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If you think <keyword id="10387" type="CITY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Microsoft">Microsoft</keyword>’s prolonged search for the next <keyword id="5645" type="POSITION" weightage="100" keywordseo="CEO">CEO</keyword> is getting a bit nutty, especially with a disgruntled <keyword id="62333" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Steve-Ballmer">Steve Ballmer</keyword> waiting on the sidelines to hand over the mantle, you are not far from the truth. But then, that is the actual state of the coveted C-Suite nowadays – volatile is the right word if you want to sum it up. There is no job security at the top and even the best performer for years can get redundant within the span of a few weeks. The issues could be many – right from <keyword id="646347" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="poor-performance">poor performance</keyword> to <keyword id="610960" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="business-restructuring">business restructuring</keyword> to alleged <keyword id="6375736" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="corruption-charges">corruption charges</keyword>. But the biggest factor is relevance, a perfect future-fit that can take companies ahead, according to <keyword id="67736" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Industry-experts">industry experts</keyword>. In a difficult <keyword id="34412" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="economy">economy</keyword>, companies are compelled to twist and turn to keep track of profitability and their requirements change accordingly. Hence, their leaders have to adapt, shape up or ship out, as the case might be. 
 India is no exception and business leaders across the country have been frequently ‘released’ by industry giants. Many of them leave with ‘immediate effect’ while others are on garden leave or worse still, waiting for their predecessors to turn up (just like Ballmer). Yet, most of the C-Suite executives are tight-lipped about their departures, at least here in India. We are yet to come across an announcement like the one made by <keyword id="384914" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Groupon">Groupon</keyword>’s founder and former CEO <keyword id="488139" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Andrew-Mason">Andrew Mason</keyword>. But exit happens all the same – be it discreet or blatant. Here’s a quick look at some of the top-notch C-Suite executives from India who parted ways with their respective companies in 2013, their official exit lines and what happened behind the scene.

Strife At The Top: These
11 C-Suite Execs From India
Were ‘Let Go’ In 2013

<keyword id="1518229" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Lenskart">Lenskart</keyword> on Monday said global investment firm <keyword id="6354544" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="kkr">KKR</keyword> will invest <keyword id="54123" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="USD">USD</keyword> 95 million (about Rs 695.8 crore) in the omni-channel eyewear retailer via a secondary stake acquisition. As part of the transaction, existing <keyword id="6359051" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="investors">investors</keyword> - TPG Growth and TR Capital - will each divest a portion of their holding in Lenskart, a statement said. These entities had invested in Lenskart in late 2014. Upon the completion of the transaction, KKR will look to leverage its experience working with leading technology and eyewear companies globally to support Lenskart in expanding its presence in India, scaling its growing operations overseas, and enhancing its digital offerings to augment customers' virtual and omni-store experience, the statement said. According to reports, KKR's investment is part of a larger USD 300-million round. However, the companies did not comment on the report and if other investors have participated in the round. KKR said it is making its investment from its Asian private equity fund. Some of the recent technology-focused investments for KKR in Asia include Adopt A Cow (a digitalised, direct-to-consumer dairy company in China), NetStars (the operator of Japan's largest QR code payment gateway), and Walnut Programming (a children's programming education company in China). In 2019, Lenskart had announced raising over USD 275 million (nearly ₹1,956 crore) from Softbank Vision Fund. In the past, it has received funding from investors' like Ratan Tata, PremjiInvest, <keyword id="85860" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="IFC">IFC</keyword> (venture capital arm of the <keyword id="6354424" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="world-bank">World Bank</keyword>), TPG Growth, IDG Ventures, Unilazer Ventures and Adveq. Established in 2010, Lenskart currently serves over 7 million customers annually through its omni-channel presence that spans online, mobile application, and 730 stores in 175 cities across the country. In 2019, Lenskart had also expanded to Singapore, marking its foray into Southeast Asia. Lenskart integrates technology into all aspects of its operations, to the browsing, shopping and purchasing experience, in addition to manufacturing and supply-chain optimisation. Among Lenskart's digital offerings is a virtual 3D try-on tool; AI-powered facial mapping and frame recommendation features; smart physical stores with seamless omni-channel experience; and footfall tracking beacons, heat maps and demographic analytics; and intelligent supply-chain and inventory-management solutions. More than 600 million people in India and 4.5 billion people globally need vision correction, but only a fraction of them use it due to a lack of access, awareness, and high-quality, affordable solutions, Lenskart CEO Peyush Bansal said. Lenskart was founded to address this gap by leveraging technology to make eyewear accessible to everyone - first in India, and now worldwide, he added. "In the next five years, we aspire to have 50 per cent of India wearing our specs... We are thrilled to welcome KKR as an investor given their significant experience working with leading global eyewear retailers such as National Vision and 1-800 Contacts as well as technology-focused businesses globally," he said. KKR Partner Gaurav Trehan said as a technology-driven business, Lenskart is a strong, homegrown disruptor in India's rapidly expanding eyewear industry. "We are truly excited to work with Peyush and Lenskart's impressive management team to support Lenskart's growth and innovation in India and internationally, in addition to advancing its mission to provide affordable, accessible eyewear products for everyone," he added. Avendus Capital advised Lenskart on the transaction. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/apps/news/battlegrounds-mobile-india-pre-registrations-to-begin-on-may-18/articleshow/82702403.cms">PUBG Mobile: Battlegrounds Mobile India pre-registrations to begin on May 18 – rewards, maps and more</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/ratan-tata-backed-moglix-is-the-13th-unicorn-from-india-this-year/articleshow/82702143.cms">Ratan Tata-backed Moglix is the 13th unicorn from India this year</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/cryptocurrency/news/elon-musk-hints-that-tesla-may-dump-its-billion-dollar-bitcoin-investment/articleshow/82699553.cms">Elon Musk hints that Tesla may dump its billion dollar Bitcoin investment — here’s why his tweets have so much power</a>

