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It began small in 1910 when the British-owned Imperial Tobacco Company arrived in Calcutta, registering its presence with a small office at Radhabazar Lane. But ITC- the name was changed to Indian Tobacco Company in 1970, to I.T.C. In 1974, as it began the diversification process and finally to ITC without stops in 2001, it didn't remain small for long. It began as a tobacco company (cigarettes still account for 45% of net sales), but over the years chose to diversify into many businesses-from hotels to FMCG, paper and packaging to agri and info-tech-taking its market cap to over Rs 1,00,000 crore and turnover to Rs 26,000 crore in FY'10. Way back in 1928, it laid the foundation stone of Virginia House, its imposing headquarters on Chowringhee, and added the modern glass and granite ITC Centre at the back in 1988. ITC steps into its centenary year on August 24, and chairman Y C Deveshwar, at the helm since 1996, addressing shareholders in July said, "As your company steps into its next century, the critical question to ask ourselves is : 'Is ITC future-ready ?' It is my belief that the answer to this question is an emphatic 'yes'."

Pointing out that the most critical factor in the longevity of an organisation is its internal vitality, he said ITC had the capacity to remain relevant and contemporary, anticipate and manage change and reinvent itself. He also said the company had invested in the 'businesses for tomorrow'- FMCG, paper, hotels, agri and so forth.

Analysts like Macquarie Equities Research tracking ITC point out that ITC's expanded food and personal care portfolio, its dominant presence in the rapidly growing luxury hotels segment and strong product proposition in specialty paper makes the company a strong player in India's consumption boom.

In his speech, Deveshwar touched on this boom factor. To cite just one example, he said the FMCG sector in India, in which ITC is a major player, is expected to triple in size to over Rs 3,55,000 crore by 2018. Food, personal care, education and scholastic products, apparel and lifestyle products, tobacco and others dominate this space. He said he could see an investment opportunity for ITC of up to Rs 8,000 crore over the next seven to ten years to drive growth in this sector.

But the company has been through some severe challenges. Its first forays into hotels and paperboards in the '70s were a drain on resources, and didn't take off for years. In the mid-'80s to mid-'90s, ITC entered the financial services business, which it finally sold off to ICICI in 1998; it entered the edible oil business, launching Sundrop, but had to exit it too in 1998- a point that still rankles with Deveshwar. But one of its toughest challenges must have surely been the very public spat with UK-based BAT Industries, which has 31.7% stake in ITC, in the early and mid-'90s. BAT wanted then chairman K L Chugh to quit following allegations of corruption in the company under him. Chugh refused to step down and was eventually sacked- and Deveshwar installed (with BAT's nod). Since then, BAT has been a quiet partner, and Deveshwar, who is set to retire in 2012, has led the company to a profit after tax of Rs 4,000 crore in FY'10 (Rs 261 crore in 1996).

As it gets ready for the next century, there are fresh challenges: an excessive tax burden on cigarettes, say analysts, will have an impact on volumes at least in the short term, though being a market leader it has managed to pass off most hikes to the consumer. If ITC has managed to invest so much in non-cigarette businesses, it's because, as Macquarie puts it, solid cashflows from the cigarette business have allowed the company to invest more than $1 billion in long-gestation, high-return businesses over the past five years. But then, it's not easy to break into the foods and personal care businesses to name just two, and hotels saw their worst period in 2009. And, Deveshwar admitted as much at the AGM.

Analysts say the contribution of cigarettes to revenues has fallen from 75% to 65% over the past five years. Will the other businesses break even in time to cushion further dips, that's the key question. At the post-AGMpress conference, Deveshwar said he expected the foods business to turn profitable this fiscal and spoke of new business opportunities, from wellness to healthcare. We will wait and watch.