Shashwat Goenka has been appointed as the new head of retail business under RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group. This would essentially make him the chief of Spencer's retail chain, which is a part of Rs 15,000-crore group. Shashwat is the son of group chief Sanjiv Goenka.
The news was first reported by The Economic Times which added that Spencer’s chief executive Mohit Kampani will now report to the 23-year-old Shashwat.
Shashwat, who completed his undergraduate studies from Wharton, joined the family business last year. He is arguably the youngest business head of an organised retail sector business in the country.
Spencer's Retail is a subsidiary of Kolkata-based public utility firm CESC Ltd (CESC holds 94.71 per cent stake). The firm runs about 200 stores (including about 30 large format stores) across 45 cities in India, employing more than 7,000 people. Separate media reports had said last year that Shashwat will be taking over as the chief of Spencer’s Retail which may be carved out of its listed parent.
This follows within weeks of RP Goenka passing away, leaving behind his two sons Harsh and Sanjiv with their independent business groups with revenues of around Rs 15,000 crore each. RP-Sanjiv Goenka group has operations across power and natural resources, infrastructure, carbon black, retail, and media and entertainment through firms such as CESC, Spencer’s Retail, Saregama and Philips Carbon Black.
Shashwat, who started working full time in July 2012, entered the family business at a similar age as his father and his grandfather before him.
Shashwat told ET that his immediate priorities are to drive Spencer's Retail to profitability, with a target to break even operations by the third quarter of this fiscal.