The Rise & Rise of Brigade Group
From Beans to Bricks
The founder — CMD of Brigade Group, Mr M.R. Jaishankar, comes from humble beginnings, belonging to a reputed family of coffee planters from the hill town of Chikmagalur, in the Western Ghats of Karnataka. For over a hundred years, his family has been well known in the region for their business integrity and philanthropy. M.R. Jaishankar completed a degree in Agricultural Sciences (University of Agricultural Sciences, Bangalore, 1974), following which, he earned an MBA degree from Mysore University in 1977.
After a brief stint as a Management Trainee in UB-MEC Batteries, Mr Jaishankar started MLR Industries in 1980. It was a small-scale unit that manufactured chicory (exclusively used for blending with coffee powder to add richness and flavour to the famous South Indian coffee). MLR Industries soon became the largest supplier to Brooke Bond India Ltd. In 1984, the company faced serious industrial relations’ problems and M.R. Jaishankar decided to diversify his entrepreneurial efforts. However, he continued to run MLR Industries till 1991.
Diversification — Spreading wings in different markets
Scanning the horizon to find a channel in which to diversify, the then-nascent industry of property development appeared on Jaishankar’s radar screen. It was in the pre-liberalisation and pre-IT days of the late 90s. But Jaishankar had the prescience to see a great emerging opportunity in this yet-to-be organised industry and also in the potential of Bangalore. His market research confirmed his intuitive grasp that property development would be a sunrise industry.
Start of Brigade’s Bull Era
At that time, property developers were a suspect group; not known for trust and reliability, and notorious for focusing on short-term gains and totally lacking in a long-term vision. There were just a couple of organisations in the sector, struggling to earn respectability. Expecting people to pay even before the building was ready, was a counter-intuitive phenomenon in the business world.
Mr Jaishankar established a partnership firm, Brigade Investments (1986), with the idea of executing just one project. His partners were in favour of a cautious venture of a G+3 floors office complex since there was just one ownership office building in Bangalore at that time. But Jaishankar’s vision was evident in the very first Brigade project, Brigade Towers that he launched. He was determined to build a 14-storey office complex.
High quality, architecture and design, adapting to market conditions and also leading trends in the market backed by strong management have delivered a successful run for the group thus far. Taking the unknown route was not so much a financial risk, as much as a career and professional risk. Then, Brigade did not resort to private borrowings. State Bank of India provided a Rs 10 million loan, an unprecedented amount for a property development project till then by SBI.
Brigade engaged Bangalore’s most well-known architect, structural and other consultants. And the seemingly ambitious project took shape rapidly — to become the tallest building built by a private developer in Bangalore. (The record was broken only in 2002.)
Brigade commissioned a communication programme that pioneered the use of professionally designed project literature and advertising. And launched an all-India marketing and advertising campaign, unheard of in the industry at that time. (Incidentally, Brigade was the first property developer to release an advertisement in India Today. The year was 1986). Brigade Towers was a marketing success too. In fact, it is today such a landmark, that a few youngsters and newcomers to Bangalore, unaware of the history of the British Cantonment, infer that the famous Brigade Road has derived its name from the Brigade Towers.
Many Pioneers of ‘firsts’ in Real Estate
There was a dormant demand for residential apartments in Bangalore. Tapping this virgin market was an unprecedented challenge since most Bangaloreans were averse to the idea of apartment-living, used as they were too independent houses with a small patch of garden. But fast-growing Bangalore was soon running out of land and had no choice but to grow vertical. It was nevertheless a challenge, as people had to make a conceptual shift, and risk paying when the building was just a blueprint.
To face this challenge, Brigade adopted a manifesto called The Brigade Promise, whose credo included assurance of only free-hold and clear-title properties, full clearances from statutory authorities, architectural and engineering excellence, and a delivery time better than the industry norm.
Brigade became the first property developer in South India, and the second in the country, to get an ISO 9001:1994 certification. In 2000, Brigade became an ISO 9001–2000 organisation, probably among the first property developers to do so in the country and has now been certified as an ISO 9001: 2015 property developer.
With a long-term vision of growing into a world-class organisation, Brigade began the process of building it’s engineering and marketing teams and filling the organisation with professionally qualified people. Brigade’s growing reputation has helped it attract high-calibre people in increasing numbers over the years. Modern human resource practices were introduced and an extensively digitized environment was created keeping up with the latest technological trends.
The Rise & Rise of Brigade Group
Apart from Brigade Investments, other firms — with different ownership structure/shareholding patterns — were set up to handle different projects. New firms and subsidiaries included Brigade Investments & Projects Pvt. Ltd, Brigade Developers Pvt. Ltd, Brigade Constructions Pvt. Ltd and Brigade Enterprises Pvt. Ltd.
The partnership company, Brigade Investments, was dissolved in 1997. Operations were consolidated by merging all group companies through a High Court order into one flagship company, Brigade Enterprises Pvt. Ltd, in 2004. Brigade Hospitality Services Ltd — a 100% subsidiary company to focus efforts on the hospitality business — was set up in 2005. And Brigade facilitated the promotion of associated companies viz., Tandem Allied Services Pvt. Ltd (2003), which is into facility management, home loans and insurance services & AEC Infotech Pvt. Ltd (2000), which is into construction management software and project management services.
