Santosh Kumar Sahu: Introducing Sustainable Warehousing Solutions for a Greener Future
The 10 Most Influential CEOs to Watchout-2024
The story you are about to dive into embodies the power of passion and futuristic planning. A passion that is paired with a solid plan ends up in remarkable outcomes. To make this happen, all it takes is the right guidance from seasoned and enthusiastic leaders to make it happen. Santosh Kumar Sahu is a leader who resonates with the above-mentioned assertion and we couldn’t find a better profile than his to be featured on this edition’s cover page. Guiding Go Green Warehouses at the forefront through his dynamic leadership, Santosh Sahu has become one of the visionary leaders to create a groundbreaking impact in the agriculture world.
Our editorial team had the privilege of sitting down with the leadership team at Go Green Warehouses, where Mr. Santosh Sahu revealed fascinating insights about the company as well as offering a glimpse into his perspectives on the corporate world. We hope this insightful feature not only enriches the experiences of our global audience but also inspires them to relentlessly pursue their dreams and aspirations.
The brief of the company
Go Green Warehouses embarked on its journey in 2012, yet its roots trace back to 1925 when the seed for creating wealth across the agricultural value chain was planted. Focused on smart warehousing, the venture is committed to transforming the entire ecosystem of food production and distribution, ensuring that value is created and sustained from farmers to consumers.
Santosh shared the story behind the inception where they mentioned that all services for the agricultural value chain are to be offered under one roof. His experience in the corporate world was drawn from the leadership roles at Godrej Aadhaar, Reliance Retail, and Spencer’s Retail focusing on the consumer sector. He spent 10 years in this industry before transitioning into warehousing and logistics leading to the eventual founding of Go Green Warehouses. The company was registered by Mr. Maulik Bhai Shah in 2012, and in 2018, discussions around co-founding the company in the Agri Warehousing sector were initiated which led to the establishment of this venture.
It is believed that leadership involves enduring significant challenges to inspire and motivate employees in maintaining the company’s success. Trust and transparency, long seen as missing elements in the industry, are emphasized, with a focus on providing reliable and trusted services. The journey began in 2018 with an initial focus on specific regions of the country, but the overwhelming response from customers has expanded the company’s presence to 25 states. In the current scenario, Go Green operates in over 400 locations, serving more than 3,500 customers.
With a vision to empower farmers, Go Green Warehouses has developed a strategy that seamlessly connects farmers to essential resources like finance and market access. By leveraging farmer aggregation through Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs), the company facilitates direct procurement and supply of agricultural commodities. This direct link between farmers and consumers enhances transparency and ensures that farmers receive fair prices for their produce, while consumers benefit from fresh and affordable products.
Founder’s profile
Mr. Maulik K Shah (Promoter & Managing Director):
Mr Shah is the founding head who led the foundation for the Go Green Group. He is a Commerce Graduate with an M.B.A. in Finance and Marketing from ITM, Mumbai. Now, he has accumulated over 25 years of experience in the International Agri Commodity Business, Real Estate, Foreign Exchange – Risk Management, IT-Infrastructure Development, and Modern Warehousing. He started Go Green with a mission to offer state-of-the-art services to businesses of all kinds. As a serial entrepreneur, Mr Shahs has commenced 5 startups in India targetting different industries.
Generating a grass-roots impact
Santosh Sahu takes pride in what they have created so far. He states that the secret of the market is basic which was hard to identify but eventually was caught by them. Indian market is quite expansive where there are numerous opportunities to excel on one’s own. “There are 300 million metric tonnes of food grains produced in India, yet there are only 130 million metric tonnes of agricultural warehouses.
There is, in my opinion, a clear road to growth if you concentrate on both yourself and your team. In terms of being aware of the warehouse receipt finance, the latent potential is greater than Rs. 2 Lakh Cr. However, never in the prior years, the combined WSPs were able to cross 50,000 Cr INR threshold. Thus, there is immense untapped potential for us to explore. I don’t think there is competition; what matters most is how well you manage your team and the underlying resources to allow for seamless growth.
Being in the industry for a while, we manage more than 1200 warehouses in 25 states and store supplies valued at over Rs. 8000 crore, technology is very necessary for our operations. This brings up the significance of technology in managing a large volume of business with real-time data and transactions across your whole supply chain network.
There are three main facets to the business: first, we manage agricultural commodities, which differ in quality and quantity from bag to bag and grain to grain, unlike non-agro or any other FMCG commodity. We are accountable for the quality and amount of the goods. Given that grains are living things, their quality is crucial as they have an embryo that continuously respires and lives.
Hence, ensuring high quality is maintained while working at a larger picture is a challenge but something we are efficient in doing. Therefore, if the warehouse is not opened every day, the quality of the grains will decline and the commodity’s value will be greatly lost. We make an effort to adhere to our automated monitoring system.
Every day, we keep an eye on the opening and closing of warehouses to make sure the grains are safe. We also employ CCTV surveillance in the central control center to monitor the security system. For quick results, we also have an AI/ML based quality assaying tool that can provide results in as little as 30 seconds,” articulated the CEO in regards to creating a difference in the market with their tech efficacies and adherence to the market trends.
Significant elements of the business model
A crucial element of Go Green’s model is the last-mile financial facilitation. By working closely with financial institutions and farmers, they ensure that rural communities have access to the funds necessary for sustainable growth and development. This enables farmers to invest in better resources and ultimately increases productivity across the value chain.
Changing the experience from ‘farm to fork’
We happened to explore more about Santosh Sahu’s ambitious goal which is to revolutionize the rural warehousing marketplace for agricultural commodities. Through innovative, efficient, and scalable solutions, Go Green Warehouses is helping to transform traditional agri-business models, driving growth and profitability for all stakeholders.
Go Green Warehouses stands as a beacon of transformation in the agri-business sector, embodying the belief that agricultural prosperity lies in connecting every part of the value chain. The whole idea is to bring innovation into the agricultural landscape with a deep-rooted commitment to rural development and changing the lives of the farmer community.
How is R&D making a difference?
Santosh and his team made a closer examination of the industry from which it was evident that the industry predominantly focuses on bulk operations to maintain profit margins. This often neglects or overlooks micro-level processes. Against this backdrop, Santosh responded, “We’ve assembled a specialized team dedicated to microsites. Instead of requiring farmers to transport their produce over 150 kilometers to our warehouses, we establish small sun centers near farm gates. These centers integrate with our main system, facilitating seamless transitions for farmers who wish to store their products temporarily.
To be in sync with adaptable warehousing solutions, we’ve conducted extensive research and developed automated storage technology featuring portable structures. These can be deployed directly on farmland, allowing commodities to be stored onsite for designated periods. Not only these, but we’re introducing cold storage solutions and solar-powered storage facilities at the farm level. This initiative would prove effective in preserving perishable goods when immediate purchasing isn’t feasible, thereby reducing waste and maintaining product quality.
The concluding note As Santosh took the leave from the conversation, he shared some wise words with us, “Team building is tedious but the most significant aspect for the business success. Nowadays, people have ideas but they are unable to implement them due to a lack of a capable team. Hence, try to assemble a dedicated team that can align with your business goals. Also, a hard pill to swallow is the fact that the initial years of entrepreneurship are full of struggle. But with perseverance and faith, no one can stop you from reaching your destination.”
Read more: Top Business Magazine
