Born in Chikkamagaluru district of Karnataka, VG Siddhartha comes from a family that has been in the business of coffee plantation for around 140 years. (Photo: Getty Images)

The sudden disappearance of the owner and founder of the popular coffee chain Cafe Coffee Day, VG Siddhartha has sparked mass speculation.

Siddhartha, who is the son-in-law of former Karnataka CM SM Krishna, got off his car near the Netravati River off Mangaluru on Monday evening and has been missing ever since.

Dakshina Kannada Police has launched a frantic search to look for the prominent Karnataka-based businessman.

BUT WHO IS VG SIDDHARTHA?

Born in Chikkamagaluru district of Karnataka, VG Siddhartha comes from a family that has been in the business of coffee plantation for around 140 years.

He is credited with creating India's largest coffee empire. He is also married to the daughter of former Karnataka CM SM Krishna.

Earning a masters from the Mangalore University, VG Siddhartha dabbled in the stock market in his early career. He joined JM Financial Limited in 1983-1984 in Mumbai as a management trainee/intern in Portfolio Management and securities trading on the Indian Stock Market under Vice-Chairman Mahendra Kampani. He was just 24 years then.

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After two years with JM Financial Limited, VG Siddhartha returned to Bangalore. His father gave him money to start a business of his choice. VG Siddhartha bought a stock market card for Rs 30,000, along with a company called Sivan Securities, which was renamed in 2000 as Way2wealth Securities Ltd. Its venture capital division came to be known as Global Technology Ventures (GTV).

By 1985, he was a full-time proprietary investor in the stock market and owner of 10,000 acres of coffee farms. He says, When coffee trading was liberalised in the ’90s, I doubled the money I had invested in the plantations within a year.

CAFFEINATED DREAMS

Thus, was born the Amalgamated Bean Coffee Trading Company Ltd (ABCTCL) in 1993, a company focused on coffee exports. While his plantations produced 3,000 tonnes of coffee, ABCTCL would trade 20,000 tonnes. In two years, the company became the second-largest exporter from India.

The coffee bug had bitten VG Siddhartha.

In 1996, the first CCD store opened on Bangalore’s crowded Brigade Road, where coffee and an hour of Internet surfing cost Rs 100. The coffee chain's first launch came at a time when Bangalore was on the cusp of a transformation from a pensioners' paradise to an IT and lifestyle haven.

In doing this, VG Siddhartha and his team went against the better judgement of his MBA friends. The cafe was a runaway success.

Photo: Reuters

While Coffee Day was taking its time in expansion, other rival chains came along and took the concept national. In its new strategy, CCD would open its store right next to its rival.

CCD is India's largest coffee chain and is owned by Coffee Day Global which is a subsidiary of Coffee Day Enterprises.

Today, CCD has around 1,700 cafes, around 48,000 vending machines, 532 kiosks and 403 ground coffee selling outlets.

A Money Control report puts the annual turnover of the Coffee Day Enterprises at Rs 4,264 crore.

VG Siddhartha owns 12,000 acres (4047 ha) of coffee plantations. A 2015 Forbes list pegged his net worth at $1.2 billion (Rs 8200 crore).

It was reported recently that Coca-Cola was in early talks with CCD to acquire a substantial stake in India's largest coffee chain. CCD was eyeing a valuation of Rs 8,000 to Rs 10,000 crore from Coca-Cola for the stake sale.

Photo: Reuters

Besides CCD, VG Siddhartha has founded a hospitality chain which runs a seven-star resort Serai and Cicada.

Currently, he also holds board seats in GTV, Mindtree, Liqwid Krystal, Way2Wealth and Ittiam. Infrastructure major Larsen & Toubro had recently purchased around 20 per cent stake of VG Siddhartha and Cafe Coffee Day in tech company Mindtree through block deal for about Rs 3,210 crore.

VG Siddhartha was awarded the Entrepreneur of the year’ for 2002-03 by the Economic Times, for crafting a successful pan-Indian brand from a commodity business.

CAUGHT IN CONTROVERSY

VG Siddhartha was accused of tax evasion in 2017. Income tax raids were conducted at over 20 locations in Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai and Chikmagalur by senior officers of Income Tax Department of Karnataka and Goa regions.

The Income Tax Department raids on Cafe Coffee Day (CCD) retail chain found Rs 650 crore concealed income from the documents seized.