Mammen Mappillai: The man who made MRF tyres hit Rs 1 lakh per share

Leading tyremaker MRF Ltd crossed the milestone of Rs 1 lakh per share for the first time on the Indian stock exchange on Tuesday. MRF Scrip soared over 1 percent to hit an all-time high of Rs 1 lakh per share. The shares on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) rose 1.48 percent intra-day to Rs 1,00,439.95 and Rs 1,00,300 on BSE. This feat, however, didn’t happen overnight. Mammen Mappillai, the man behind multinational tyre manufacturer Madras Rubber Factory, also known as MRF, built an empire worth Rs 23,000 crore against all odds.

Who was Mammen Mappillai?

Mammen Mapillai was born in 1922 to a family that owned a newspaper and a bank. However, all the family’s possessions were seized when his father was imprisoned for two years in the princely kingdom of Travancore. A pitiful state of affairs led him to sleep on the floorboards of St. Thomas’ Hall due to the detention of his father.

Early career

The MRF Company was founded in 1946 by KM Mammen Mappillai as a toy balloon manufacturing facility at Tiruvottiyur, Madras. MRF ventured into tread rubber manufacturing in 1952, and by 1956, MRF held a 50 percent share of the Indian market.

The rise of MRF tyres

MRF’s “tread rubber,” which could prolong the life of used tyres, became an instant hit in the country. As soon as MRF began producing this type of tread rubber, it put them in direct competition with multinational companies operating in India. The company’s market dominance at that time made big MNCs leave that line of work because of its success. MRF quickly rose to the top of the market with 50 percent share. In 1961, Pandit Nehru inaugurated the tyre factory. In addition, the company launched its IPO and debuted on the Indian stock markets at the same time.

Accolades for Mammen Mapillai

In 1992, Mammen Mapillai was awarded the Padma Shri award for his contributions to MRF. He passed away in 2003, leaving behind a successful conglomerate that is today the second largest tyre brand in the world, according to Brand Finance, world’s leading independent brand valuation consultancy.

MRF Revenue

For the March quarter, MRF posted a Rs 341 crore profit. For the January-March quarter of fiscal year 2021-22, the company posted a profit of Rs 165 crore. The company said in a regulatory filing that revenue from operations increased to Rs 5,842 crore compared to Rs 5,305 crore a year ago.

Revenue from operations increased to Rs 23,008 crore in FY23 as against Rs 19,317 crore in FY22. The tyre major reported a net profit of Rs 769 crore for the year ended on 31 March, 2023.

MRF Limited Company is currently headed by Rahul Mammen Mappillai, son of chairman KM Mammen and grandson of founder, late KM Mammen Mappillai.

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