From an Aluminum trading company to selling one of every two ladders in India, here's how Bathla changed its fate!

Bathla, which is India's first ladder brand has now grown to be one of the leading Home Essentials brands in the country.

It was in the late 60s when the journey of Bathla began as an aluminum trading company in Bangalore. It was founded by Balraj Bathla who at that time had no idea that it would one day become a household name and a trusted choice for buying ladders and other household items. He stayed in the trading business for the next 30 years after which under the guidance of Balraj’s sons Rohit and Gaurav, Bathla decided to launch its very first aluminum ladder from their family-run store in Bangalore.

"We pivoted to manufacturing home products in the ’90s! What started out as a simple operation has now grown to be one of the leading Home Essentials brands in the country. The transition was a smooth one, as my father and uncle joined the business they yearned for more, and their aspirations were to create, not just trade that gave birth to India’s first Ladder Brand", said Dev Bathla, the current CMO of Bathla.

From ladders to a range of household products

Bathla started with ladders, ironing boards, and cloth dryers, and these still remain its bread and butter, says Dev, but the team also sensed the need to expand it into newer categories and thus ended up manufacturing organizers, garden, table accessories, and a few more.

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"Aligning the vision for everyone involved while creating a category from scratch and being an organized player in an extremely unorganized sector was challenging. We also transitioned from the offline world to the online world with certain challenges, but we did so gladly as we saw the numerous benefits that came with it. Thankfully with the hard work put in by my dad and uncle our brand persona was already built prior to the advent of e-commerce and our objective was to strengthen that persona and tweak it wherever necessary", he further stated.

To selling every two ladders in India!

Bathla now offers over 800 products across different categories that, include ironing boards, cloth drying stands, bathroom fittings, mops, bins, cleaning supplies, and more. Along with that, this legacy vyapaar also sells one of every two ladders in India.

"We source our core raw materials from Jindal, Hindalco, etc. However, we have a vast network of micro-enterprises that we like to work with, this allows us to help them grow with us, further strengthening the bond within our Supply Chain", mentioned Dev Bathla who had once done his internship at the factory floor cutting aluminum for the steps of their ladders!

For him, running around the factory as a child and sitting in my grandfather’s office is the most cherished memory with Bathla. His next goal for the brand is to have one Bathla product in every home as well as to reach various corners of the country and the world, allowing consumers to have quality products that will last them a lifetime.

Also Read: From owning a stall in Karachi to becoming Mumbai’s iconic restaurant chain, the legacy of Bhagat Tarachand beholds.

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