RAHIMAFROOZ GROUP

Evaluation of the Company:

Origin

A man of strict religious values, yet a believer in progressive dynamism, and a dreamer who

thought nothing is impossible – Late A.C Abdur Rahim overcame numerous challenges and

obstacles to become one of the most accomplished entrepreneurs of this country. Born on the

20th of January 1915, he lost both his parents by the time he was seven years of age. Deprived of

formal schooling and a typically comfortable childhood, he grew up as a man with strong

determination, hardworking diligence, and humane compassion.

By the early 1940s, Mr. Rahim started small scale commercial trading on his own. He moved to

Chittagong in 1947 and started afresh with very little capital in hand, but with a whole world of

courage and faith. In 1950, he established the small trading concern dealing in various items.

This proprietary business was formally incorporated on April 15, 1954 as Rahimafrooz & Co.

Till date; Rahimafrooz Group commemorates this as its “Foundation Day”. Mr. Rahim’s passion

for continuously improving himself, his religious and ethical righteousness and his dedication to

please his customers are still prevalent in today’s Rahimafrooz culture - shaping the Group’s

present and its future. Today’s Rahimafrooz is a dream that Mr. A C Abdur Rahim turned into

reality. The business growth, the social commitment, and the great diversity in today’s

Rahimafrooz are the outcome of one lifetime of hard work and compassion from Mr. Rahim.

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Over the decades, Rahimafrooz has grown in size, scale, and diversity. The Group today has

Eight Operating Companies (SBUs), a few other business ventures, and a not for profit social

enterprise. As of 2015, the Group currently employs more than three thousand people directly

and a further fifty thousand indirectly as suppliers, contractors, dealers and retailers.

Rahimafrooz operates in four broad segments – Storage Power, Automotive & Electronics,

Energy and Retail.

The company has strengthened their market leadership at home while reaching out to

international markets through their offerings ranging from automotive aftermarket products,

energy and power solutions, to a world class retail chain. The team at Rahimafrooz is committed

to ensuring the best in quality standards and living the Group’s five core values – Integrity,

Excellence, Customer Delight, Innovation and inspiring people.

Rahimafrooz has been a partner in the development journey of this nation for more than fifty-

five years now. They set themselves to the highest standards in responsible corporate behavior

and their passion for success is aligned with the development of the country. They are committed

to playing a leading role in driving growth, prosperity, ethical values and social responsibility.

They continue to serve their customers through unparallel quality excellence and service

superiority. Their business success has been complemented by their commitment to the

environment, society and community.

Aspiration

“To be the most admired and trusted organization through excelling in everything they do,

following ethical business practices and adding value to stakeholders.”

Vision 2015

“A billion dollar diversified group committed to adding value to all stake holders and

community.”

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Core Values

The core values of RAHIMAFROOZ are:

Integrity in their dealings.

Excellence in everything they do.

Total commitment to Customer Satisfaction.

Thinking ahead and taking New Initiatives.

Valuing and Inspiring People.

Quality Policy

They are totally committed to customer delight through operational excellence, innovation and

continual improvement of quality.

The Journey to Success

1954 Incorporated by Mr. A.C. Abdur Rahim  1959 Distributorship of Lucas Battery1978 Exclusive distributorship of Dunlop Tyre1980 Acquisition of Bangladesh operations of Lucas UK1985 First producer of industrial battery1985 Pioneering Solar Power in collaboration with British Petroleum (BP)1992 First ever battery exports to Singapore1993 Launched Rahimafrooz Instant Power System (IPS)1994 Acquisition of Yuasa Batteries (Bangladesh) Ltd. and launched Excel Retreads1997 Attained ISO 9002 certification for Rahimafrooz Batteries Ltd. (RBL)

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operations2000 First office in India opened in Ahmedabad2001 Awarded “Bangladesh Enterprise of the Year”2001 Attained ISO 14001:1996 for RBL operations2001 Launched “Agora” – the first ever chain of retail supermarket in Bangladesh2002 Launched Rahimafrooz Energy Services Ltd. (RESL) promoting distributed

power2003 Established Rahimafrooz CNG Ltd.2003 Awarded “National Export Trophy”2004 Metronet Bangladesh, a fibre optic based digital solution provider for

data communication, launched in joint venture with Flora Telecom2004 Received McGraw-Hill Platt Global Energy Award for Renewable Energy2004 The Group celebrated its 50th anniversary on April 15, with a renewed,

enhanced commitment to being successful while upholding its core values2006 Received the “Ashden Award” for Sustainable Energy2008 Launched "Quikfill"- the first ever chain of branded CNG refueling stations in

Bangladesh2009 Established Rahimafrooz Globatt Ltd. and Rahimafrooz Accumulators  Ltd.2009 Rahimafrooz  launched multi brand consumer electronics outlet UREKA 2009  Rahimafrooz  launched world renowned consumer electronics brand Daweoo2010 Rahimafrooz Inaugurates its biggest and most modern warehouse at

Hemayatpur, Savar2011       Established Rahimafrooz CIC Agro Ltd.