What began as a 5-member team has today become a 1000+ Group. Brigade has an established brand name and reputation for consistently developing high-quality properties that are unique, reliable and convenient for our customers.
The Group flagship company is listed at National Stock Exchange of India post a successful IPO in 2007 and the Group registered a turnover of 1700 crores for FY16 & crossed 2000 crores in FY17.
Passing on the Batton — Taking the family legacy to the next level
The Brigade Group is managed by an illustrious Board of Directors comprising of Founder, Executive, Non-executive and Independent directors. The Board is supported by a capable team at Brigade. Brigade Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation that runs the Brigade Schools is led by Ms Githa Shankar, wife of Mr M.R. Jaishankar.
With Ms Nirupa Shankar, the younger daughter of the founder, Mr M.R. Jaishankar joining the business in 2009, the business has witnessed the entry of the second-generation and diversification in the hospitality vertical. Nirupa has over 10 years of work experience and oversees the operations & strategy for Brigade’s self-managed assets, which include convention centres, lifestyle membership clubs, banquets, catering and event management. Ms. Nirupa Shankar received an undergraduate degree from the University of Virginia and an MBA from Cornell University. She has been awarded Young Woman Entrepreneur of the Year 2014 at the Infra & Realty Sutra Awards and Rising Star Award 2015 by South Asia by the International Society of Hospitality & Woman CXO of the Year at the recent Realty Plus 2017 Awards & Conclave.
Ms Pavitra Shankar, the elder daughter of Mr M. R. Jaishankar, is a Vice President at Brigade Group and till recently was managing the marketing and business development for Brigade in the US region & has now moved back to India to handle the Residential business. She is an MBA graduate in Real Estate from Columbia Business School.
Brigade has spelt out its corporate-level growth strategy for medium-term as focus on Southern part of India and diversifying geographically across cities, making it’s latest foray into Ahmedabad. It will focus on strengthening revenues from residential, lease rentals thereby increasing predictability and also expanding the portfolio of hospitality assets. Brigade has placed a strong emphasis on developing its human resources and has created a bonding reflected in the employees adopting the identity of “brigadiers”, as they preferred to be called. As the company readies itself to accelerate its growth trajectory, Mr Jaishankar is contemplating ways and means of strengthening the management team, governance and the family-business interface.
In the words of CMD M.R. Jaishankar:
“My vision for Brigade Group is to be a world-class organisation in our Products, Processes, People and Performance”
Brigade has always believed in creating trends and not following the herd mentality. The company has pioneered and led the trend of mixed-use developments in Bangalore and other cities of South India. Starting with a 20+ acre development Brigade Millennium, Brigade also developed Brigade Metropolis — a 40 acre integrated enclave, followed by the 40-acre iconic and multi-award-winning world-class enclave, Brigade Gateway. The latest such project under construction is the 60-acre township Brigade Meadows on Kanakapura Road and the 130-acre smart township Brigade Orchards in Devanahalli, Bangalore.
The company is also credited to have introduced the concept of Serviced Apartments to Bangalore in 2004. Today, the Group has strengthened and diversified its hospitality portfolio to 5 star hotels — including the Sheraton Bangalore Hotel @ Brigade Gateway, Grand Mercure Bangalore and Mysuru, Holiday Inn Chennai, Holiday Inn Express & Suites Racecourse Bangalore, recreational clubs and convention centres in Bangalore and other cities of South India and High Ultra Lounge atop the World Trade Center at Brigade Gateway . The hospitality business also runs a catering services and event management business.
What began as a 5-member team in 1987, has today become one of a 50 Best Companies to Work for in India, with over 1000 proud Brigadiers in its ranks.
Journey to Conquering the Real Estate market
In the 31 years since inception, Brigade has built a large and varied portfolio of residential projects aimed at every demography. When looked at in historical sequence, the evolving portfolio reflects the change in customer lifestyle and expectations, the incredible growth of Bangalore city, the company’s rise in capability and vision, international trends in architecture and design, environmental challenges and technological advances in the construction industry.
By drawing inspiration from the changing face of urban architecture across the world and also across the country, Brigade has always built unique world-class homes customized to local needs. Brigade also expanded its capabilities to simultaneously manage large projects across locations and had to contend with challenges on several fronts. For instance, for its mixed-use enclave Brigade Gateway, with unprecedented scale and scope, Brigade brought in the world-class expertise of the internationally renowned architectural firm HOK of New York resulting in the creation of one of the best mixed-use developments of the country. With quality being at the core of its pursuits, the group has always worked with the best-known names in all the business verticals.
“We align with some of the best architects, designers and quality vendors for our projects. This ensures that our projects are managed by associates who are driven by quality from start to finish,” says Mr Jaishankar, CMD, Brigade Group.
The company has always followed the principle of “long-term profitable growth” and believes that rather than aiming towards being present in all major markets across the country, it will endeavour to deliver high-quality world-class real estate in the markets it operates in. Brigade is also known for creating benchmarks in the industry through its innovative products, many of which have been ‘firsts’ in the category.
Still young at 62, Mr M.R. Jaishankar’s journey is an inspiring growth story in Indian Real Estate. Backed by the next generation family scions to drive the business to greater heights — the future looks bright for the Brigade Group.
