Darshan Chandaria holds an undergraduate Business Management degree from Cardiff University in the UK. He is the Group CEO & a Shareholder of Chandaria Group.

 Personal Achievements & Recognition

  • Winner of the Young Business Leader of the Year 2016 in the EAST AFRICA Business Leaders Awards by CNBC & Forbes Africa.
  • Invited by Sony Entertainment International and KCB Bank in 2016 to be a Lion in the premier Lions’ Den business show in Kenya (which is Kenya’s equivalent of Dragons’ Den/Shark Tank).
  • Recipient of the GEC Excellence Award in 2016 for putting Chandaria Industries on the global map of success and competitiveness.
  • Nominated for Young CEO of the Year at the 2017 Africa CEO Forum Awards.
  • He has been listed in the Business Daily’s Top 40 Under 40 Men’s list for the last 3 consecutive years, 2014, 2015 & 2016.
  • Appointed to the United Nations Youth Association of Kenya Advisory Board in 2017 for business leadership & youth development excellence.
  • Appointed as the Youngest Board Director of Endeavor Kenya - An organisation that supports high impact entreprenuers to scale up globally.
  • He was a panelist at the Ministerial Round Table on Trade and Growth in the 14th session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD 14) in 2016.
  • Won the Asian Weekly’s award for the Best Business Icon for 2014. In 2015, he was invited to the Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES 2015) as a panelist in Nairobi
  • Invited to join the Young Presidents’ Organisation (YPO) in Kenya in January 2012. YPO is an exclusive global network of business owners and CEO’s.
  • Invited to join the African Leadership Network (ALN) in May 2013, becoming a member of Africa’s most prestigious business owners and CEO’s organisation.
  • Has been invited to speak and participate at business forums globally.
  • Steered Chandaria Industries to a nomination in the prestigious 2015 African Business Awards held in New York in the Business of the Year category alongside nominees such as Dangote Group.
  • Instrumental in Chandaria Industries being recognised as one of the top 20 companies to work for in Kenya in your lifetime by Radio Africa Media Group in 2014.
  • In the last 5 years built Chandaria Industries into the largest Tissue & Hygiene products manufacturer in East & Central Africa.
  • Secured a significant shareholding stake to setup a Joint Venture with Barclays Africa Group in the insurance sector in a competitive bidding process against some of the strongest business houses in Kenya
    in 2015.
  • A key shareholder in starting Mobius Motors which is Africa’s first automobile manufacturing company in 2012.
  • Was instrumental in acquiring Uganda’s biggest goldmine in 2012.
  • Led his family’s diversification into the Solar Energy Generation sector.
  • Driving the group’s diversification strategy into a number of new sectors which cannot be mentioned currently due to confidentiality.
  • In recognition of his philanthropy he was invited to join the Global and African Philanthropy Forums in 2014.
  • He was also recognised by the MasterCard Foundation as one of Africa’s Leading Philanthropists and Social Sector Leaders in 2014.
  • Invited to join the African Wildlife Federation’s National Advisory Council in 2015.
  • Invited to join the Nexus Youth Forum in 2012, a global organisation of 2,000 leading young investors working to improve philanthropy and social investing across the world.