2012  Rahimafrooz Renewable Energy Ltd. commenced its commercial operation of PV plant

2013 Awarded “National Export Trophy” for 2010-2011

2014 Received " National Environment Award " by The Ministry of Environment & Forests

2014 Awarded "Green Business Award" by Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industries

2014 Rahimafrooz IPS has won the Best Brand Award 2014 for the 3rd consecutive year in IPS category.

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Degree of diversification

Rahimafrooz Bangladesh Ltd.

Rahimafrooz Bangladesh Ltd. (RABL) is the Group Parent Company that supports and guides

the Strategic Business Units (SBU) from the Rahimafrooz Corporate Office (RACO). It

ensures continuous management innovation, best utilization of technology, new initiatives,

corporate governance and adoption of best global practices. The organization comprises of the

Group Board Office, Group Information Technology Centre (GITC) and the functional teams of

Finance & Accounting, HR & Administration, Corporate Marketing, Group QMS and

Compliance. Rahimafrooz Group’s businesses can be described according to four broad

segments that its companies operate in.

1. Storage Power :

Rahimafrooz Group is the largest manufacturer and exporter of automotive and industrial batteries in Bangladesh and has the largest battery export plant in South Asia. Companies in these divisions are- A) Rahimafrooz Accumulators Ltd.

Rahimafrooz Group started manufacturing industrial batteries in the year 1991, in collaboration

with Electrona of Switzerland. Rahimafrooz Accumulators Ltd. (RAL) commenced operation

from 2009, as a separate unit to cater to the growing needs of the local as well as international

market. RAL produces and markets a wide range of industrial batteries which are used in

telecommunication, power station, railways, electric vehicles, forklifts, ships, buoy lighting,

UPS, inverter and solar power systems. It aims to manufacture high quality batteries by

employing new and innovative technology, which offers safer and more environment-friendly

manufacturing processes. The Company maintains high standards of its operations that are

certified in both ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 standards. RAL aspires to be the leading industrial

battery manufacturer for traction, stationary, solar and VRLA batteries in the South Asia region.

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B) Rahimafrooz Batteries Ltd.

Rahimafrooz Batteries Ltd. (RBL) is the largest lead-acid battery manufacturer in Bangladesh.

The company is one of the leading regional players, with market leadership at home and export

endeavours to more than 44 countries around the world. It manufactures about 200 different

varieties of batteries for automotive, motorcycle, IPS and other applications in its factory located

at West Panisail, Zirani Bazaar, Gazipur. The Company maintains high standards of operations,

which are certified in both ISO 9001 as well as ISO 14001 standards. Furthermore, in order to

ensure occupational health and safety of its employees, the company has also implemented the

occupational health and safety management system, OSHAS 18001 standard. Lucas and Spark

are the leading names in the local automotive battery market while Volta, Optus and Delta are

gaining equity as international brands.

C) Rahimafrooz Globatt Ltd.

Rahimafrooz Globatt Ltd (RGL) is the global wing of Rahimafrooz group. As part of excelling

two decades of international market experience and aspiring to become a truly global company,

this state of the art Maintenance Free (MF) and Sealed Maintenance Free (SMF) battery

manufacturing plant was established in the year 2009. With 2.5 million unit production capacity

per year, RGL is the largest battery export plant in South Asia. In recognition to its quality

management system, RGL has received ISO 9001:2008 Certification from Orion Registrar, Inc.,

USA. The manufacturing process of RGL ensures highest level of environment sustainability.

 

RGL offers a broad range of maintenance free automotive batteries manufactured according to

JIS and DIN standard for a variety of vehicles, ranging from small cars to large commercial

vehicles. RGL also manufactures deep cycle battery for inverter application. All these batteries

have been designed by one of the leading German company. These batteries are designed for

millions of vehicle enthusiasts across Asia & Pacific, Middle East, Africa, Europe and Americas.

As the pay off line of its flagship brand GLOBATT “Drive Within” illustrates, the battery is

winning heart and mind of the consumers around the globe through its unparallel performance.

