 "Saravana Stores' partner Yogaratnam passes away")
Yogaratnam, one of the partners of Tamil Nadu’s famed retail chain Saravana Stores, passed away today.
The company, which was founded by his sibling Selvarathinam, was managed by older siblings Yogaratnam and Rajarathinam after his demise in early 2000s. It was reportedly the inspiration for Kishore Biyani’s retail venture Future Group, which manages Big Bazaar.
Saravana Stores, India’s largest family-owned retailer, was founded in 1970 by the three brothers, who came from a village near Tuticorin in Tamil Nadu, called Panickar Kudiarrappu; earlier the family was into agriculture and rice mill business.
In 1970 they started a small shop that sold vessels. The following six years were spent in consolidating and growing this business. In 1977, the first Saravana Store was opened at the shopping hub of T Nagar in Chennai.
Today, Saravana Stores has nearly 61 outlets all over; some boast retail space of 25,000 sq ft and as many as 20,000 customers a day.
Following this success, the brand went on to start its own jewellery showrooms in 2003 called the “Saravana Stores Thanga Nagai Maaligai”.