for schooling, he dropped out in Class 5 and began working in the jewellery trade in Nellore.

He soon recognised a business opportunity. Jewellery made in Nellore was being supplied to bigger markets such as Chennai and Hyderabad, and Kumar wanted to sell directly instead of through intermediaries. The problem was that he had no capital.

Starting with four gold bangles
Kumar’s mother gave him four gold bangles, said to weigh about 48 grams, to help him begin. He got six earrings made from the gold and travelled to Chennai in search of buyers. At Lalitha Jewellery in T Nagar, he met proprietor M S Kandaswamy Pillai late at night as the store was closing. Impressed by the jewellery, Pillai first placed an order for 100 grams, which later rose to 200 grams.

Kumar then began supplying jewellery to Lalitha and other wholesalers in Andhra Pradesh, travelling often between Nellore and Chennai by state-run buses. Over time, his wholesale business expanded and he supplied jewellery to major showrooms and customers in markets including Canada, London, Singapore and Dubai.

The 1999 shift to retail
A major turning point came on February 24, 1999, when Kandaswamy Pillai was facing severe financial trouble. Kumar took over the existing Lalitha Jewellery business and helped settle its liabilities. He has repeatedly clarified that he was not the founder of Lalitha Jewellery; he acquired the business and later added another ‘a’ to create the Lalithaa Jewellery brand.

The move pushed him from wholesale into retail. Kumar built Lalithaa’s strategy around price, simpler pricing and lower additional charges, while promoting BIS-hallmarked gold. The company also urged customers to compare rates by bringing in estimates from other showrooms.

Expansion and IPO
Lalithaa Jewellery has since grown from one showroom to 61 stores across Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Karnataka and Puducherry, supported by manufacturing facilities in Tamil Nadu. From starting with his mother’s gold to taking the company public, Kumar’s journey has now reached another milestone with the IPO.