William Nanda Bissell (born 10 June 1966) an Indian businessman and the chairman of Fabindia. Until 2018, Bissell served as the managing director of the company.[1][2][3]

Early life and education

Bissell was born to Bimla Nanda, a Punjabi, and John Bissell, an American from Connecticut, who came to India in the 1950s as part of a programme by Ford Foundation to work with rural craftsmen and develop artisanal clusters in a newly independent nation.[4] In 1960, John Bissell founded Fabindia, a company that connected rural craftsmen, weavers and artists from across India to urban markets.[5]

Bissell grew up in Delhi and later attended Wesleyan University in the United States. After graduating in 1988, Bissell set up an artisans' co-operative based on the Gandhian model, which involved working with leather workers in Rajasthan.[6] In 1993, Bissell returned to New Delhi to help John run Fabindia.[citation needed]

Work

Bissell acquired Organic India.[7][8] He has also served as a trustee of Centre for Science and Environment in Delhi.[9]

In 2009, he authored Making India Work, published by Penguin India, in which he drew from the experience of working with over 40,000 rural craftspeople in India and addressed India's economical and socio-political challenges.[10]

Investing

Bissell is an angel investor and has made numerous investments across sectors, some of which include, the publishing platform Juggernaut Books, Wow! Momo, educational and school software startup Foradian.[11][12][13]

References

  1. ^ "William Bissell: How Fabindia's William Bissell is changing the rulebook of business - The Economic Times". 2 November 2012. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  2. ^ Mathews, Prince (8 October 2012). "William Bissell: Turning Fabindia's Artisans to Company Owners". Forbes India. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  3. ^ "William Bissell | BoF 500 | The People Shaping the Global Fashion Industry". Businessoffashion.com. 7 September 2015. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  4. ^ "We empowered Fabindia family in 50th year: William Bissell | And More ... News". Zeenews.india.com. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  5. ^ By KENNETH N. GILPINMARCH 3, 1998 (3 March 1998). "John L. Bissell, 66, Entrepreneur In Handloomed Textiles in India - The New York Times". Nytimes.com. Retrieved 17 March 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  6. ^ "Fabindia: Empowering rural weavers and bringing ethnic experience to consumers - Cover Story News - Issue Date: Aug 21, 2017". Indiatoday.in. 21 August 2017. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  7. ^ "William Bissell | World Economic Forum". Weforum.org. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  8. ^ Thomas, Prince. "William Bissell's War Against Junk Food | Forbes India Blog". Forbesindia.com. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  9. ^ OCT. 22, 2000 (22 October 2000). "WEDDINGS; Anjali Kapoor, William Bissell - The New York Times". Nytimes.com. Retrieved 17 March 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  10. ^ Books. "Making India Work - Penguin India". Penguin.co.in. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  11. ^ Vidhi Choudhary. "Bharti Airtel buys stake in Juggernaut Books". Livemint.com. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  12. ^ "Fabindia MD invests Rs 3 crore in Wow! Momo - The Economic Times". Economictimes.indiatimes.com. 13 June 2018. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  13. ^ Thomas, Prince. "Fabindia's William Bissell is turning more of an angel investor | Forbes India Blog". Forbesindia.com. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
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