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2. Automotive and Electronics :

Rahimafrooz Group markets and distributes various automotive after-market products

such as automotive batteries, tyres and lubricant as well as electronics ranging from home

appliances, power backup systems, lighting products, and electrical accessories. The

Group is also one of the leading complete CNG solution providers in the country.

Companies in these divisions are-

A) Rahimafrooz Distribution Ltd.

Rahimafrooz Distribution Ltd. (RDL) is the distribution wing of the Group, having a present

nationwide distribution network of 172 Dealers, 263 Retailers and 102 Lubricant Dealers and

carrying over ten national and international brands. It is the clear leader in the automotive

aftermarket and emergency power products categories.

RDL’s portfolio includes international tyre brands Dunlop, Kenda and Apollo while it also

carries its own brand RZ Tyre and battery brands Globatt, Lucas and Spark. RDL is the exclusive

franchisee of the world’s leading lubricant brand Castrol. Through Rahimafrooz IPS, UPS and

Voltage Stabiliser, the company enjoys clear leadership of the emergency power products

market. In addition, it also runs eight automobile service centres in Dhaka and Chittagong.

Recently the company has entered the electronic goods market. It distributes and markets various

household appliances and electronic goods through RDL’s newly inaugurated electronics retail

chain, Ureka and its numerous sales outlets.

B) Rahimafrooz Gastech Ltd.     

Rahimafrooz Gastech Ltd. (RAGT) was formerly known as Rahimafrooz CNG Ltd. established

in 2003. In 2012, the company was rebranded as RAGT to widen its scope of serving more

customers in the gas segment of Bangladesh. RAGT operates in the following business areas.

CNG Conversion and Auto Services: RAGT provides CNG conversion and auto services for

all kinds of vehicles through four Conversion and Services Centers (CSC) in Dhaka and

Chittagong. These centers also provide vehicle maintenance and repair services like fuel system

servicing, engine maintenance, brake and suspension servicing, electrical work etc.

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Quikfill CNG Sales: RAGT manages Quikfill, the first ever chain of branded CNG refueling stations in

Bangladesh. Quikfill is presently serving customers of Dhaka, Chittagong, Manikgong and

Tangail. More new Quikfill stations are planned to be established in Dhaka, Chittagong and other

Major cities and highways.

 

Station Equipment Sales: RAGT serves its valued customers with the best quality CNG Station

Equipments of European origin. It offers Turn Key solution for both online and off line CNG

refueling stations.

 

Technical services for CNG equipments and refueling station: RAGT, with its trained and

professional technical team, also offers technical services for CNG refueling station equipments

all across the country. This team is competent and well equipped to provide services to different

brands of CNG equipment in the country.

 Oil and Gas Field: RAGT also operates in oil and gas field industry in collaboration with some internationally renowned manufacturer, supplier and contractor. The major areas of operations are: Gas Processing Plants:

RAGT, in collaboration with international partners, offers Engineering Procurement and

Constructions (EPC) solution for establishing different gas process plants e.g. MSTE (Molecular

Sieve Tubular Expander), Glycol de-hydration to government organizations like Sylhet Gas

Fields Company Ltd. (SGFL), Bangladesh Petroleum Exploration and Production Company Ltd.

(BAPEX) and Bangladesh Gas Fields Company Ltd. (BGFCL). The company also facilitates the

private sector to establish related process industries such as Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG)

filling plants, Natural Gas Liquid (NGL) processing plants, Condensate processing plants etc.

Gas field products:

RAGT also supplies gas field related equipments like wellhead control panel, drill bits, flanges,

valves, gasket, drill & line pipes, casing, tubing etc to the Government and multinational

organizations.

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 Strengthening Gas Pipe line Network:

RAGT is also involved in the execution of different gas pipe line projects for Gas Transmission

Company Ltd. (GTCL) to strengthen the gas supply network in the country. This includes gas

compressing and pumping stations, regulating and metering stations. Laying of new pipe line

from 6” till 30” diameter including HDD. Testing, maintenance and servicing of the existing gas

pipe line network for GTCL, TITAS, Bakhrabad, Jalalabad are also done under this segment.

 Gas Transportation and Distribution:

RAGT offers contractual services for transporting and distributing gas from near well station of

different multinational organization.

3. Energy :

Rahimafrooz Group has a significant presence in the energy sector of Bangladesh and offers a wide range of renewable and conventional energy solutions.

Companies in these divisions are-

A) Rahimafrooz Renewable Energy Ltd.

