There are hundreds if not thousands of success stories floating around on the internet detailing remarkable journeys of people who have built successful businesses from scratch.
One such inspiring story is that of Ajay Singhal, who started his transport business from a small office, with a single truck in 1982, and today owns a logistics firm with a fleet of 1500 trucks.
Who is Ajay Singhal?
A Haryana native, Ajay Singhal earned a pre-engineering diploma from Rohtak Government College and soon started a small radio parts manufacturing business with his uncle in Delhi's Wazirabad with a investment of just Rs 3,000. He was 18 at the time.
Ajay continued to pursue his studies while running a successful business and earned a B.Com degree from Delhi University. After his graduation, the young entrepreneur sold his radio parts business for Rs 60,000, four years after he had started it with an investment of Rs 3,000.
In 1982, Ajay Singhal used Rs 60,000, a healthy sum at the time, to venture into the transport business, and started out from a small office and a single truck.
How Ajay Singhal built a successful transport firm?
However, to stand out from his much larger peers, Singhal focussed on logistics, from booking and billing to timely delivery. As his fleet grew, Ajay modified the truck according to market requirements, creating a unique niche for his budding logistics business.
Singhal also charged much lower fares compared to his competitors, charging Rs 1,200 for a delivery from Delhi to Mumbai against Rs 3,000 charges levied by other logistics providers.
6000 trucks, Rs 1500 crore turnover
Ajay Singhal's smart business moves and hard work paid off as his firm, Om Logistics, witnessed steady growth, bagging Maruti Suzuki- India's most popular car maker- as his first client, followed by other big names like Bajaj and Tata Motors.
Singhal's Om Logistics was the first logistics provider in India to transport Maruti Suzuki vehicles using modified trucks. The company also invested in new technologies and innovations which helped the business grow faster.
Today, Om Logistics has a fleet of over 6,000 trucks, more than 5,000 employees, and an annual turnover of Rs 1,500 crore, a remarkable story of growth powered by hard work and perseverance.