Vivacious, vividly striking, chic and stylish are just some of the words that describe Sri Lanka’s young, top entrepreneur Otara Gunewardene Chandiram whose business ODEL is considered a forerunner in retail excellence in Sri Lanka, and indeed the region, that has grown into something of a legend with its own

Otara Gunewardene, the woman behind Odel, is one of Sri Lanka’s biggest success stories. From the boot of her car to a retail empire, this stylish entrepreneur tells us the secrets to her success… Continuing with our weekly series of The Power List, we bring you expert advice from women

I started selling clothes from my first car, a blue Nissan station wagon. I just bought it back after 18 years. I used to go around to the factories in Sri Lanka and collect their surplus stock – the first things I sold were some Ralph Lauren shirts. I was

– by Faraz Shauketaly for the Rich List Company Miss Otara Del Gunewardene founded ODEL in 1989 since then ODEL has grown to a chain of 13 denitie fashion and lifestle stores. Its 40,000 sq ft flagship store in Colombo is referred to as the ‘mansion of stle’ due to