Mumbai: The Board of Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail, at its meeting held today, inducted Ananya Birla and Aryaman Vikram Birla as directors. Ananya and Mr. Aryaman come with rich and varied experience straddling entrepreneurship and business building. The board believes that ABFRL will benefit from their new-age insights and business acumen.
Commenting on their appointment, Kumar Mangalam Birla, Chairman Aditya Birla Group said, “Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail has built a formidable portfolio of fashion brands across multiple categories and formats, covering all major segments of Indian apparel market. In the last few years, the company has entered multiple new emerging segments such as Ethnicwear— including partnerships with Indian designers, luxury, sportswear and new age businesses through its digital venture TMRW. The ABFRL platform is now poised for a new wave of exponential growth. Ananya and Aryaman’s exceptional individual achievements in their chosen fields and early success with their independent entrepreneurial ventures set them up well for larger responsibilities. Their nuanced understanding of new-age business models and emerging shifts in consumer behaviour will infuse fresh energy to the board of ABFRL. He added, “Ananya and Aryaman are firmly rooted in the group’s values and passionately believe in the group’s purpose. I am confident that they will build on the group’s rich entrepreneurial traditions and successful track record in creating sustained stakeholder value.”
Ananya Birla and Aryaman Vikram Birla have recently been inducted as directors on the board of Aditya Birla Management Corporation Pvt. Ltd, the apex body that provides strategic direction to the Aditya Birla Group’s businesses.
Ananya is a successful business woman and platinum selling artist. Her first company, Svatantra Microfin Pvt Ltd, founded at the age of 17, is amongst India’s fastest growing MFI’s. It has crossed an AUM of 1 billion USD, and has grown at a CAGR of 120% (2015-2022). With over 7000 employees, it has consistently been accorded a Great Place To Work. With a CRISIL A+ rating, Svatantra is the youngest, highest rated organization in the sector. Svatantra successfully acquired Micro Housing Finance Corporation Ltd. in 2018. Her innovation across the business has resulted in a number of firsts in the industry, and solidified Svatantra’s position as an industry leader in financial services. Ms. Birla is also the founder of design-led home decor brand Ikai Asai. On the social front, Ananya has co-founded Mpower, and advocates the need for conversations around mental health in India. She is also the founder of the Ananya Birla Foundation that does pioneering research in mental health and social impact.
Aryaman comes with diverse experience which includes, entrepreneurship, VC investing, and professional sport. Aryaman is closely involved with several businesses of the Aditya Birla Group. In consultation with the Group Chairman, Kumar Mangalam Birla, he is actively championing the Group’s foray into new-age businesses. Aryaman helped incubate the Group’s D2C platform, TMRW, and is a director on its board. His maiden entrepreneurial foray was in the hospitality business. Aryaman is also spearheading the Group’s Venture Capital fund, Aditya Birla Ventures. Prior to joining ABG, Aryaman was a prolific first-class cricketer.