Transforming the lives of people and lighting up different corners of the country, Rahimafrooz

Renewable Energy Ltd. (RREL) has been providing Solar Energy solutions for households,

agriculture, healthcare, education, telecommunication, rural streets and marketplaces, as well as

government and private institutions. To date, RREL has lightened up more than 100,000 rural

homes in Bangladesh and the Company is endeavoring to do much more in the future. RREL is

also the pioneer in providing solar-hybrid solutions for Telecom Operators’ BTS towers and

solar powered irrigation systems in Bangladesh.

B) Rahimafrooz Energy Services Ltd.

Rahimafrooz Energy Services Ltd. (RESL) was established in the year 2000 as a standby, captive

and distributed power solution provider. It is a leading name in the diesel generator industry

having a customer base of nearly 900. At present the number of RESL installed generators is

more than 3000 (20 KVA to 1500 KVA). Its clientele comprises of industrial plants, real estates,

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hospitals, educational institutions, telecoms, supermarkets, corporate houses, NGOs, embassies

and various government establishments. The company is marketing diesel generators from

Pramac Power Engineering, Italy and Spain (20 to 2500 KVA), and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries

Limited, Japan (650 to 4500 KVA). RESL is also providing Rental Power with both diesel and

gas generators. The company is planning to launch Mitsubishi gas generator (1.0 MW) in the

near future.

 

4. Retail :

Rahimafrooz Group introduced the first retail chain of superstores in Bangladesh and has played a major role in redefining everyday shopping.

Companies in these divisions are-

A) Rahimafrooz Superstores Ltd.

Rahimafrooz Superstores Ltd. (RSL) launched Agora the first ever retail chain in Bangladesh in

2001. Agora promises a valuable shopping experience that provides quality and fresh products at

the right price. It aims to consistently provide a remarkably satisfying and valuable shopping

experience through a business that improves the quality of life for customers and team members.

With outlets in major locations throughout Dhaka, and many more being planned in Dhaka and

other major cities, Agora is endeavoring to fulfill the everyday needs of its customers by

providing the right quality, assortment and price through stores of various forms and sizes. While

Agora mainly focuses on food items - ranging from a wide variety of fish, meat, vegetables,

fruits, bakery, dairy, and grocery - it also carries a vast array of other grocery, personal care, and

various other consumer goods and household utensils.

Other Ventures:

A) Rahimafrooz CIC Agro Limited

Rahimafrooz CIC Agro Limited (RCAL) is a reflection of Rahimafrooz’s vision to be a leader of

the best qualiy produce from ‘seed to shelf’. The company was established in June 2011 as a

joint venture with CIC Agri Businesses (Private) Limited, a leading company in Sri Lanka.

RCAL aspires to provide farmers with complete agricultural solutions by emphasizing

sufficiency through modernization of agriculture production, with particular attention on

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increased production, processing and value addition. The company is focused on modernizing &

bringing efficiency to Plant Nutrition, Mechanization & Tissue Culture through continuous

research & development. 

Plant Nutrition, Seed & Planting Material:

RCAL produces & imports the best quality seed & planting material, fertilizer for rural farmers,

home gardeners and horticulturist. Seeds are continuously tested for viability and to regulate

proper physical conditions for germination and growth of seed. RCAL is also engaged in the

introduction of new cultivation technology to the country. Ensuring maximum yield and thus

bumper harvest for customers is their priority. RCAL services are available for both own &

contract farming. The company also provides consultancy for farmers / growers. 

Agri-Machanization:

With a mind to continually improve agricultural efforts in Bangladesh, RCAL imports premium

quality agriculture machinery focusing on crop plantation, post harvestation & irrigation. These

machineries, including tractor, rotavator, power tiller and diesel engines, are available across the

country through our strong sales network. RCAL is the national distributor of technologically

advanced Deutz-Fahr tractors, the only German brand tractor in Bangladesh which is compatible

for the land and road conditions of Bangladesh. The power tillers and diesel engines are available

under the name of “TARA”. 

Tissue Culture:

RCAL has its own farm consisting of a state-of-the-art tissue culture laboratory for the

production of tissue culture planting material of fruits and ornamental plants.

 After Sale Service:

RCAL also provides its customers with after sales services through a highly trained technical

team located at branch offices throughout the country. Services include installation and

demonstration session immediately after sales, and also periodic training and troubleshooting at

customer location. They endeavor to ensure availability of spare parts at dealer points across the

country.

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B) Core Knowledge:

Core Knowledge (Core-K) is a new initiative of Rahimafrooz Group. Core-K was started in 2009

with the aim to support the country’s vision of Education for All. Through dedication to helping

educational and research institutions discover, use, and build upon a wide range of e-content,

Core-K's goal is to equip these institutions as best as possible in a digital age where globally

education is the most important tool in the 21st century.

