Mr. Currys founder likes to spice it up

0 Comments | Oakland Tribune, Aug 22, 2004 | by Janis Mara, BUSINESS WRITER

HAYWARD -- Mixing cultures and spices is a passion to Bash Anoth, who notes that both can have good and bad results.

"Curry is a mixture of spices and herbs. If you do it right, it's wonderful. If you do it wrong, it could jbharm you. Mixing cultures and races is similar," says Anoth, chief executive officer of Hayward's Mr. Currys, a packaged spice firm.

Anoth founded the company on his family ranch in Kerala, India, in 2000, and has regular "Curry Nites" at local venues to promote both his business and racial harmony.

"I first saw the importance of mixing cultures as a student at Bradley University," Anoth said. "Too often, different racial groups would keep to themselves. I did my best to get them to mingle."

One of the ways he did it was by making curry for his fellow students as a way of teaching them about

Kerala culture. The actual mix, now sold in a colorful 1-ounce package for 99 cents, was created by his mother. She sent it to him when he was getting his MBA at Bradley in Peoria, Ill., as a way to whip up a quick meal.

Anoth's efforts in multiculturalism were so successful at Bradley that he decided to continue them years later when he launched Mr. Currys.

Anoth was born in 1962, a member of a prominent Kerala family active in real estate, import-export and agriculture.

He got his engineering degree in India and did his graduate work at Bradley.

After graduating, he became a consultant at Andersen Consulting (now Accenture), where he carried on his practice of sharing Indian food.

"When I start a consulting assignment at a new firm, I have a Curry Nite. It's a way of helping the employees to get to know our team," said Anoth, who continues to work for Accenture while running Mr. Currys from a Hayward office.

In 2000, Anoth briefly left Accenture to work for his family trust in Kerala. To help needy families, he gave them jobs on the family farm growing spices such as coriander, chili, tumeric and cumin for the spice mix. Mr. Currys launched formally in 2000.

Around that time, Anoth created www.MrCurrys.com The homey site offered the spice packages for free and a movement was created.

"We had 150,000 requests by 2001 from all over the world. It wasn't part of a business plan. It just happened," Anoth said.

By 2002, the company employed 100 and had $100,000 in revenue. In 2003, revenue was up to $200,000, and this year Anoth expects more than $1 million in revenue, with $100,000 profit. The company now has 124 employees, mostly on the ranch in Kerala, with six or seven in the U.S.

"We have a huge contract in the works to market Mr. Currys in China. If that goes through, it will be a multi-million-dollar deal," Anoth said.

Currently, Mr. Currys is available in various U.S. locations, including the Shop & Save supermarket chain in the Midwest, at 99 cents per package. It is also possible to buy the product on eBay Stores or send away for it from an address listed on the company's Web site at www.mrcurrys.com

Anoth, who has seven brothers and sisters, lives in San Leandro. His wife, Shahana, has returned to Kerala with their two sons so the boys can get their primary education in India.

"If they went to school here, they would see Kerala as backward," Anoth said. He visits his family in Kerala often.

Over the last eight months, Anoth has had a number of Curry Nites, also participating in diversity events at Chabot College in Hayward. Generally, Curry Nites include a slide show aimed at shattering stereotypes and discussions led by Anoth.

"It was great. We had break dancers and traditional Asian dancers, as well as curry pork, curry shrimp, curry rice and traditional Indian bread," said Max Jian, a Chabot student who participated in a mid-April Curry Nite in the cafeteria attended by about 90 people. The event was co-sponsored by the student government association, the African American Student Association, the Chabot College chapter of MECHA, a Hispanic organization, and other groups.

"This is a really diverse campus. Normally we would just hang out with our own groups. But the events helped students to mix with each other," said Jian, who is Chinese.

Janis Mara can be reached at (510) 293-2465 or jmara@angnewspapers.com .