How did Malavika Hegde become in charge of Cafe Coffee Day?
The past few days saw social media searching for the name Malavika Hegde. Who is Malavika Hegde? How did Malavika Hegde become the strongest woman in the Indian business world? There is a history behind that name and its current popularity. Malavika is the wife of V.G.Siddhartha, the Coffee King and the founder of India’s leading coffee shop chain, Cafe Coffee Day. Siddhartha committed suicide on July 29, 2019. Malavika, the daughter of former Union Minister and former Chief Minister of Karnataka S.M Krishna, and social activist Prema Krishna became the CEO of Coffee Day Enterprises Ltd (CDEL) on December 7, 2020. Along with the shock of Siddhartha’s untimely death, heavy debts also fell on Malavika’s shoulders. However, Malavika knew how to overcome the crisis. Unlike entrepreneurs who leave the country or kill themselves when it comes to repaying debts, Malavika implemented strategies to pay off Cafe Coffee Day’s debt.
Entrepreneurship lessons from Siddhartha
Born in 1969 in Bengaluru, Malavika completed her schooling at a local school. She holds a Bachelor of Engineering degree from Bangalore University. In 1991, she married V G Siddhartha. Malavika has been a part of the Cafe Coffe Day (CCD) project since its inception. Malavika was a non-executive member of the CCD Board. Siddhartha came up with the idea of Cafe Coffee Day when he went to a coffee shop with Malavika. Siddhartha’s answer to Malavika’s question of whether someone will buy coffee for Rs 25 if they can easily get it for Rs 5 was the offer of ‘free internet with coffee.’ Malavika was with V G Siddhartha when the first CCD outlet was opened in 1996 at Brigade Road in Bengaluru. Malavika has been part of the CCD’s day-to-day operations since 2008.
Leads the CCD tackling the debt
At the time of Siddhartha’s death, the company’s debt stood at Rs 7,231 crore. Today, it has been reduced to Rs 1,899 crore, thanks to the ability of Malavika Hegde, the talented CEO. It was indeed a return from going bankrupt. Malavika moved forward with Cafe Coffee Day, considering the livelihood of about 25,000 workers. At one point, the employees went on strike to get payment. At that time, Malavika addressed the staff, putting aside all her pain. She took responsibility for those families. It instilled confidence among the employees and gave assurance to investors. Today, they are on a mission to rebuild the Cafe Coffee Day empire.
Courage to move forward to make her husband’s dream come true
CCD has approximately 572 cafes, 36,326 vending machines, 532 kiosks and 403 ground coffee shops. That was Siddhartha’s world. The employees were family members. “I took charge of running the empire he built. I must properly carry out the responsibility he left behind,” Malavika had said in an interview. It has now been put into action. Malavika Hegde is a strong woman who is trying to take the company to the next level and fulfill her husband’s dreams.
