Falguni Nayar, the CEO and founder of beauty and fashion eCommerce platform Nykaa, has become the richest self-made woman in India
She hails from a Gujarati family, but was born and brought up in Mumbai. Her father was a businessman . Stock market and trade were common topics of discussion in her house.
After graduating from IIM, Ahmedabad, Falguni Nayar spent 19 years working as an investment banker with the Kotak Mahindra group.
It was in the year 2012 that she decided to take the huge leap of faith, by quitting her job at the age of 50 and embarking on an entrepreneurial journey.
She was quick to discern that beauty was an untapped market in India and was on the way to experiencing an explosion. Thus, started Nykaa.
She drew strength from entrepreneurial giants like Ronnie Screwvala of UTV and Ajay Bijli of PVR Cinemas. Their confidence and readiness to take risks in life inspired her a lot.
She got inspired by multi-brand beauty stores like Sephora and Falguni and felt the need to replicate this India. She also wanted the women of India to feel empowered.
Her choice of entering the world of entrepreneurship was driven by two factors: 1) Her love for makeup, and 2) Her curiosity to explore the online marketing platform
Nykaa, is a testament to the fact that with the right training, education and support women can conquer any height. The empire now stands tall at 200 crores!