Parag Desai, executive director at Gujarat Tea Processors and Packers Limited, known for its Wagh Bakri brand of tea, passed away on October 22, a week after he was injured in an accident. He was 49. Desai suffered a brain haemorrhage after reportedly falling while trying to escape chasing street dogs outside his house on October 15, the Ahmedabad Mirror reported. The incident was alerted by the security guard and Desai was rushed to the hospital. Desai passed away at a private hospital in Ahmedabad on October 22 after being on a ventilator for seven days. Desai had 30 plus years of Entrepreneurship experience.
He was also a renowned Tea Tester and also spearheaded International Business, Sales & Marketing of the Group, having turnover excess to Rs. 1500 crores (US$ 200 million).Desai was active on leading industry platforms such as Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and many more International Organisations. He was a prolific speaker and a commendable voice of the industry. He had also played a pivotal role in guiding the Group towards achieving various accolades by adopting innovative marketing, branding and packaging strategies, for which he was awarded by Ahmedabad Management Association. Desai also led the transformation of Wagh Bakri Tea Group to Tea Lounges, Ecommerce & Digital and Social Media. Parag Desai was the son of Rasesh Desai, Managing Director of the Wagh Bakri Tea Group. The Wagh Bakri website describes Desai as “an expert tea taster and evaluator". He has an MBA from Long Island University USA, it added.