Saturday, November 12, 2011


Mehul Choksi Wins APEA’s ‘Outstanding Entrepreneurship Award’

Recognition of being a role model for budding entrepreneurs



Mumbai, November 11, 2011: Mehul Choksi, Chairman and Managing Director was a winner of the Outstanding Entrepreneurship Award at the prestigious Asia Pacific Entrepreneurship Awards that took place at a glittering function held at Hotel Taj, New Delhi. He received the award from Justice Markandey Katju, Chairman – Press Council of India & William NG, President – Enterprise Asia.

The Asia Pacific Entrepreneurship Awards is a world-class awards scheme that recognises and honours business leaders across different countries in the region. It is organized by Enterprise Asia, a prominent non-governmental organization committed to entrepreneurship development which is. supported by local governments and businesses.

Mr. Choksi leads the Gitanjali Group, a corporate in the gems and jewellery industry with a turnover of over US$ 2 billion. The group has grown over the last four and a half decades from its roots in Surat, India to emerge as a global giant with operations in all the key international gem and jewellery markets; and over 4000 points of sale worldwide. Gitanjali has also played a key role in spearheading the modernisation and transformation of the traditional gems and jewellery industry in India during this period.

The award is a recognition not only of Mr. Choksi’s success in developing and expanding the business of Gitanjali Group from a traditional diamond cutting and polishing company into the world’s largest branded jewellery manufacturer-retailer, but also of the entrepreneurial attributes he has demonstrated in the process. Among the specific qualities that have been recognised is the innovative and path-breaking business model that he developed and the fact that it will serve as a role model for emerging entrepreneurs and others in the field to emulate.

Some of the pioneering steps taken by Gitanjali under Mr. Choksi’s leadership include – launching the first ever branded jewellery line in India (1994), integrating jewellery into as a category into the department and lifestyle store that emerged in India over the last decade and a half; introducing the concept of an MRP for the jewellery industry; building consumer confidence by being one of the first jewellers to sell hallmarked gold and certified diamonds; developing a retail presence in global markets; spearheading the development of a private sector gem and jewellery SEZ, etc.

The award is the latest recognition for Mr. Choksi who has earlier won numerous other awards for his achievements and contribution to the industry.

About Gitanjali Group

Gitanjali Group is the world’s largest integrated branded diamond jewellery manufacturer. It has a strong presence at every level of the business, right from sourcing diamonds to retailing its products through a vast network of over 3,600 points of sale of self owned, franchised and retailed stores that cater to the end consumer across all the major jewellery markets of the world.
The Group is the pioneer of branded jewellery in India and has several well established brands in its arsenal to tap the continuously growing branded jewellery market in India and the rest of the world. The list includes well-known and well established Indian brands such as ‘Nakshatra’, ‘Gili’, ‘Asmi’, ‘D’Damas’ and others; as well as Italian leaders like Stefan Hafner, Poratti, Nouvelle Bague etc.

About Asia Pacific Entrepreneurship Awards
The prestigious Asia Pacific Entrepreneurship Awards is a world-class awards recognizing and honoring business leaders. Organized by Enterprise Asia and supported by local governments and businesses, the awards aim to band leading entrepreneurs across the region to spur greater innovation, fair practices and growth in entrepreneurship. It hopes to be a platform to encourage continued leadership towards sustainable economic development for the region. In addition to Indian, the awards are also held in Indonesia, Brunei, Singapore, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Thailand and China. They are organised by Enterprise Asia, a non-governmental organization in pursuit of entrepreneurship development across the region.

The jury for the awards consisted of: Datuk Seri Dr Fong Chan Onn, Former Minister of Human Resources of Malaysia; Tan Sri Ahmad Fuzi, Ambassador at Large for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Malaysia; Professor Gopal Kanji, Chairman of the European Masters Program in Total Quality Management and Lt. Gen. Sudhir Sharma, Ex-Quarter Master, Indian Army.

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