MAM
Retail giant DMart poaches Unilever bigwig for top job
MUMBAI: Supermarket giant Avenue Supermarts (DMart) has nabbed Unilever veteran Anshul Asawa as its CEO-designate after a nearly three-decade love affair with the global consumer goods behemoth.
The poaching of Asawa, who was barely 11 months into his stint as general manager for Greater Asia and head of Unilever Thailand, marks a seismic shift for one of India’s most profitable retail operations as it gears up for its next phase of bare-knuckle expansion.
Asawa brings a bulging CV to the budget retailer, having cut his teeth across a veritable smorgasbord of roles at Unilever spanning marketing, sales, digital commerce and general management across multiple continents.
Most recently, the IIT Roorkee and IIM Lucknow alumnus had been calling the shots in Bangkok, but his three-year stint in London saw him spearhead Unilever’s global digital and e-commerce strategy—experience that will prove invaluable as DMart looks to beef up its online presence against well-funded rivals.
The retail maverick, who describes his purpose as “Make every stroke count,” made waves during his time in the Netherlands as VP marketing for home care across Europe, where he delivered a cracking innovation programme and led the strategic assault of laundry products into central and eastern Europe.
But perhaps most relevant to his new Indian supermarket gig was Asawa’s transformative stint as general manager for east branch and rural channels at Hindustan Unilever between 2007 and 2010. During this period, he masterminded a rural expansion that tripled coverage and added a staggering one million outlets in just two years—the sort of aggressive scalability that has DMart’s shareholders positively frothing at the mouth.
His leadership of the Shakti programme, which improved the livelihoods of thousands of rural women entrepreneurs while expanding market reach, also demonstrates the kind of purpose-driven approach that might help DMart burnish its credentials beyond its no-frills, pile-it-high-sell-it-cheap reputation.
Industry insiders suggest Asawa’s appointment signals Avenue Supermarts’ intention to accelerate both its bricks-and-mortar expansion and its somewhat lacklustre e-commerce presence through DMart Ready, which has struggled to match the tech prowess of deep-pocketed competitors like Blinkit and Zepto.
The appointment represents a passing of the baton from DMart’s legendary founder Radhakishan Damani, whose notoriously sharp focus on costs and shrewd real estate strategy transformed a single Mumbai store in 2002 into a retail juggernaut with over 300 outlets and a market cap that makes most traditional retailers green with envy.
As Asawa prepares to take the helm of one of India’s most enviable retail success stories, his first challenge will be navigating the tricky transition from a founder-led operation to a professionally managed powerhouse without losing the secret sauce that made DMart the darling of value-conscious shoppers and growth-hungry investors alike.
Brands
Jubilant FoodWorks faces Rs 47.5 crore GST demand, plans appeal
Tax authorities flag alleged misclassification of restaurant services
MUMBAI:Â Jubilant FoodWorks Limited has landed in a tax tussle after receiving a GST demand of Rs 47.5 crore from the office of the additional commissioner of CGST and central excise in Thane, Maharashtra.
The order, issued under the provisions of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, relates to an alleged incorrect classification of certain services under the category of restaurant services. According to the tax authorities, this classification resulted in a short payment of goods and services tax for the period between the financial years 2019-20 and 2021-22.
The demand includes Rs 47.5 crore in GST along with an equal amount as penalty, in addition to applicable interest. The order was received by the company on March 13, 2026.
In a regulatory filing to the BSE Limited and the National Stock Exchange of India Limited, the company said it disagrees with the order and believes its arguments were not adequately considered.
The company is preparing to challenge the decision and plans to file an appeal. It added that once the redressal process is complete, the demand is likely to be dropped.
Despite the sizeable figure attached to the notice, the company said it does not expect any material impact on its financials, operations or other activities.
The disclosure was signed by Suman Hegde, EVP and chief financial officer, who confirmed that the company received the order at 19:06 IST on March 13 and has already initiated steps to contest it.
The development places the quick service restaurant major in the middle of a tax debate that could hinge on how certain restaurant-linked services are classified under GST rules. For now, the company appears ready to take the matter from the tax office to the appeals desk.
