The son of a poor farmer has become a major electronics dealer. Kailash Patra rose from utter poverty to build a business with over 20 branches in India.
Kailash Chandra Patra was born in the Indian state of Odisha to a poor family. His father was a small-scale farmer who dealt in rice and paddy. When he realised he couldn’t control the situation, Kailash’s father fled, abandoning his family. Despite being completely impoverished, the family persevered in the hope of a better future. Kailash Patra presently runs a successful electronics dealer, called Patra Electronics, in Odisha.
Kailash has become a well-known dealer who has relationships with nearly all of the major electronic brands. In the previous fiscal year, his 22 outlets made a total revenue of Rs 250 crore.
But, Kailash had no other options and his sole hope for a better life was education, as his father was a poverty-stricken farmer, .He finished his schooling in the same cabin and began taking lessons. He relocated to Cuttack for higher studies with the assistance of a Samaritan who provided him with free housing.
Kailash stopped taking classes after finishing his higher education and went to work for an electrical turnkey project contractor. He worked for a monthly pay of Rs 2000, which was insufficient to sustain his family; also, the owner of the company was frequently unpleasant to their staff. After nearly two years with his first employer, he changed jobs and became a sales executive for a pharmaceutical company. He left his position after one year owing to a lack of job satisfaction and subsequently joined an electronics trade company, which he left after four years on the verge of starting his own.
Kailash was undecided about starting his own business or getting a job after quitting his employment. He rented a 40-square-foot business and began selling low-cost electronic products such as TV antennas and booster devices. To begin the business, he agreed to pay Rs 300 per month in rent to the shop owner and deposited his meagre emergency funds.
He utilised all of his resources and secured a Rs 6000 loan from a neighbouring shop to open his own shop. Despite a relatively thin margin, escalating sales enabled him to save some money. His turnover and revenue rose, and he quickly received a Rs 2,000,000 business loan from Allahabad Bank.
He then began creating a chain of large electrical stores, beginning with the first store in Badambadi. Since then, there has been no turning back for Kailash Patra.
