10 Interesting Facts About Adar Poonawalla
Adar Poonawalla (born 14 January 1981) is the chief executive officer (CEO) of Serum Institute of India.[1] Founded in 1966 by his father, Cyrus Poonawalla, it is the world’s largest vaccine manufacturer by the number of doses produced. We will tell 10 Interesting Facts About Adar Poonawalla and his life in this article which you should know. His SII also has made Covid vaccine as know as covishield.
The coronavirus vaccination program has been started in India. The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has approved ‘Covishield’ of Serum Institute of India and ‘Covaxin’ of Bharat Biotech for emergency use. The Serum Institute of India (SII) is manufacturing the Extragenica-Oxford vaccine Covishield for India. After the approval of DCGI, the company’s CEO Adar Poonawala is in the news. Let us tell you that the Serum Institute of India is one of the largest vaccine manufacturers in the world.
FACT#1. Adar Poonawalla is the son of Cyrus Poonawalla, called the ‘Vaccine King’ of the world.
FACT#2. Adar Poonawalla has studied from abroad. According to reports, Adar Poonawalla studied at St. Edmund’s School in Canterbury then He graduated in business from Westminster University. After studying abroad, Adar returned to India in 2001 and joined the Serum Institute. In 2011, he became the CEO of the company.
FACT#3. Adar Poonawalla is also known for his luxurious lifestyle. Whereas, the campus of Serum Institute of India is spread over 100 acres. So Adar has his own 200-acre separate farmhouse. According to a report in “The Times”, Poonawala has kept his office in a ship. In which all kinds of facilities are available.
FACT#4. He uses helicopters to travel from Mumbai to the Pune office. He also has his own private jet and is very fond of expensive cars, he has a collection of 35 classic cars. Which also includes vintage Silver Cloud and Phantom Rolls-Royals.
FACT#5. Adar Poonawala, called the ‘Vaccine Prince’ of the world, is married to Natasha Poonawalla. According to The Times report, the two met in 2001 at a New Year party in Goa. This party was organized by businessman Vijay Mallya. After a few years, both of them got married.
FACT#6. Natasha also has extremely close ties to many Bollywood stars. Priyanka Chopra and Nick Jonas are considered her best friends. Natasha is currently the executive director of the Serum Institute of India. Apart from this, Natasha Poonawala also runs the Villu Poonawala Foundation.
FACT#7. Adar has no regrets. After all, it gave him the opportunity to learn the business hands-on. “No classroom can give you the sort of exposure that you get by dealing with failure and success. All the theories in the world won’t help,” he says.
FACT#8. Adar is also building a very strong product pipeline. In 2017, Serum Institute will launch rota vaccine, or rotavirus vaccine, which prevents diarrhea among babies and small children. This will be followed by TDaP (adult tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis), dengue, HPV (prevents cervical cancer), and pneumococcal (prevents pneumonia) vaccines. While these will go a long way in reducing large-scale mortality among babies, children, and women, it is critical for Serum Institute’s future profitability as well. “The vaccine industry works with a herd mentality. If a company launches a particular vaccine, all others follow suit. So you have good profits for four to five years after which products from competition flood in and revenues/profits disappear,” he explains. “I need products to come in by 2017-18 or else my growth will suffer.”
FACT#9. Adar, on his part, thanks to his father for giving him full freedom. “I was just 30 when I became the CEO. The freedom he gave allowed me to blossom and grow. Only when you are completely unleashed, can you reach your full potential,” he says.
FACT#10. He wants Serum Institute’s revenue to touch Rs 10,000 crore by 2020 from around Rs 4,200 crore now. “We may be the largest manufacturers of vaccines in terms of dosage but in terms of revenues, ours are a tenth of our next competitor Sanofi,” Adar says. Also, more acquisitions could happen. “I can leverage as much as a billion dollars on my balance sheet. I am also willing to dilute my stake in case the acquiring company is very strategic in terms of technology, capacity, market share, and products,” he adds.
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