The Hawaii slipper was the initial product of Ramesh Kumar Dua’s company. Presently, they market a variety of footwear products under four main brands.
Relaxo, a highly respected brand in India, has come a long way from its humble beginnings as a struggling family business to becoming a giant in the shoewear industry. The two Delhi-based brothers, Ramesh Kumar Dua and Mukund Lal Dua have experienced it all. Ramesh Kumar Dua holds the position of managing director, while Mukund Lal Dua serves as a director of the company. The majority of shares are owned by the family. Currently, Relaxo’s market cap is valued at Rs 20,288 crore. The brand offers a range of products, including slippers, Sparx (sports shoes), flip-flops, and school shoes. The two brothers joined their family’s footwear and bicycle parts business in 1974, and now have a manufacturing capacity of one million pairs per day.
They started with the Hawaii slipper as their first product, but now Relaxo sells a variety of shoes under four main brands: Bahamas, Sparx, Fite, and Schoolmate. Even during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the company managed to sell slippers worth Rs. 17.92 crores.
After moving from Haryana to Delhi when Ramesh Kumar was a year old, it took several decades of hard work to establish the Relaxo brand. Ramesh had originally aspired to become a doctor, but the family’s debt forced him to join the business while also continuing his studies. At 17 years old, he became part of a three-person team and worked half the day while studying during the other half.
They were able to pay off their debt quickly, and Ramesh made the decision to end the part of the business that was causing them to lose money.
In 1974, Ramesh Kumar Dua went to London to learn rubber technology for his rubber business. He enrolled in a course at The Plastics and Rubber Institute, London, where he discovered that rubber could be utilized to produce shoes and slippers that are more durable than leather.
With the assistance of a rubber technologist, he was able to enhance the quality of the company’s products, leading to an improvement in their revenue in just a few years.
Relaxo continued to innovate and implement new technologies, ultimately establishing itself as a household name. By the early 1990s, the company had achieved significant growth and success, and in 1995, it went public.
After that, they established multiple manufacturing plants and launched several sub-brands that quickly gained popularity.
As of December 31, 2022, Relaxo had reported a total income of Rs. 2032.08 crores in the first 9 months of the year, with a net profit of Rs. 30 crores. Ramesh Kumar Dua’s net worth is Rs. 11,540 crores.