The Idea to IPO ManWhen the CEO of a traditional business decides to start up, the one thing he ensures is not just to identify the right gap in the market but also to ensure that growth doesn't come at the cost of losses, unlike other start-ups. Vinay Sanghi who left Mahindra First Choice Wheels to start CarTrade not only took the company public but also ensured profitable growth.

After having founded CarTrade Tech in late 2009, the first task for Vinay Sanghi was to create a product creating a digital automotive ecosystem where consumers could get a fabulous experience to buy or sell a car. One of the challenges for a founder is to convey and share this vision with investors, employees, and all other stakeholders. Sanghi worked relentlessly to drive organizational growth and ensure that they become one of India's leading automotive platforms. With this, he was able to take the company public last year. Furthermore, he has been instrumental in CarTrade Tech establishing market leadership and setting in motion consolidation in the space by acquiring CarWale, BikeWale, Adroit Auto, and ShriramAutomall. All of these platforms enable new and used automobile customers, vehicle dealerships, vehicle OEMs, and other businesses to buy and sell vehicles in a simple and efficient manner. Under his leadership, the platform gets 30 million average monthly unique visitors (Q4 FY22) and has had 1.2 million listings for auction in FY22.

Talking about his leadership style, Vinay Sanghi, Chairman & Founder, CarTrade says,"My belief is that my role is to bring people and resources together. As a leader, I work to empower and enable my team to achieve their full potential. At CarTrade Tech, we have built a strong tradition of mentorship because we truly believe that it is one of the best ways to foster a growing company and help build a vibrant work culture where employees can thrive personally and professionally." This philosophy has stood them in good stead because so many members of their senior leadership team have been associated with the company for 12+ years.

CarTrade Tech remains laser-focused on both, top-line and bottom-line growth, and last year, it saw a Y-O-Y growth revenue of about 28% and an adjusted PAT of Rs56 crore. Their mantra is "profitable growth" in their consumer group on a base of 30 million monthly unique visitors over 80% come organically which shows the brand affinity. All efforts are on to continue to build moats in our business. Their moats are brand, technology and software, data, physical infrastructure, teams, and the network effects of the digital platforms.

Their key focus has been on digitalizing the automotive buying and selling experience which resulted in the launch of CarWaleabSure, to deliver an offline and online shopping experience for buyers and sellers. There are 57 CarWaleabSure outlets in 34 cities. Shedding light on future plans, Sanghi says, "Currently, we have a cash balance of over Rs 1000 crore and we are actively looking at investments and acquisitions in our ecosystem to digitalize the whole buying and selling journey of vehicles."

Fact File

• Age: 53
• Founded CarTrade Tech in 2009
• Team size: 2000 + employees
• Turnover: Rs 358.95 Cr for the year FY22 growing by 28% when compared to FY21