Harischandra Mills PLC is a food processing company in Sri Lanka. Founded by C. A. Harischandra in 1943, Harischandra Mills was a pioneer in employee provident funds, establishing one in 1952, six years before the national Employees' Provident Fund. The company was incorporated in 1953 and listed on the Colombo Stock Exchange in 1983. Now in its third generation, it remains a family-managed business. The Harischandra brand is a household name and was ranked among the 100 most valuable brands in Sri Lanka in 2022. The government’s import ban on certain agricultural products impacted the company, leading to a significant reduction in production.
 Logo of Harischandra Mills PLC | |
| Company type | Public |
|---|---|
| CSE: HARI.N0000 | |
| ISIN | LK0077N00004 |
| Industry | Food |
| Founded | January 9, 1953 in Matara, Sri Lanka |
| Founder | C. A. Harischandra |
| Headquarters | Matara , Sri Lanka |
Key people |
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| Revenue |  LKR4,581 million (2022) |
| LKR261 million (2022) | |
| LKR209 million (2022) | |
| Total assets | LKR2,290 million (2022) |
| Total equity | LKR1,607 million (2022) |
| Owners |
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Number of employees | 643 (2022) |
| Subsidiaries | Harischandra Mills (Distributors) Ltd |
| Website | harischandramills |
| Footnotes / references [1] | |
History
editC. A. Harischandra is the founder of Harischandra Mills. Harischandra was the fourth son of Canduda Arachchige Odiris de Silva, a wealthy businessman.[2] In 1938, Harischandra returned to his native Matara after graduating from the University of Colombo with a degree in Economics. He initially managed his father's cinema and printing press before deciding to start a business of his own. He founded Harischandra Mills in 1943 with a capital of LKR25,000 on a plot of land of 20 perches in Matara. The company commenced a provident fund in 1952 and it precedes the government instituted Employees' Provident Fund by six years. Harischandra Mills was incorporated as a limited liability company in 1953. In 1959, the company was converted into a public company and allocated 40% of its stocks to employees. Harischandra Mills was listed on the Colombo Stock Exchange in 1983.[3]
Operations
editHarischandra Mills is still a family-managed company despite 41.17% public holding.[1][4] S. N. Samarasinghe, the grandson of C. A. Harischandra is the managing director of the company.[5] Harischandra is a household name for coffee, noodles, Kurakkan flour and Ulundu flour. The company also has a sizeable market share in rice flour, laundry bar soap and blue soap. Since family businesses' success depends on a smooth transition of leadership, a study found the need for Harischanda Mills to have a solid succession plan.[4]
A study conducted on the impact of corporate social responsibilities of Harischandra Mills concluded that even though the company abide by environmental laws and regulations, the company does not engage in environmental conservation programmes. The released smoky air and wastewater have caused problems for the community.[6] Harischandra is one of the 100 most valuable brands in Sri Lanka. In 2022, the brand value of Harschandra is LKR1,254 million.[7] Harischandra Mills is placed 19th on the "second board" of LMD 100 rankings in the 2020/21 edition, an annual list of quoted companies in Sri Lanka by revenue.[8] In 2020, the import ban on several agricultural crops imposed by the government left Harischandra Mills with a scarcity of raw materials. As a result, the company slashed the production of Ulundu flour by 90%.[9]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b "Annual Report 2021/22" (PDF). cse.lk. Harischandra Mills PLC. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
- ^ Perera, Quintus (1 January 2012). "Harischandra – paving the way for today's modern business giants to grow". The Sunday Times. Wijeya Newspapers. Retrieved 27 December 2022.
- ^ Sirimanna, Bandula (2 November 2008). "New food products from Harischandra Mills amidst record sales". The Sunday Times. Wijeya Newspapers. Retrieved 27 December 2022.
- ^ a b Wijayasinghe, Chandi (2017). Case story on leadership transformation & patterning organizational performance of Harischandra Mills PLC (PDF). University of Kelaniya. ISBN 978-955-704-047-9. Retrieved 27 December 2022.
- ^ Dissanayake, Aditha (8 December 2004). "Legend of the Southern Philanthropist and Entrepreneur - C.A Harischandra". Daily News. Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited. Retrieved 27 December 2022.
- ^ Nanayakkara, Mummullage Sanjeewani (2010). Socio-economic impacts of Corporate Social Responsibility practices in Sri Lankan domestic manufacturing companies:(with reference to Harischandra Mills PLC, Matara, Sri Lanka) (PDF). University of Agder. pp. 68–69. Retrieved 27 December 2022.
- ^ "Sri Lanka 100 2022" (PDF). brandirectory.com. Brand Finance. 2022. p. 15. Retrieved 27 December 2022.
- ^ "Second Board". LMD 100. Media Services Pvt Ltd. 2022. p. 140. Retrieved 27 December 2022.
- ^ "We reduced our production by 90% due to lack of raw materials – MD, Harischandra Mills". adaderana.lk. Ada Derana. 3 July 2020. Retrieved 27 December 2022.