Karsanbhai Patel who raised the Nirma brand as his daughter
The attractive jingle of Nirma washing powder and the image of the ‘Nirma girl’ were quite popular in the 90s. The ad and brand got deeply etched into people’s minds. Let’s hear the success story of Karsanbhai Patel, the man behind Nirma Washing Powder.
It is generally said that business is in the blood of any Gujarati. Karsanbhai Patel, who quit his government job and started his business, also wrote a success story. It is the story of selling household detergent on a bicycle and later developing it into one of the most popular detergent brands in India. This man raised the Nirma brand like his daughter.
Government employee-turned-entrepreneur
Born in 1945 in a farming family in Ruppur, Gujarat, Karsanbhai Patel graduated with a degree in Chemistry. He worked as a Lab Technician at Lalbhai Group’s New Cotton Mills. He, then, joined the Department of Geology and Mining in the Government of Gujarat. The twist in the story is how Karsanbhai Patel, a government employee, later invented the Nirma Soap.
Nirma, the nickname of his lost daughter Nirupama
The year was 1969. Karsanbhai’s career changed when he made a good detergent formula by mixing soda ash and some other ingredients. He began making detergents in his 100-square-foot backyard. Earlier, Karsanbhai had lost his daughter in a car accident. He wanted to survive the loss of his daughter and immortalize her through his brand. As the product was close to Karsanbhai’s heart, he decided to call it ‘Nirma’. Nirma was the nickname of Nirupama, his daughter who passed away at a young age. The girl in the white frock who appeared on the detergent pack and television commercials immortalized his daughter.
One-third price of leading detergent brands
Packets of handmade detergent were sold door-to-door at Rs 3 per kg. At that time, detergent and soap manufacturing was monopolized by multinational companies. Hindustan Unilever’s surf was priced at Rs 13 per kg. Charging one-third of the leading detergent brands price was his mantra of success. Nirma Detergent later revolutionized the market with advertisements appealing to housewives. Later, it captured people’s minds for its emotional quotient.
Nirma University to teach entrepreneurship
With the establishment of the Nirma Institute of Technology in Ahmedabad in 1995, Karsanbhai Patel gave Nirma a different identity. Subsequently, in April 2003, Nirma University was established under the auspices of the Nirma Education and Research Foundation under a special law passed by the Gujarat State Legislative Assembly. The Nirma labs project was launched in 2004 with the aim of training and incubating entrepreneurs.
Assets worth $ 4.9 billion
Through diversification, Nirma Group has now merged into major businesses such as cement, detergents, soaps and cosmetics. According to Forbes, Karsanbhai Patel had a net worth of $ 4.9 billion in 2021. In 2010, the country honoured him with the Padma Shri. Karsanbhai Patel’s successful business is now safe in the hands of his sons Rakesh Patel and Hirenbhai Patel. Even today, it continues to be the largest soda ash maker in the world.