As an education focused digital content distributor, Core-K is placed to work with Bangladesh's

education community and bring them onto the same page internationally by promoting the

discovery and use of online resources. Core-K’s goal is to bring the e-resources of hundreds of

leading publishers to the fingertips of a newly digital Bangladesh, from scholars at universities to

the students of primary schools. The education sector in Bangladesh can move at the same pace

as the rest of the world, and it is Core-K's belief that this service will help close the gap.

Core-K’s vision is to become a leader in the delivery of web and mobile based e-content

products in the Bangladesh market. The company will achieve its vision by sourcing the most

appropriate e-content products in English and Bangla and by delivering them via multiple

channels. Core-K also enables its clients to build their own virtual library in a simple and cost-

effective manner, eliminating the difficulties that schools, universities and research organizations

face when they depend primarily on print resources. As a gateway to innumerable e-books,

journals, reference databases and other learning material, Core-K will be invaluable to students,

teachers and researchers alike.

C) MetroNet Bangladesh Ltd:

MetroNet Bangladesh Ltd. (MBL) is a joint venture company of Rahimafrooz Bangladesh Ltd. It

is the first organization in Bangladesh to install fully digital, fibre optical commercial networking

backbone. MBL provides robust data communication services to private sector offices, financial

institutions, ATMs, and many other institutions.

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D) RZ Power Ltd:

RZ Power Ltd. (RZPL), a subsidiary of Rahimafrooz, is the lowest cost High Speed Diesel

(HSD) power plant connected to the national grid. RZ Power commenced operation of its 50MW

diesel-fired power plant in Thakurgaon in September 2010 – the first local company to have

done so. Within 2013, the plant is expected to provide approximately BDT 590 millions in

savings for the Government of Bangladesh (GoB) compared to other companies supplying power

to the grid from other HSD power plant. This was also the first rental power project in the

country to be financed by the Bangladesh Bank’s dollar fund. RZ Power’s project will be

contributing towards reducing the energy crisis in Bangladesh. The company’s success in

implementing the power project has set an example for other rental power companies and will

help reinstate some confidence in local rental power companies.

E) Rahimafrooz Customer Care Center:

In line with the company’s core value of Total Commitment to Customer Satisfaction,

Rahimafrooz launched the new Customer Care Center on March 2011. A customer can now

dial 16213 or 096 123 16213 from any land line or mobile phone and talk directly with the

customer care agents from 8.00 am to 10.00 pm any day of the year. Equipped with state-of-the-

art technological facilities, amenities and trained agents, the Rahimafrooz Customer Care Center

is easily accessible to customers for any information, service request or complaint regarding

Rahimafrooz products and services.

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Projection of the Company:

As per discussion with Mr. Sabbir Ahmed, General Manager, Accounts & Finance of

Rahimafrooz Storage Power Division we have found out that, currently they don’t have any

foreign operation and they are mainly focusing on Export. Rahimafrooz Globatt playing a

leading role in automotive battery exports to India, Japan, Singapore and Middle Eastern

markets. For Rahimafrooz Batteries Limited; Lucas and Spark are the leading names in the local

automotive battery market while Volta, Optus and Delta are gaining equity as international

brands. In the 1992 Rahimafrooz first ever exports battery export to Singapore. Marketing

manager added, Rahimafrooz Accumulators Ltd aspires to be the leading industrial battery

manufacturer for traction, stationary, solar and VRLA batteries in the South Asia region.

Moreover, there are also opportunities in countries such as Thailand, Nepal, Afghanistan and

countries in Africa where application of solar energy is being expanded. Upon inquiry of future

projection of the company Mr, Sabbir added, till now he don’t see any projection from

Rahimafrooz Group to start international operation but if situation demands in future they will

think of it.

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NAVANA GROUP

Any discussion about the leading Bangladeshi conglomerates will be incomplete without Navana

Group, one of the most successful business ventures of the country. Navana Group has already

established significant impact on the real estate, textile, automobile, paints, battery, furniture,

logistics and electronics sector of Bangladesh.

Evolution of Navana Group:

Birth:

Navana Group has a long business history in Bangladesh which started even before the birth of

Bangladesh herself. But like a lot of other big and successful ventures, Navana Group started its

journey with small steps and in this case, inside another company. It started its journey within

Islam Group, which was led by one of the most successful business pioneer of Bangladesh of all

time, Mr. Jahurul Islam.

