Inside the “Best Under a Billion” Issue

On the cover: Vivek Lohia, Managing Director, Jupiter Wagons

ANDAn economy can be judged, among other things, by the businesses it creates—their quality, their numbers, their diversity of operations, their ability to survive local and global competition, and to produce world-class products and services. Size and scale also matter, but they don’t happen overnight; it’s the early days, built by taking advantage of the opportunities offered by an expanding economy, that will eventually elevate many of these operations into the super league of extraordinary businesses.
The annual Forbes Asia Best Under a Billion 200 list of small and mid-sized public companies in Asia Pacific with sales under $1 billion is evidence of the dynamism of many of these economies. As the list’s editors point out, “Strong domestic demand, supported by growth in infrastructure spending and global trade, fueled the region’s overall growth in 2023.”
Not surprisingly, China and India have the most companies on the list, with just over 30 from each. Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea are also worthy of note.
The wide range of sectors represented is an indicator of the breadth of activity across Asia-Pacific. Middle-class spending on eating out (and ordering food home) may be one reason why just over a tenth of the companies on the list are from food and beverage; the nine cosmetics companies are further evidence of solid consumer spending. Beyond that, there’s a heady mix of companies from construction, manufacturing, data centers, semiconductors, automotive, financial services, and pharmaceuticals, among many other sectors, that make it to Best Under a Billion.
From the outside, it’s tempting to associate a particular economy with a particular sector. Think of Taiwan, for example, and your first association might be electronics and semiconductors, thanks to giants like TSMC, Foxconn, and United Microelectronics. Yes, tech-enabled manufacturing may be big in Taiwan, and, to be sure, Taiwan’s makers of data center equipment, semiconductors, and electronic components are on the list; so, for good measure, is a $99 million Korean restaurant chain (Tofu Restaurant) and a $95 million cosmetics business (Shiny Brands Group).
The Forbes India team picked four of the 31 Indian companies and dug into them. On the cover is Vivek Lohia, the managing director of the company, which started in 2006 to make rail cars and is now working on building a commercial electric vehicle. Lohia is clearly focused on keeping up with the times, with Jupiter Wagons gearing up to make containers that house data centres, as well as wheel sets and brakes for metro and Vande Bharat coaches.
For Jupiter, which also makes tipper and tank bodies, as well as level crossings, new technology has always been equally important. As Lohia tells Manu Balachandran, who wrote the cover story, innovation and the introduction of new technology is a continuous process, even though the projects for the railways are constant. “But I knew that in the long run, technology will always help you grow.” Read more about Jupiter’s growth story in “Jumping On The Bandwagon,” on page 16.
Also in keeping with the growing economy is a man who started his business in the mid-1990s by taking contracts to build mobile towers. Today, Faruk G Patel is a full-service solutions provider for wind and wind-solar projects, as well as an independent renewable energy producer with wind and solar assets. Patel tells Divya Shekhar that his company KP Energy is “entering the big leagues.” To read more, don’t miss “Here Comes The Sun (And Wind)” on page 22. Best regards,
Brian Carvalho
Editor, Forbes India
Email address: [email protected]
X-ID: @Brianc_Ed