"There is only one thing stronger than all the armies of the world: and that is an idea whose time has come." - Victor Hugo.
A humble idea took shape in the 1970's, an era when Sri Lanka was isolated in a closed economy. Sri Lankan citizens could only yearn for electronic appliances but never own them, as all foreign imports were banned. An enterprising homemaker, stymied by the lack of access to domestic electronic appliances in the country, and empathizing with others of her ilk, hit upon an idea. Trusting her intuition, she coaxed foreign expatriates leaving Sri Lanka to sell her their used kitchen appliances and scoured auctions for washing machines, grinders, ovens and other convenience gadgets. Once ensconced in her modest workshop cum office, she serviced and spruced up the gadgets and apprehensively put them up for sale, that too, with a guarantee! Then, she sat back and waited to see if her idea would fly. And fly, it did.
Soon enough, the principles of demand and supply blurred as the products flew off her shelves in the blink of an eye. Armed simply with empathy and a never-say-never approach, she single-handedly put back smiles on the faces of wives and mothers around the country. That was not all, though. The budding entrepreneur had unknowingly set in motion a chain of events that would gather strength and speed over the decades to culminate in one of the most respected and diversified business empires in Sri Lanka – ABANS The budding entrepreneur of the "1970's" is today's highly respected captain of industry and one of the most successful businesspersons in the country, Aban Pestonjee. She strides tall in the corporate history of the country and now presides over the Abans Group of Companies, a large diversified entity that is throbbing with energy and dynamism decades on. Considered one of the most successful entrepreneurs the country has known, she has nurtured the group of companies from a small operation into a mega business empire "with more than 13,500 employees today."
The story of the rise of the Abans empire is one of innovation, willingness to take risks, courage of conviction, ethical operations and personalized customer care. Abans today, is run with pride and dedication by Aban Pestonjee and her family, along with a team of industry-best professionals who strive to keep the legendary business as vibrant as it was when it commenced operations in 1970's. Built brick by brick, one step at a time, Abans is the result of one womans' dream and the contribution of her family and employees to make it reality.