Navana Limited, the flagship company of Navana Group was established in 1964, which was

then a sister concern of Islam Group. Back then, Navana Limited stepped into the business

under an exclusive distributorship agreement with TOYOTA of Japan to market Toyota cars in

the East Pakistan. It became a successful project and within five years, it captured almost 80% of

the automobile market of Bangladesh. In a later year the Group has entered into an exclusive

distributor franchise with HINO Motors of Japan, which also gained another significant market

share in a small time.

Aftab Automobiles Ltd. was formed in 1981 under Islam Group, which started assembling

Toyota and Hino vehicles for Bangladeshi market in 1982. It has the largest private automobile

assembling unit in the country. It became a listed company of Dhaka Stock Exchange in 1987

and of Chittagong Stock Exchange at 1996.

At 1996, after the death of Mr. Jahurul Islam, the founder and chairman of Islam Group, Navana

Limited and Aftab Automobiles Ltd. got separated from the Islam Group and together formed

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Navana Group under the leadership of Mr. Shafiul Islam Kamal, the chairman of the newly

formed group.

Growth:

The year 1996 was as important year for Navana Group not only for getting its own entity, but

also for starting new ventures. In this year, two new venture of Navana Group was formed,

named Navana Construction Ltd. and Navana Real Estate Ltd. Navana Construction Ltd. (NCL)

a full-fledged construction wing of Navana Group. Navana Real Estate Ltd aimed to the

developments of real estate in Bangladesh.

In the trading front, the Group has brought into existence a separate trading unit in 1996 namely

Biponon Limited. This company commenced business in the potential field of Health and

Medical Equipment Sector. In the same year 1996, Navana group launched Navana Computers

& Technologies Ltd. to meet the growing demands in the I.T. sector of Bangladesh. It earned the

distributorship of Hewlett Packard and Gateway to market their products in Bangladesh. This

company started production of NAVANA brand AVR & subsequently considering the market

prospect it also started production of IPS & UPS in May 2000.

In 1998, Aftab Automobiles Ltd. has gone under a massive BMRE program and as a result of the

program, it started its Body Fabricating Unit, Paint Manufacturing Unit and Battery Unit. At the

same year, taking into consideration of the importance of the aid worthy projects, Navana Group

introduced another company named Navana Interlinks Limited in its chain. Navana Interlinks

Limited has started involving in the potential sector of Civil Aviation, Telecommunication,

Power Development, Heavy & Light Industry Sector, Food Sector, Chemical & Bulk

Commodities Supply & Indenting, as well as turnkey projects in these sectors

Aftab Automobiles Limited started paint manufacturing unit from 1999 as a subsidiary to

produce decorative and industrial paints for the local market. The same company started to

produce and sell vehicle and I.P.S. batteries in 2002. Although the target customers for this

project are currently the local market, but the company has plans to export the batteries abroad.

The new company formed for producing paint as Navana Paints in 2000. At the same year, they

launched Navana Taxi Cab Co. Ltd to meet the challenging demand to transportation in Dhaka.

In 2010, the battery manufacturing unit was renamed as Navana Batteries Ltd.

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A successful concern of this group, Navana CNG Ltd. started its operation in 2001 as Navana

Limited (CNG Unit). Since then it is setting up plants at different regions of Bangladesh. It

emerged as an individual entity as Navana CNG Ltd. in 2004.

NAVANA Furniture was founded on 2002 to serve the local furniture market, which possesses

capabilities that are fully integrated, from designing, prototyping, material selection and molding

through testing, assembling and distribution.

In 2003, Navana Group formed Navana Textile, a 100% export oriented sweater factory. It

produces pullover, Cardigan, Vest, Top, Muffler, Scarf made with 100% Acrylic, Wool, Cotton

as well as many types of composite & fancy yarns. In this year, this group also launched Navana

Distributions Ltd., to produce and market FMCG like Flour, Suzi, Salt, Rice, Chanachur,

Mastered Oil and so on.

Navana Petroleum Limited. (NPL) has inaugurated its operation on April 6, 2006 as the

marketing company of Caltex brand in Bangladesh.

Another concern of Navana Group, Navana Logistic Ltd. was founded on 2007, which acts as an

international air and sea forwarder. Navana Group started its business in the power generating

sector in 2011 as Navana Power, which includes two units. Navana Power Generation Limited

sells generators for home and industrial use, where Navana Renewable Energy Limited

concentrates on renewable energy like solar power.

In 2012, the AVR, IPS & UPS production unit got separated from Navana Computers &

Technologies and emerged as a new company named Navana Electronics Ltd. In this year, this

group also starts its business in food and hospitality industry in Bangladesh as Navana Foods

limited. They have brought the popular franchise name Gloria Jeans Coffees.

