ITC Limited was founded in Kolkata on August 24, 1910, originally named the Imperial Tobacco Company of India Limited as a British-owned enterprise succeeding Imperial Brands and W.D. & H.O. Wills. The founding was led by William M. Jacks, and the company’s early success drew from partnerships with farmers in southern India for sourcing leaf tobacco. This eventually led to the setup of its first cigarette factory in Bangalore in 1913. Over the decades, the company evolved in both name and nature: it became India Tobacco Company Limited in 1970 and formally adopted the name ITC Limited in 1974, signalling its shift toward a more diversified business approach.
Today, ITC is one of India’s largest and most successful conglomerates with a huge, diverse portfolio. It is the second largest FMCG company in India and the third largest tobacco company in the world. Their business ventures span FMCG, hotels, agribusiness, paperboards, packaging and IT services. As of FY 2025, the company’s net sales reached approximately ₹693,235 million (INR), and net income stood at ₹351,956 million (INR). ITC’s FMCG division (including brands like Aashirvaad, Sunfeast, Bingo!, and Yippee!) is a market leader in several categories. The highly profitable cigarette segment showed 6.8% YoY revenue growth as of Q2 FY26, while other divisions such as digital-first and organic brands (Yogabar, Mother Sparsh, Prasuma, Meatigo, 24 Mantra) clocked annual incomes of nearly ₹1,100 crore. ITC’s hotel business, “ITC Hotels,” operates over 100 premium hotels across India. The paperboards and packaging segment remains a substantial revenue source, with innovative and sustainable solutions driving growth.
ITC has also acquired several sustainability benchmarks. The company’s sustainability initiative, “E-Choupal”, is the world’s largest rural digital infrastructure, reaching 4 million farmers for inclusive supply chain development. They also pioneered the green building movement in India, with their hotels earning LEED Platinum ratings for environmentally conscious designs. ITC also has a strong and expansive fleet of over 36,500 employees and a presence across 90+ countries for employment and operations. It has been a long time since ITC moved away from its dependency on tobacco for its portfolio, making the aggressive portfolio diversification of ITC a case study in risk mitigation and adaptability.
| Revenue | 78552 crores (Q1 FY26) | Net Profit | 4196 crores (Q2 FY25) |
| Market cap | 5,09,382 crores | YoY growth | 7% (Q2 FY25) |
| ROE | 27.3% |
On Sanjiv Puri (the current chairman of ITC Ltd.)
Sanjiv Puri was born in Kolkata in 1963 and is an alumnus of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur and the Wharton School of Business (University of Pennsylvania). He joined ITC in January 1986, initially serving in roles in operations handling and digital transformation, leveraging the knowledge he acquired from Wharton. Climbing through the ranks, Puri held several key positions, including divisional chief executive of ITC’s Tobacco Division, COO, President of the FMCG business, and CEO, culminating in his appointment as Chairman in May 2019.
Upon taking charge, Puri initiated a fundamental transformation called the ‘ITC Next’ strategy, aimed at building a future-ready, competitive, and resilient enterprise. Through this strategy, Sanjiv Puri acquired many key milestones, such as boosting non-smoking (cigarette, tobacco) FMCG verticals, which now contribute around 67% of revenue to ITC Ltd. Leveraging digitalisation as a core business strategy in verticals of agri-business, hotels, paperboards, and smart packaging. Building a premiumisation strategy in foods, personal care, and stationery, and nurturing emerging organic brands. Prioritising sustainability, climate-action, and circular economy initiatives, making ITC carbon-positive, water-positive, and solid waste recycling-positive for more than a decade. It is under Puri’s leadership tenure that ITC has met a lot of the sustainability metrics mentioned before.
Puri also oversaw the demerger of ITC Hotels from ITC Ltd to form a separate wholly owned subsidiary that occurred in January 2025. This was a strategic decision overseen by Puri to fulfil two key cost and operational efficiency objectives. Firstly, to reduce capital expenditure on ITC hotels by shifting ITC’s role from owning hotels to managing the portfolio of hotels owned by others. This significantly reduced the capital input into the hotels division of ITC and unlocked higher budget allocation for their FMCG and agriculture verticals. ITC Hotels remains profitable with its latest Q4 net profit reported at 257 crore, with a 17% rise in revenue.
Puri is a huge driver for workforce digital literacy and operations digitalisation. One of his key quotes that encapsulates this vision is “For us, it must be as pertinent as any manager looking at his email. Everyone must be upskilled, and we already have the infrastructure.” Puri has led the modernisation and digital transformation of ITC’s supply chains and manufacturing infrastructure with initiatives like ICMLs (Integrated Consumer Manufacturing and Logistics) that enhance market proximity and operational agility. He supports leveraging AI and simulation tools for optimised production and demand forecasting. ITC’s use of AI in agriculture sourcing through platforms like Astra has improved supply chain robustness. Sanjiv Puri sees ITC as a ‘digital-first’ sustainable conglomerate spearheading inclusive growth for all sectors of the economy; he has positioned ITC as a key player globally in this space and not just in India.
