SURVIVE AND THRIVE ▲ Puneet Gupta has had an interest in business since he was a teenager Firstly, please tell us a bit about yourself I am a businessman-turned serial entrepreneur and investor and the CEO of a leading international import-export business, PG Paper. I have a diverse business portfolio across property, healthcare, hospitality, and leisure sectors. My wife Poonam and I have two teenage daughters. I am passionate about supporting communities and doing good in the world, giving back and contributing to society. I am heavily involved with many local, national, and international charities, helping raise funds and supporting community initiatives. How did you come to be involved in the paper industry? I have always had an entrepreneurial drive, but the path to PG Paper was a varied one as my career started in pharmacy and property. My family in India have been involved in the paper industry since the 70s, but my own journey actually started with my wife, Poonam. She founded PG Paper in 2003 from our kitchen table in Kilmacolm – trading paper destined for landfills and re-selling it into alternative markets. We still work with a number of the partners we developed in our early days, though our business model has evolved. Now, 20 years on, we deliver a full, value-added distribution service, but our entrepreneurial approach – supported by a passion for sustainability – remains key to the business' success. What has your career journey looked like up until this point? I've had an interest in business since I was a teenager. I purchased my first property in Glasgow at 16 years old, laying the foundations for my career in property and a growing business portfolio as I began trading stocks and shares. After completing my MBA in Pharmacy at the University of Strathclyde, I worked across various roles within the industry as a Pharmacist, Pharmaceutical Consultant, and Operational Services Manager at my local hospital in Greenock, which helped me gain a wealth of industry and managerial knowledge. While working at the hospital in the early 2000s, I spent evenings and weekends working with Poonam, in the early stages of PG Paper. Together we focused on growing PG Paper into a paper solutions company for paper and packaging products in developing economies and markets. Over the past 20 years, as well as growing PG Paper to where it is today, my career has evolved further into property, the dental industry, and the hospitality industry, as my business portfolio has diversified. 40 Having recently been awarded an OBE in the New Year Honours List 2023 for services to Business, Charity and the Community. We caught up with Puneet Gupta, chief executive officer of PG Paper to find out about his career so far, his work with charity, and finding opportunities in challenges email: news@printmonthly.co.uk March / April 2023 - Issue 341 Q & A / PUNEET GUPTA OBE
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