The Lounge - Shashi Kiran Shetty

With more than a billion people, India’s domestic market
is more than enough for any entrepreneur wishing to make
it big to get even just a small slice of it and flourish with the
right formula, attitude and maybe some luck.

And it all starts with a dream and a vision.

Shashi Kiran Shetty, the Mangalore-born multi-billionaire
Indian entrepreneur founded All Cargo Logistics Ltd.,
under a different name with just Rs25,000 (about
USD387) and a single forklift back in 1983 at the age of 25.
Today, All Cargo is India’s largest logistics company in the
private sector listed both in the BSE & NSE with
consolidated revenues of about USD1 billion.

It has 200 offices in 90 countries with a team of more than
8,000 and is one of the top 5 logistics companies in India,
beating other major international firms in the same sector.
Born in a small village in Bantwal, Shetty came to Mumbai
in 1978 to look for a job. After several tries, he was hired as
a trainee at the Intermodal Transport and Trading Systems
Private Limited.

After learning the ropes of the trade, Shetty moved to
Forbes Gokak, a Tata Group company, where his dream of
setting up his own company in the industry was further
ignited.

A commerce graduate from the Shri Venkatramana
Swamy College in Mangalore, Karnataka, Shetty saw the
bright future that the logistics industry hold in India for an
entrepreneur like him.

The company he founded at age 25, Trans India Freight
Services Pvt. Ltd., later evolved into All Cargo Logistics
Ltd., which became known as an integrated logistics
service provider.

Headquartered in Mumbai, the company offers varied
services such as Coastal shipping, Contract Logistics,
Supply Chain management, NVOCC, Container Freight
Stations, Project engineering Solutions, and Inland
Container Depot facilities. Among its top clients are major
companies in the oil and gas sector worldwide.
With his company firmly established, Shetty now has
plenty of time for himself and his family.

One of his passions is to collect art pieces wherever he
goes. These collections are then carefully displayed in his
many homes and offices across the globe.

From Dubai, he got a camel made of metal with flat glasses
on its back strewn with purple ornaments.
Shetty says he picked up the piece from an antique store in
the Emirate because it reminds him of heavy lifting, a
significant part of logistics.

And when he’s not scouting for art pieces, Shetty spends
much of his time playing golf in India or Scotland or
holidaying with his family anywhere in the world.
“I golf every Sunday and also participate in many
corporate tournaments. Outside India, Scotland is my
favorite place to golf,” the Economic Times of India quoted
Shetty as saying.

Shetty also plays cricket and tennis and has even bought
some shares at Singapore Slammers.

A philanthropist, Shetty also finds time helping the needy
through the nonprofit group Avashya Foundation which he
founded.

Still firmly grounded despite his success, Shetty says it’s
important to have a social responsibility and empower
those who need help the most.