This Indian Billionaire Was Insulted By Rolls Royce Showroom In Dubai; He Purchased The Car, Gave It Away In A Draw

Joy Alukkas went to purchase the Rolls-Royce, but one of the sales representatives of the high-end vehicle made him feel inferior.

Joy Alukkas, the chairman of Joyalukkas, one of the largest jewelry brand in India is a billionaire. However, the jewelry tycoon experienced an incident in which he visited a showroom to purchase a Rolls-Royce. He was humiliated by the salesman who had shown him the door to a different showroom.

In a recent interview with CNBC-TV18, the 67-year-old billionaire, recalled an incident that occurred when he visited a Rolls-Royce showroom in 2000. He went to purchase the high-end vehicle, but one of the sales representatives made him feel inferior by telling him he couldn't afford it. “I said I want to see the car, a Rolls Royce." To which the salesperson said, “No, no, no. If you want to buy a car, you go to the Mitsubishi showroom, you will get a car there.”

Alukkas stated that he was embarrassed by this behavior. But he chose to purchase the car rather than turn around and leave. “I felt ashamed of this type of behavior,” he said.  “I decided to buy the car… the same car. I purchased it,” he said.

But after purchasing the luxury vehicle, Alukkas thought he no longer needed it. So, he decided to give away the Rolls-Royce to the winner of an annual raffle draw that his jewelry chain ran in the UAE. So, in 2001, Alukkas became the first UAE jeweler to announce Rolls-Royce as a prize in a promotional campaign.

Alukkas added a Rolls-Royce Cullinan, worth Rs 6 crore, to his collection in March of this year.

Who is Joy Alukkas?

Joy Alukkas, son of a jewelry store owner and school dropout, traveled to the Middle East in 1987 to launch the family's first international business in Abu Dhabi. Later, he parted ways with his father's jewelry business to start his own, Joyalukkas, which has since grown to have over 100 stores in India and 60 overseas. In Chennai, the group also has the world's biggest retail gold jewelry outlet.

The real-time net worth of Joy Alukkas is estimated at $4.4 billion according to Forbes. Bollywood celebrities are the brand ambassadors of Joyalukkas. Joy Alukkas' autobiography, "Spreading Joy", has been recently released which he describes as his humble attempt to inspire others to chase their dreams and never give up in the face of adversity.