Chart: History of Navana Group at a glace

Year Event1964 Navana Limited was formed inside Islam Group1981 Aftab Automobiles Ltd. was formed inside Islam Group1982 Aftab Automobiles Ltd. started its operation

1996Aftab Automobiles Ltd. and Navana Limited got separated from Islam Group and together formed Navana Group

  Navana Construction Ltd. was formed and started operation

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  Navana Real Estate Ltd. was formed and started operation  Biponon Limited was formed and started operation  Navana Computers & Technologies Ltd. was formed and started operation1998 Navana Interlinks Limited started its operation1999 Aftab Automobiles Ltd. started producing paints2000 Aftab Automobiles Ltd. started producing I.P.S. and U.P.S.  The paint producing unit of Aftab Automobiles Ltd. started operating as Navana Paint  Navana Taxi cab co. Limited was launched2001 Navana Limited (C.N.G. Unit) started its operation2002 Aftab Automobiles Ltd. started producing batteries  Navana Furniture was launched2003 Navana Textile was formed and started operation  Navana Distributions Ltd. started its operations2004 Navana Limited (C.N.G. Unit) started operating individually as Navana C.N.G. Ltd.2006 Navana Petroleum Limited started its operations2007 Navana Logistic Ltd. was formed and started its operations

2010Battery manufacturing unit of Aftab Automobiles Ltd. started operating as Navana Batteries Ltd.

2011 Navana Power started its operations

2012AVR, IPS & UPS production unit got separated from Navana Computers & Technologies and emerged as named Electronics Ltd

  Navana Foods Limited started its operation

So from the evolution history of Navana Group we can see that, formed in 1964, this group came

as an individual entity at 1996. It started its business with automobiles, but at the same year

started the real estate and construction concern and also another separate trading unit and I.T

unit. The I.T unit gave birth to an electronics unit, which got its own entity later on. Similarly,

one of the automobile units, Aftab Automobiles Limited gave birth to several units like battery,

paint and C.N.G. conversions units, where all of them got successful and emerged as individual

companies in next few years. But the Navana Group did not depend on the subsidiaries only to

build new businesses. The group diversified itself and created new wings like furniture, textile

and logistic units to expand its business.

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Degree of diversification

It can be clearly see that Navana Group has a diverse portfolio of products and services which is

distributed among various sectors of Bangladesh. This diversity unquestionably justifies this

group’s position as a conglomerate. Below is the list of products and services that Navana Group

offers to various customers through various concerns, classified according to sectors:

1. Construction and Real Estate sector:

Navana Group has two concerns which deal with the real estate and construction sectors of

Bangladesh. Both of the companies are one of the market leaders in their own field. These

groups are:

A) Navana Real Estate Ltd.: The products and services offered by this company are residential,

commercial and as well as land development projects in around Dhaka.

B) Navana Construction Ltd.: This company deals with the construction work which included

road ways, embankments, high-rise and low-rise buildings, commercial blocks, industrial civil

engineering works, service and utility buildings for airport, railways, universities and power

plant civil works.

2. R.M.G. sector:

Navana Group is yet to diversify inside this sector. In the R.M.G. side, they have only one

company which is:

Navana Textiles Ltd: This company is currently exporting pullovers, cardigans, vests, tops,

mufflers, scarf made with 100% Acrylic, Wool, Cotton as well as many types of composite &

fancy yarns.

3. Transport and Automobile sector:

In this sector, Navana group has its most significant portfolio which consists of a massive variety

of products and services. Aftab Automobiles Ltd. also exists in this sector which has diversified

again in some different sectors making the portfolio of Navana Group even bulkier. The

concerns in this sector are:

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A) Aftab Automobiles Ltd: This company is specialized in assembling Land Cruiser Jeeps and

Hino buses and trucks. They are also producing Hino bus bodies in Bangladesh.

B) Navana Limited: It is the oldest and flagship company of Navana Group. Its main business is

selling Toyota and Hino vehicles for personal and industrial use, selling genuine spare parts and

providing customer all types of car maintenance and repair services though its automobile

workshop.

C) Navana C.N.G. Limited: It is another concern of Navana Group which has already gained

valuable trust from the customers for providing superior and reliable services to the customers.

The major services offered by this company are: Petrol/ Octane/Diesel driven vehicle conversion

to CNG, 3-Wheeler conversion to CNG., LPG conversion, selling gas through CNG refueling

stations, selling CNG refueling station on turn key basis, selling of CNG conversion kit and

cylinder, package maintenance program for CNG refueling stations, CNG cylinder re-testing

facility at own cylinder testing station and providing training on CNG conversion and refueling

station.

