Endorsements from Business Entrepreneurs

Karan F. Bilimoria CBE DL

Karan Bilimoria, founder of Cobra Beer Limited, is recognised nationally and internationally as one of his generation’s outstanding entrepreneurs. But when Karan first started on his business career his family were horrified. The son of an Indian General, having qualified as a Chartered Accountant with Ernst & Young, London, and graduated in Law from Cambridge University; instead of following a stable profession, he started to import polo sticks, then began trading in up-market ladies’ clothes.

As a student at Cambridge, he missed Indian food and used to eat at restaurants several times a week. But he disliked the gassy lagers they served – finding he could neither eat nor drink as much as he would have liked. He dreamt of bringing 'less gassy, extra smooth' Indian beer to the UK.

                                                     When Karan eventually started Cobra Beer from his flat in Fulham

                                                     in 1990, just as the UK was going into recession, he was £20,000

                                                     in debt. He worked with a brewer in Mysore, India and with no-one

                                                     believing in him or his idea, he initially delivered crates of beer to

                                                     Indian restaurants from the back of his battered 2CV. Facing

                                                     obstacles at every turn, it took more than five years for the brand

                                                     to establish itself, but it is now a familiar site not just in

                                                     restaurants, but on supermarket and off licence shelves.

Cobra Beer, now brewed in the UK, has become one of the fastest-growing beer brands in the country and has won a string of liquor industry awards. Today it has a retail turnover of £65m, is sold in 6,000 restaurants, 5,000 pubs, bars and clubs and exported to 30 countries worldwide (including India).
 

Karan has also extended into other markets with the launch of General Bilimoria Wines in 1999, and by founding Tandoori magazine and tandoorimagazine.com – of which he remains Publishing Director. He has also founded curryzone.com, and is the Founder and Chairman of Cobrabyte Technologies.

Karan holds a number of offices including membership of the Government's National Employment Panel and is Chair of the Panel's SME Board. He is Governor of Thames Valley University, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, Vice-Chairman of the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry's Asian Business Association. He is a guest lecturer at various Universities and Business Schools and has been honoured as Asian of the Year 2002 and London Entrepreneur of the Year 2003, along with many other business awards.
 

Read more about Karan and Cobra Beer by visiting the website www.cobrabeer.com.

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