Godrej Enterprises bets on engineering, brands and digital capabilities to drive next phase of growth

Adding advanced engineering, building brands and creating new growth engines have emerged as the key priorities for Godrej Enterprises Group (GEG) as it accelerates its transformation strategy, according to Nyrika Holkar, Executive Director of Godrej & Boyce (G&B), the flagship company of Jamshyd Godrej-led GEG.

The strategy reflects a broader shift from relying on legacy assets to building technology-led, consumer-focused growth platforms. "We are being deliberate about where we place our bets," said Holkar, who is one of the winners of Fortune India's Most Powerful Women in Business in 2026. "At Interio, we are investing in brand, product, and omni-channel experience, to build a differentiated lifestyle brand at scale. In appliances, intralogistics, and advanced engineering, the focus is on R&D and building partnerships," she said.

The group is also stepping up investments in technology to strengthen its competitive position. It is building a digital backbone by integrating sales, service and marketing into a unified ecosystem while expanding into emerging businesses. "We are investing in new growth engines, from digital security to automation, with a strong focus on sustaining and up-skilling talent pipelines within the organisation," said Holkar.

The investment push comes as the company delivers steady revenue growth despite a mixed earnings performance. In FY26, Godrej & Boyce reported standalone revenue of ₹21,407.06 crore, up 10.49%, while net profit declined 11.47% to ₹503.56 crore. However, profitability rebounded sharply in the March 2026 quarter, with standalone net profit surging 112.09% to ₹470.17 crore on sales of ₹7,172.25 crore.

Interio, one of the group's largest consumer businesses, generated revenue of ₹4,000 crore in FY26, registering 12% growth. The furniture brand expanded into 100 new cities during the year, while products launched in the past few years contributed 22% of sales. The company is targeting 25% growth in the current fiscal.

Holkar said the group's strategy is centred on creating sustainable long-term value rather than chasing short-term gains. "That means balancing ambition with discipline, and growth with responsibility. Enduring institutions are not built in moments of intensity, but through consistency over time. Our purpose, to pioneer progress for generations, grounds this philosophy. It forces us to ask: will this endure, and will it matter?" she said.

The transformation has unfolded amid a difficult operating environment. "The last two years have been demanding for GEG, but also deeply clarifying. We've had to navigate macro volatility, from input costs to demand cycles. At the same time, consumer expectations have shifted sharply. What worked even a few years ago is no longer enough. Technology shifts, particularly AI, have fundamentally altered the pace and nature of competition," said Holkar.

She said the group's biggest challenge has been executing long-term transformation while continuing to deliver financial performance. "It's easy to speak about the future. It is far harder to build new capabilities, rewire the organisation, and stay accountable to the present, all at once," she said.

To address this, GEG focused first on strengthening its core businesses. "We anchored ourselves in a few non-negotiables," said Holkar. "We strengthened the core, sharpening execution, improving margins, and building discipline," she added.

Alongside operational improvements, the company accelerated investments in design, digital capabilities and customer intelligence. "Initiatives like our 'golden customer record' are about fundamentally changing how we understand the customer," said Holkar. "Our AI platform, Amethyst, has helped us scale internal intelligence. Our service transformation has enabled us to deliver a more proactive and holistic experience to customers," she said. "Transformation is not one bold move, it is a thousand deliberate choices, sustained over time," she added.

Looking ahead, Holkar expects growth to come from reinforcing established businesses while repositioning them for changing consumer preferences. She believes the group must continuously reinvent trusted brands for a more aspirational, design-conscious and digitally native customer.

"At the same time, seamless omni-channel experiences, smart and secure living, automation, and advances in design and engineering will define the next phase. Underpinning all of this are three defining capabilities: design, technology, and talent. And finally, India itself is a powerful tailwind. A young, aspirational market that is redefining how it lives, works, and consumes."

Holkar said the ambition is to build a contemporary lifestyle brand while leveraging Godrej's long-standing legacy. "What I learnt early on is that the strength of a legacy can also become its shadow. The task is to draw from that legacy without being defined or limited by it," she said.

She added that transformation demands patience before delivering measurable outcomes. "There is always a lag between making the right changes and seeing them reflect in performance. The hardest part of transformation is staying the course before the results arrive," she said.