Meet Indian businessman, one of the richest in UAE, born in a village, now boats net worth of over 60,000 crores

Yusuff Ali Musaliam Veettil Abdul Kader, aka M. A. Yusuff, is an Indian businessman and billionaire. He is the chairman and managing director of LuLu Group International- the owner the LuLu Hypermarket chain worldwide and LuLu International Shopping Mall. As per Forbes billionaires list (October 2023), Ali was the 27th richest Indian boasting a net worth amounting to USD 6.9 billions. 

Let’s get to know more about his journey. 

Early life and education 

Born on November 15, 1955, Yusuff Ali is a native of Kerala's Thrissur. He pursued his schooling from Karanchira Thrissur at St. Xavier's High School and later earned a diploma in Business Management and Administration. 

After completing his education, Yusuff Ali went to Abu Dhabi. There, he joined his paternal uncle, M. K. Abdullah, the chairman and the founder of the LuLu Group of Companies, who used to oversee the business. 

Ali took charge of the import and wholesale distribution of the group. In the 90s, he entered the supermarket business by launching the Lulu Hypermarket. Today, with Ali’s business acumen and passion, the Lulu group has become an enormous international business, running operations acorss countries. 

Interestingly, LuLu International Shopping Mall in Kerala's Kochi was opened on March 10 2013-  the group’s first retail venture in India.