G.R.K. Reddy Chairman and MD, MARG Constructions

You could call him a land baron, with the caveat that he didn’t inherit the title. “I was always keen to be an entrepreneur,” says G.R.K. Reddy, chairman and MD of MARG Constructions.

Born in a family of landowners in the coastal town of Tenali in Andhra Pradesh, Reddy did his primary and secondary education in remote areas of Andhra. He then studied commerce at KBN College in Vijayawada, moved to Delhi for further education and did a masters in commerce from SV College.

His first job was as an assistant with Sarin Consultants, a boutique investment banking firm in Delhi. He feels that he gained valuable experience in advising and structuring financial closures working in the merchant banking industry. Later on he joined CIFCO, an investment banking firm.

Investment banking gave him the perspective. His family was into construction and that gave him awareness of the business. And, finally, exposure to the world convinced him that the real estate business would do well in a densely-populated country like India.

“I had spent most of my childhood at construction sites, among earthmovers and huge construction equipment,” says Reddy. “My brother specialised in civil engineering and hence construction was in my family. I recognised this untapped potential in the real estate and infrastructure space and, in 1994, I decided to move into the construction industry. I started MARG Constructions in December 1994 with the help of family funds.”

Reddy floated an IPO (Initial Public Offering) and invested in land in Thiruvanmiyur in Chennai. His first project was Sai Subhodaya. However, within a year, the real estate business in Chennai went into a tailspin and many of the leading players went bust. The Thiruvanmiyur project too did not take off as expected.

What did take off was a much more difficult assignment, erecting windmills in a sensitive area in Tadapatri in Andhra Pradesh. It fell into Reddy’s lap as nobody wanted it. They acquired a reputation for handling such assignments for windmill manufacturers in rough terrain, in remote villages and troubled areas like Tadapatri, where Naxalites held sway. The success of this project led to orders from companies like Enercon, Suzlon and NEG Micon.

The next three-four years saw assignments for over 200 windmills in other locations. “These projects gave us good cash flows and profitability and, in time, helped me to pay off my previous liabilities and create a surplus,” says Reddy.

With cash in hand, Reddy decided to leverage MARG’s experience to participate in infrastructure projects. In 2006, the company entered the area of port development. More recently it has launched MARG Swarnabhoomi, an infrastructure project spread over more than 1,000 acres, including two notified special economic zones.

Reddy stresses that vision forms the force and moral lifeblood of MARG. “Human potential cannot be defined or limited and to be a pioneer in nurturing human potential with a long-term vision is what MARG stands for,” says he. As an individual, Reddy analyses and views a situation from a holistic perspective and believes that true progress lies only when the community grows along with the firm.

Reddy has been inspired by J.R.D. Tata who, he says, got him thinking about inclusive growth.

According to him, the potential for real estate growth in India is tremendous. “Enhanced infrastructure will work to reduce the gap between the rural and urban economies,” he says. To unwind, Reddy walks on the Chennai beach and meditates daily. And embracing ‘inclusive living’, he recently organised a rural job fair. There is also a project to provide pre-employment training to 5,000 unskilled rural youth in Tamil Nadu. Future plans for MARG include extending its footprint across India and the world.

So what is his secret of success? “In today’s business environment, innovation is about creating change and not merely following the leader. Beyond everything is faith — faith that I can do it and instilling that faith in our clients that we can do it,” he replies.

Based on a conversation with Shubhobroto Ghosh in Calcutta