Lord Bilimoria

Karan Bilimoria, Baron Bilimoria CBE DL is the founder of Cobra Beer, crossbench Peer, entrepreneur and keynote speaker on business, leadership and UK-India Relations

• Founder of Cobra Beer, created in a small London flat and developed into one of the world’s best-known beer brands, now sold in more than 45 countries
• Independent Crossbench member of the House of Lords and the first Zoroastrian Parsi to sit in the Lords
• Former President of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) from 2020 to 2022
• Chancellor of the University of Birmingham from 2014 to 2024 and the first Indian-born Chancellor of a Russell Group university
• International speaker on entrepreneurship, resilience, leadership, branding, and higher education

Speaking

As a speaker, Lord Bilimoria brings the perspective of someone who has personally experienced almost every phase of the entrepreneurial journey, from first idea through crisis to long-term recovery and reinvention.

His talks cover entrepreneurship, leadership, resilience, branding, global trade, higher education, immigration, business culture and UK-India relations. Running through all of them is a hard-earned belief: setbacks are not interruptions to success. Understood and employed, they become the moments that define it.

He has addressed global conferences, leadership summits, universities, policymakers and entrepreneurs across Britain, India, Europe and beyond, combining personal storytelling with practical insight on resilience, ambition, negotiation and the long game of building something that lasts.

Biography

Karan Bilimoria founded Cobra Beer in 1989 with significant debt, no marketing budget and an old Citroën 2CV he used to deliver stock to curry houses around London himself. The lager beer he had conceived while studying law at Cambridge – smooth as an ale and less gassy than conventional lager, designed specifically to accompany food was certainly not an obvious commercial proposition at the time. A premium Indian beer brand in Britain, built from scratch by a young entrepreneur with no brewing background did not attract confidence easily from investors or retailers.

What followed became one of Britain’s most instructive entrepreneurial stories – not just because of the scale Cobra eventually reached, but because of everything the company had to survive to get there.

Cobra had launched into an unforgiving economic climate. Over the years that followed, Bilimoria navigated bootstrapping, hyper-growth, recession and restructuring before the 2008 financial crisis pushed the company into administration. Rather than walk away, he rebuilt through a joint venture with Molson Coors in 2009, retaining a major stake and continuing as Chairman of the Cobra Beer Partnership. Today Cobra is sold in more than 45 countries. More than 9 out 10 beers served in UK curry houses today are now Cobra! The journey from a flat in Fulham to global brand took the better part of two decades and tested every quality Bilimoria now speaks about on stage.

Born in Hyderabad into a distinguished Parsi family with deep roots in the Indian armed forces and in business, Bilimoria grew up moving between schools and cultures. He completed a commerce degree at Osmania University at nineteen before qualifying as a chartered accountant with Ernst & Young in London and studying law at Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge. Cambridge left its mark in unexpected ways. He played polo for the university, debated for the Cambridge Union and spotted an early business opportunity when the Falklands War created a gap in the British market for Indian-made polo sticks. He began importing them. It was a small venture, but it revealed the instinct that would later define his career: noticing overlooked opportunities and moving before others had seen them clearly.

In 2006, Karan Bilimoria was appointed an Independent Crossbench Peer, becoming the first Zoroastrian Parsi to sit in the House of Lords – a distinction that reflects both his heritage and his commitment to public service. He later served as President of the Confederation of British Industry during one of the most turbulent periods in modern British economic history, guiding the organisation through Brexit, the pandemic and growing debates around trade, globalisation and business confidence.

Education has remained a parallel commitment throughout. As Chancellor of the University of Birmingham for a decade, he became the first Indian-born Chancellor of a Russell Group university. He has held advisory and honorary positions at Cambridge, Oxford and major institutions in both Britain and India, and has consistently advocated for global academic collaboration and international talent as essential components of British economic life.

As founding Chairman of the UK India Business Council, he remains one of the most prominent voices for deeper economic, educational and diplomatic ties between the two countries, a role that draws on everything his career has spanned: business, politics, heritage and an instinct for bridge-building that has never left him.

Business, Public Life & Education

In business, Lord Bilimoria has served as Senior Independent Director of Booker Group, the UK’s largest wholesale operator, and has advised and chaired numerous organisations across business, education and public policy. In the Lords, he has contributed regularly to debates on entrepreneurship, skills, immigration, trade, and economic policy.

His commitment to UK-India relations has been sustained and practical rather than ceremonial. As founding Chairman of the UK India Business Council and through decades of engagement with institutions and governments in both countries, he has helped build the commercial and diplomatic connections that underpin one of Britain’s most important bilateral relationships.

In recognition of his contribution to business and public life, Bilimoria was appointed CBE in 2004. He has received honorary doctorates from numerous universities and was awarded the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman — India’s highest honour for members of the diaspora, presented by the President of India — in recognition of his contribution to strengthening ties between the two countries.

You can contact Lord Bilimoria via a Specialist Speakers agent on our international enquiry number, +44 0204 616 0868 regarding speaking and presentation in both in-person and virtual settings or you can email info@specialistspeakers.com