Mahindras buy stake in East India Company

MUMBAI: The Mahindra group, whose origins typify the quintessence of South Asian entrepreneurship, has bought a minority stake in a much-diminished relic of Britain's glorious colonial past— the East India Company.

Mahindra Partners, the private equity arm of the Mahindra group, bought the stake from an Indian-origin businessman whose ambition is to resurrect what was once an empire-building multinational megacorporation and turn it into a well-known seller of luxury goods.

Sanjiv Mehta, the main owner and CEO of East India Company, and the Mahindra group did not give details of the transaction but said in a statement they will invest $100 million (Rs 460 crore) in the company in five years. Mehta bought the once-legendary enterprise in 2005 and relaunched it in 2010 as a luxury brand selling high-end food products. The first store was opened in London's upscale Mayfair area.

The Mahindra group began its existence in undivided India in 1945 as Mahindra & Mohammed. It was founded by the brothers J C Mahindra and K C Mahindra and Ghulam Mohammed, a Pashtun who was born in Lahore. After partition, Mohammed migrated to Pakistan and became that country's first finance minister and the company he helped create became Mahindra & Mahindra.

"The East India Company was the world's first truly global brand spanning continents and centuries, and had a profound impact on the development of international trade. This immense vision and scope finds a parallel with Mahindra's own global aspirations to think beyond its size," said Anand Mahindra, V-C and MD of the $7.1-billion Mahindra group whose interests span utility vehicles, tractors, information technology, financial services and hospitality.