Apu Saha

M.M. Ispahani Limited

Blessed with a 190-year-old heritage, the House of Ispahani is one of the most respected business concerns in the entire subcontinent today. The company's historical roots can be traced way back to 1820 when its founder Haji Mohammed Hashem moved from Isfahan, Persia to Bombay and started a business that soon expanded phenomenally in both scale and coverage. In Bangladesh, the first branch office was opened in Dhaka in 1888; after 1947, the corporate headquarters of M. M. Ispahani Ltd. was shifted from Calcutta to Chittagong. Today, the company is still continuing in its private limited structure which is involved in numerous sectors as diversified as textiles and tea, real estate and poultry, shipping and internet services. It has corporate offices in Chittagong, Dhaka and Khulna employing more than 10,000 people in its various concerns. The founding family is still very much hands on involved in existing and new businesses. Over time, the owners have also been able to instill professional and structured management across the businesses at different levels so that processes are self-sustaining