Women entrepreneurs in India are lately making a mark for themselves in various business segments. They are leading every size and scale of business, right from small SMEs to big corporate houses. Looking at this paradigm shift, the government and many financial companies are providing business loans for women.
This post will provide you with a glance at the journey of India’s 7 most successful businesswomen. They broke the glass ceiling in our predominantly male-oriented society and made a mark for themselves.
- Falguni Nayyar – CEO, Nykaa
Falguni Nayyar is an economics graduate from Sydenham College of Commerce and holds a post-graduation diploma from IIM Ahmedabad. She was once the Managing Director of Kotak Mahindra Group. With a rich experience of 25 years in financial services, she moved to entrepreneurship in 2021 by launching Nykaa- A leading and successful e-commerce portal for women’s beauty and wellness products.
- Richa Kar – Co-founder & CEO, Zivame
She completed engineering from BITS, Pilani, and her management studies from Narsee Monji Institute of Management Studies. Richa was working in SAP. The famous lingerie company, Victoria’s Secretes, was one of their clients. At that time, the businesswoman in her got an idea to launch Zivame.com. It’s India’s first and leading online lingerie store with more than 2000 varieties.
- Sabina Chopra – Founder, Yatra.com
She earned her Bachelor of Arts from the University of Delhi. Before co-founding Yatra.com in 2006, she was heading the operations of ebookers (Europe based travel company) in India. Yatra.com facilitates its users with airline, railway ticket bookings, and hotel booking as well. Sabina Chopra won the Annual Women Leaders in India Award in 2010.
- Jyoti Naik – Ex-President, LijjatPapad
She started a job in Shri Mahila Griha Udyog LijjatPapad when she was 12 years old to support her family. Despite coming from a humble background, she played a vital role in making LijjatPapd into a company with more than USD 100 million turnover. She became its president in 1999. Jyoti is an inspiration for many women entrepreneurs in India.
- Vandana Luthra – Founder of VLCC
She studied beauty and wellness from Europe before launching VLCC in 1989. It was pretty challenging at that time as the sector was unexplored for even doctors and dermatologists. But being a strong businesswoman, Vandana brought VLCC from a small office in Delhi to its several branches in 11 countries. She was awarded the Padam Shri and identified as the 33rd most influential women entrepreneur in India by Fortune, India.
- Shraddha Sharma – Founder of YourStory
Shraddha became a graduate and post-graduate in history from Stephen’s College, Delhi. Her media career is enriched with the brand names like CNBC, TV18, and The Times of India. However, later she turned into a businesswoman and launched YouStory Media Pvt. Ltd. in 2008. It’s a digital platform for start-ups and young entrepreneurs.
- Upasana Taku – Co-Founder at MobiKwik
She graduated from NIT, Jalandhar, and did her Masters in Management from Stanford University. Her career flourished in the segment of payments and financial services. Upasana co-founded leading digital payment company Mobikwik in 2009. She is a well-known woman entrepreneur in India in the online wallets and digital payments sector.
The Bottom Line
Hopefully, these unique business women will inspire you to take the plunge into the world of entrepreneurship. It is the best time for women entrepreneurs in India because of the support from the government, financial companies, and the changing mindset of society.
– Shiv Nanda
Author Bio:
Shiv Nanda is a financial analyst who currently lives in Bangalore (refusing to acknowledge the name change) and works with MoneyTap, India’s first app-based credit line. Shiv is a true finance geek, and his friends love that. They always rely on him for advice on their investment choices, budgeting skills, personal financial matters and when they want to get a loan. He has made it his life’s mission to help and educate people on various financial topics, so email him your questions at shiv@freo.money.
(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this column and the content copyrights are that of the writer. The facts and opinions expressed here do not reflect the views of https://smebusinessguide.com/ )