ABG - From Trading Cotton To Being Big In Your Life – Kanav Mehra, IIM Visakhapatnam

Though I am not a shopaholic, moving from one shop to another to get clothes of my choice is not my cup of tea. Pantaloons comes as saviour where I can get all brands under one roof and get the best deal. When it comes to formal clothing and business suites no one can beat Allen Solly, Peter England, Louis Philippe and Van Heusen making them one of my favourite clothing brands.

Since, its inception in 1857 starting in a small town of Pilani trading in cotton the group has grown to exponential heights revenue of approximately US$44.3 billion in year 2018. Being an active supporter in India’s independence struggle to contributing in nation building, ABG has been touching our lives and making a difference.

“I have nothing to lose and all to gain” - moving ahead facing challenges and turning them in opportunities.

It was that time of the year when companies visit campuses to recruit students. Like every other student, I was looking forward to placement time. Companies came and conducted written tests and interviews but to my utter dismay, I was not placed in the initial stage. Most of the students had gotten good placement offers, but despite my best efforts, no offer came through. However, I did not give up; with strong faith in God and myself, I worked on gap areas. I did several mock sessions to overcome my weakness and worked on few academic areas which needed to be strengthened like programming. And then, I got a placement offer from Infogain, Noida. This phase taught me that with patience, hard work and perseverance one can achieve anything.

Taking challenges as stress can hamper one’s performance, so I keep some points in back of my mind like before taking on an interview, exam or challenging task I tell myself that “I have nothing to lose and all to gain”. This takes pressure of my shoulder and I can give my 100% to the task assigned to me. I have been following this strategy ever since I graduated. I have faced challenges in my workplace and during my CAT preparation, but this idea helps me take those challenges as opportunities to prove my mettle to the world. One should not be demotivated by failure rather reflect on oneself and try hard to transform it into success.