D) Navana Taxi Cab Co. Ltd: This company provides cab rental services.

4. Power sector:

Although the investment in this sector by Navana Group is relatively new compared with other

sectors, but again in this sector they have a good number of companies which helps to diversify

the portfolio of the group. The companies under this sector are:

A) Navana Batteries Ltd.: They are producing and selling automotive batteries for all types of

automotive application. They have a projection to export batteries abroad.

B) Navana Power: They sell power generation equipments. Inside this division, they have 3

different companies which are:

i) Navana Electronics Ltd.: They produce and sell A.V.R., U.P.S., I.P.S, I.V.S and Sub-station in

Bangladesh.

ii) Navana Power Generation Limited: They import and sell high quality generator for home and

industrial use.

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iii) Navana Renewable Energy Limited: They sell complete solution for generating renewable

energy like solar power for home and industrial use.

5. Marketing and Distribution sector:

In this sector, Navana Group has different companies for serving various types of products and

services to both of retail and corporate customer. The companies under this sector are:

A) Navana Logistics Ltd.: They provide logistics and freight management solutions.

B) Navana Interlinks Ltd.: It is the project marketing company of Navana group. They

trade and market various products for power & tele-communication, Civil Aviation, consumer

products, security equipments, industrial chemicals, machineries, petroleum products and agro

products.

C) Biponon Limited: They sell medical and scientific equipments to various clients.

D) Navana Distributions Ltd.: They are producing and marketing FMCG like flour, suzi, salt,

rice, chanachur, mastered oil and so on.

E) Navana Petroleum Limited.: They import and distribute different types of Caltex brand

products in Bangladesh.

Other sectors:

With the above mentioned sectors, there are some other sectors inside which, Navana Group has

not diversified to a large extent. The companies which operate alone in a sector are:

A) Navana Paints: The business of this company is decorative and industrial paint

manufacturing, marketing and selling.

B) Navana Furniture Ltd.: They produce and sell home and office furniture for local market.

C) Navana Foods Ltd.: They provide food and hospitality services though an international

franchise.

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Future projection for International Business:

From studying the evolution and diversification of Navana Group, we can see that although this

conglomerate currently does some international trading, but they are currently not involved in

any international business. Most of their businesses are in the local market of Bangladesh. Their

only exporting concerns are Navana Textiles Ltd. and Navana Batteries Ltd., who are exporting

R.M.G. goods and batteries to international market, respectively.

A large portion of their international trading consists of technology intensive products like

importing cars, power generators, solar panels, high value medical equipments etc and exporting

batteries. For their local business, they are also producing some technology intensive products

like I.P.S and U.P.S. Till now, Bangladesh is not technologically sound enough for producing

these goods efficiently. So by understanding this, in future Navana Group may start international

businesses but opening subsidiaries at places like China to produce these technology intensive

goods more efficiently.

Till now, we don’t see any projection from Navana Group to start international business. By the

nature of their business, most of their services will not need international operation. But as stated

earlier, this group can be benefited largely by operating internationally for its technology

intensive products. They can operate more efficiently and can target the international market

better by an appropriate internal business strategy. This will reduce their cost and increase sales

highly.

To conclude, we can say that Navana Group has become one of the most successful business

conglomerates in Bangladesh by adapting to different business strategy according to the needs.

So as there are high chances of increasing the profitability of the group but operating

internationally, there are good chances that we will see Navana Group as one of the first business

conglomerates of Bangladesh as operating an international business.

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Conclusion:

Navana Group is one of the biggest company in real estate, constructions and automobiles sector

in Bangladesh. They started as the sole distributor of TOYOTA cars in Bangladesh and now they

are the exclusive distributors of HINO Motors. They have also expanded their business to heavy

and light industries, food, telecommunication, chemical & bulk commodities supply & indenting

and power. Navana Group has the most delicate and effective management panel. It would not be

surprising in they become the top most company in Bangladesh in next five years time.

Rahimafrooz Group is one of the leading conglomerates of the country involved in a diverse

range of business (i.e. retail and wholesale trade, power storage, power generation, solar energy,

CNG etc.). However power storage has been the key strength of the group with Rahimafrooz

Batteries leading the automotive battery market, Rahimafrooz Accumulators leading the industry

battery and Rahimafrooz Globatt playing a leading role in automotive battery exports to India,

Japan, Singapore and Middle Eastern markets.

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References:

1. www.navana.com/

2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Navana_Group

3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aftab_Automobiles

4. http://www.navanapower.com

5. http://www.navanafurniture.com/company-profile/

6. http://www.rahimafrooz.com/Default.aspx

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