ITC Limited portfolio breakdown – 5 most profitable group companies
| Subsidiary/Group Company | Key Business Segment | Approximate Revenue (₹ Crore) | ITC revenue share(%) |
| ITC FMCG – Cigarettes | Cigarettes and Tobacco Products | 9,553.86 (Q1 FY26) | 40-42% |
| ITC Agri Business | Agri Commodities, Leaf Tobacco, Exports | 9,685 (Q1 FY26) | 40% |
| ITC FMCG – Others | Packaged Foods, Personal Care, Snacks | 5,800 (Q1 FY26) | 24-25% |
| ITC Paperboards, Paper & Packaging | Speciality Papers, Packaging Solutions | 2,116 (Q1 FY26) | 8-9% |
| ITC Hotels Ltd (demerged entity but still reported separately) | Luxury and Premium Hotels | 860 (Q1 FY26) | 1-3% (estimated) |
Competitive strategy
1) Expansive Distribution network
ITC leveraged its century-old legacy in tobacco to build the largest and deepest rural distribution system in India, spanning over 6.6 million retail outlets, which is one of the largest rural reach footprints even among FMCG giants. This network taps into rural India, where branded product penetration is relatively low. By reaching millions of consumers in remote and underserved areas, ITC converted rural markets into growth engines, achieving a vast “last-mile connectivity” advantage. This comprehensive distribution chain also incorporates digital transformation for supply chain transparency and efficiency, further strengthening the reach. The rural penetration helped ITC dominate staple food products and daily-use FMCG categories and differentiate itself from competitors who target primarily urban markets.
2) Portfolio Diversification
ITC strategically diversified beyond its tobacco business into a wide FMCG portfolio spanning packaged foods (Aashirvaad atta, Sunfeast biscuits, Bingo! snacks), personal care (Fiama, Vivel, Savlon), stationery (Classmate), etc., building many iconic Indian brands. The strategy emphasised “fortifying the core” by deepening market share in established categories while also expanding product variants and adjacent segments, e.g., Aashirvaad launching in besan, dairy, and ready-to-cook foods. ITC’s brands are positioned on quality, hygiene, nutrition, and value for money, catering to both rural and urban consumers. This broad portfolio hedges against single-category risks and taps into India’s diverse consumer base. ITC’s ability to develop and nurture world-class Indian brands over time has created loyalty and reduced dependence on multinational FMCG competitors.
3) Sustainability as a Company USP
ITC’s innovation has gone beyond just products; they have incorporated health-oriented product development, digital marketing, and science-led R&D investments. ITC continuously introduces functional foods with fortification and reduced harmful ingredients, catering to health-conscious consumers. Sustainability is embedded in the core of ITC’s strategy—making it carbon positive, water positive, and solid waste recycling positive for over a decade. Sustainability initiatives span eco-friendly packaging, ethical sourcing through its e-Choupal farmer platform, and community empowerment programs. This enhances brand credibility in a market increasingly shaped by consumer environmental and social consciousness. Pioneering sustainability positions ITC not just as a market leader but as a purpose-driven conglomerate aligned with India’s national priorities and global standards.
Fraud, Controversies and Consumer Rights Violations
ITC’s country-wide production and supply chain has not gone without its fair share of hiccups, which have resulted in consumer violation callouts. In a high-profile consumer complaint case, ITC was found guilty of ‘unfair trade practices’ by a consumer court in Tamil Nadu after a customer, P Dillibabu, purchased a pack of Sunfeast Marie Light biscuits labelled to contain 16 biscuits but found only 15 inside. The consumer argued that such manufacturing lapses cheated consumers at scale, calculating alleged losses to customers worth nearly ₹30 lakh daily at ITC’s production scale. The court ordered ITC to discontinue the affected batch and pay ₹1 lakh compensation to the customer. ITC argued that the product was sold based on net weight, not exact piece count, but the court ruled against them. Another consumer complaint in Bulandshahr led to ITC being fined ₹5.1 lakh for including an empty packet of Sunfeast Choco Fills biscuits in a family pack. This incident brought attention to quality control issues and raised questions about ITC’s packaging and production process integrity.
One of ITC’s most notable regulatory violations happened in the late 1990s and early 2000s, when ITC Limited faced charges for violations under the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act (FERA). Investigations pointed to irregular foreign exchange transactions worth over $100 million conducted by ITC’s overseas trading arm, ITC Global, from 1991 to 1996. These included over-invoicing, money laundering, and unauthorised transfer of funds through front companies linked to the Chitalia family, former partners of ITC. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) raided nearly 40 ITC offices across multiple cities and arrested four senior executives implicated in the violations. ITC was also ordered to pay penalties estimated at around ₹300 crore.
FAQs
1) When and how was ITC Ltd. founded
ITC was founded in 1910 in Kolkata as the Imperial Tobacco Company of India Limited, later renamed ITC Limited in 1974.
2) Who is the current chairman of ITC, and what is his vision?
Sanjiv Puri, who is an IIT and Wharton alumnus, is the chairman. “ITC Next” is his vision focused on digital transformation, sustainability, and portfolio diversification away from tobacco. He emphasises upskilling employees, digital supply chain modernisation, premiumization of FMCG products, and inclusive rural growth.
3) What are ITC’s main business segments and their revenue contribution?
Key segments are Cigarettes (~40%), Agri Business (~40%), FMCG Others (~25%), Paperboards & Packaging (~8-9%), and ITC Hotels (1-3%).
4) What are the main competitive strategies ITC uses to maintain dominance in the FMCG sector?
ITC’s competitive strategies include its expansive rural distribution network reaching over 6.6 million outlets, strategic portfolio diversification with strong Indian brands, and sustainability as a core differentiator. These, combined with innovation and premiumization, have helped ITC sustain growth despite competition from global FMCG companies.
5) Has ITC faced any controversies or regulatory violations?
Yes, ITC has faced consumer-related complaints about product packaging anomalies and fines. More significantly, the company faced serious Foreign Exchange Regulation Act (FERA) violations in the 1990s involving overseas financial irregularities, leading to penalties of nearly ₹300 crore and arrests of senior executives
To know more about the business of ITC Ltd, visit their social media platforms like Instagram, and LinkedIn, along with their website.
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