Mr. Ajit Balgi

Batch of 2004

Mr.Balgi is an Advanced Certified Sommelier and Wine Educator from WSET London with 17 years in Hotel Operations, Marketing, Beverage Consulting and Education. He now runs The Happy High, one of India's leading wine and spirit education and experiential marketing co. and has trained over 5000 professionals and consumers in the last 10 years.

After graduating from IHM Mumbai, he went to the UK for further studies where he learnt the value of his knowledge and grew his skills pertaining to wine and service there. After which he worked at multiple restuarants and appeared for the WSET Level 3. Returned to mumbai, unwilling to work in the hotel industry, hungry for something new, after which he persued his MBA from S P Jain Mumbai followed by a year in Loyalty marketing.

While marketing did earn him money, it wasn't the right fit for him as it didn't spark joy or satiate his want to work with wines and spirits. He quit his job in hopes that he would be hired by a spirit company, but as luck would have it, things didn't go according to plan, which forced him to start his own company, The Happy High.

Whenever asked about this step or his company, Ajit talks about how he is "an entrepreneur by force not by choice " but how he wouldn't give it up for the world. The Happy High has been running for 6 years now and they have just added a Bartending Academy to their portfolio. Something Mr Balgi is very proud of is that he is one of the 90 accredited Cognac educators by the BNIC in the world.

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