Meet Indian business tycoon who started with one truck and built Rs 6300 crore... (2024)

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Trucking king Vijay Sankeshwar's rise to riches story has inspired thousands. From humble beginnings, Vijay took a big leap of faith in the 1970s to begin his own logistics firm with just a single truck. He has been dubbed the 'Transport Tsar' of Karnataka's Hubli.

Vijay Sankeshwar belonged to a family in the printing press business but went against his parents' wishes to start a separate business. He began with a single truck bought with borrowed money in 1976. In the initial decade, he struggled setting up the business in a sector that was highly unorganised and devoid of technology to bring together all aspects from truck drivers to clients.

He faced financial and logistical hurdles but kept his determination to succeed in the sector with his firm Vijayanand Roadlines. The company first began to move into its current shape in 1994 when he renamed it VRL. At the time, he had already risen from one truck to a fleet of over 150.

In 1996, he expanded from commercial transportation to passenger services with Vijayanand Travels with buses. Now known as VRL Logistics Limited, Vijay has diversified his business interests.

Together with his son Anand Sankeshwar, he heads a business conglomerate that also includes wing energy projects, media as well as an air charter service. VRL Logistics is a listed company that has a market cap of over Rs 6,000 crore. The 2022 Kannada film Vijayanand documents his inspiring success story.

• Vijayanand
• Vijayanand movie
• Vijay Sankeshwar
• Anand Sankeshwar
• VRL Logistics