Leading With Integrity
An example of integrity, ingenuity, dedication, and hard work, Mr. Ranjan Mahtani is one of the most successful leaders in the retail space. Providing employment to millions of skilled labour and leading a world-class Group, he sees himself as a learner who never satiates with his laurels
“WHILE RECOGNIZING THE PAIN INVOLVED IN THESE UNPRECEDENTED TIMES, MAHTANI & HIS TEAM AT EPIC, WHILE STEADYING THE SHIP, ARE CONTINUOUSLY
REINVENTING AND FINDING INNOVATIVE WAYS OF DELIVERING HIGH PERFORMANCE
AND COMFORT PRODUCTS IN AGILE AND UNIQUE MANNERS”
What makes leaders good leaders is their penchant for learning, growing, and contributing
immensely to the greater good of not just their business, but the world. A good leader never rests on one’s laurels, never fails to challenge oneself, and always keeps one’s mind and heart open for new learnings. This same dedication towards exploring newer realms, the insatiable thirst to evolve, improve, absorb, and reinvent, and a feeling that he is starting from scratch every day makes Mahtani a leader-par-excellence and a personality to be revered. The Chairman of Epic Group, which is one of the fastest-growing apparel manufacturers in Asia with eleven manufacturing facilities in Bangladesh, Vietnam, Ethiopia and Jordan, employing over 30,000 people, Mahtani is known for his strong fundamentals and moral values that help him run his business with integrity and ingenuity.
For him, each dawn means a new start and each dusk is an opportunity to reflect on the growth of his business and self. His hunger to constantly innovate his business is the only reason that Epic Group, just within 15-years of its establishment, is a world-renowned force.
A TRAILBLAZER
Now 56-year old, Mahtani was born in Mumbai, India, where he spent the formative years of his life. As he ventured into a professional world, his instinct to learn, evolve, and grow, led him to travel across the world and over the past thirty-five years he has had impressive stints Bangladesh, Taiwan, USA, while maintaining Hong Kong as his base.
His relentless energy and his pursuit to create a brand of manufacturing in the volatile fashion industry, while simultaneously trying to improve the lives of the poor men and women, who create garments for their livelihood made him lay the foundation of Epic Group in 2015. His undying passion for greatness and innovation made the group immensely successful and famous within a few years of its birth and today it is one of the most renowned retailers with a connection to premium brands and markets in every continent around the world.
Raising bars and expectations continuously for himself and his team, he is of the firm belief that there is no point in having a vision if you do not have the ability to take that vision to reality. Starting from scratch and humble beginnings, Ranjan was one of the pioneers of the Bangladesh and Ethiopian garment industry. He looks back at his early days with great fondness and says that he would not change a thing if allowed to go back in time.
As COVID-19 starts the new ways of working and probably a new world which will again test the leadership and history of most organizations, Mahtani is well-prepared to deal with any hurdle that might arise.
While recognizing the pain involved in these unprecedented times, Mahtani and his team at Epic, while steadying the ship, are continuously and parallelly reinventing and finding innovative ways of delivering high performance and comfort products in agile, unique, new manners to the customers. Epic continues to invest in technology and new divisions during
these testing times, clearly identifying opportunities in the new landscape.
TRANSPARENCY IN WORK
Businesses have evolved massively in today’s time. They are no longer only a means to earn name and fame, but also come with a lot of responsibility towards society, and a chance to catalyze meaningful changes in the world. They are no longer just about making profits but building long-term relationships with all associates, clients, customers, and patrons.
For Mahtani, the biggest driving force behind running Epic Group is his dedication towards his customers and partners. He ensures that maximum transparency is maintained in all the functions of the firm. While the company operates on the three broad pillars of sustainability, world- class manufacturing and solid personal connections with all stakeholders, what separates them is their level of transparency with all stakeholders internal and external, the customers know if the Group have a problem, they will be the first ones to know about it with simple solutions always part of the dialogue. This, Mahtani believes leading by example, has got deeply embedded into the Epic culture.
“While our customers come first in our business, our vision and mission are always anchored with our deep sense of responsibility to our people. We did not get here by accident and this is only the beginning – we are a company that relishes challenges and converts them into opportunities,” says Mahtani. Mahtani is always excited to take on new challenges and simultaneously work towards improving his own skills as he equips the team to take on modified roles and responsibilities. This agility has helped the group manifolds in maintaining its stunning success.
THE FAMILY MAN
Not just an award-winning astute businessman, Mahtani is a fantastic family man too. Despite his mind-bogglingly busy schedule, he makes sure that he gets enough time out for his wife Angeli and his three sons: Aryan, Karan, and Aditya. A great father, Mahtani has been making sure that the next generation learns from him the best traits of running a business as well as maintaining a healthy relationship with self, the family, and the society. Mahtani has always been eager to get himself involved in his sons’ growth as a person and has been a constant source of inspiration and support for them. Mahtani makes sure that the kids are imbibing great values in themselves and are turning to be dedicated, hardworking, and benevolent humans as he has been.
The versatile leader is a true force of motivation and inspiration for millions of young entrepreneurs who want to change the course of the business world as Mahtani has done.