Lenskart gets funding of $95 million from global investment firm KKR

New Delhi, Dec 1 () Zivame will set up 60 offline stores in metros and tier I cities over the next 12-18 months, as the online intimate wear retailer looks to further strengthen its omnichannel play in the growing segment.
Actoserba (which runs Zivame), which has narrowed its losses from over Rs 32 crore in FY18 to Rs 19.56 crore in FY19, is also looking at achieving break-even in the next 12 months.
"Last one year has been phenomenal as we have strengthened our position across categories and deepened our presence in the markets. With tech, data and innovation at the heart of everything we do, we are set up for exponential growth over the next few years," Zivame CEO Amisha Jain told .
She added that the company is poised to hit over 75 per cent growth for the next few years.
"We have more than 40 retail stores in tier I markets and we are looking at taking that number to 100 over the next 12-18 months. We will deepen our presence in these markets," she said.
The company's revenue from operations grew to Rs 137.9 crore in FY19 from Rs 86.6 crore in the previous year. Its marketing expenses decreased by 18 per cent in FY19 vis-a-vis FY18, while the total expenses increased by 1 per cent.
"Currently, Zivame brand has hit Rs 340 crore annual runrate for FY20. While our offline business is growing at a very strong pace, our online business also continues to do extremely well. The app contribution for Zivame brand gross sales has increased from 50 per cent in FY18 to 65 per cent in FY19... we should be able to break-even in the next 12 months," Jain said.
The online channel accounts for about 80 per cent of Zivame's business, while the remaining comes from offline retail.
Jain said the company is focussing on four areas to drive growth -- continuous product innovation, great consumer experience, omni-channel presence and its new brand identity.
"This year, we unveiled a new brand identity with the tagline 'Love Yourself Inside Out'. This aligns with our vision of creating an exciting, modern and inclusive environment for women to discover and shop for their intimate wear needs. Be it through products or content, we want to create dialogue and engagement around the category," she said.
Talking about the market opportunity, Jain said the intimate wear market in India is about USD 3 billion, of which only 40 per cent is organised. "This market is expected to grow to USD 6 billion in the next five years, and the share of organised retail is poised to grow to 60 per cent," she added.
Zivame, which counts Zodius Capital, Unilazer Ventures and Khazanah Nasional Bhd among its investors, is also looking at raising funds to the tune of USD 50 million (about Rs 350 crore) within this fiscal.
This year, Zivame has raised Rs 60 crore in funding as part of a bridge round, led by Zodius Technology Fund and a group of high net worth individuals, and Rs 10 crore in an extended series C Round from Allana Investment and Trading Company.
In 2015, it had raised Rs 250 crore in series C funding round from Zodius Technology Fund and Khazanah Nasional Bhd, the investment holding arm of the government of Malaysia and USD 6 million from Unilazer Ventures in 2013. Ratan Tata has also invested an undisclosed amount in the company. SR BAL

Zivame to expand offline footprint, eyes break-even in 12 months

Online marketplace <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/exclusive-shopclues-predicts-how-the-e-commerce-space-will-turn-out-in-2017/articleshow/56592792.cms">ShopClues</a> is looking forward for a possible public share sale, as it struggles with internal disputes amongst co-founders. 
 
The Gurgaon-based company, which entered the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/ShopClues-raises-Series-E-at-a-valuation-of-1-1-Billion/articleshow/50547081.cms">unicorn club</a> in January last year after exceeding the valuation of $1 billion, has been reportedly in talks with investment banks including <keyword id="6361649" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Goldman-Sachs">Goldman Sachs</keyword> and Credit Suisse, two people in the know told ET. 
 
The issue is said to be ready for the first quarter of financial year 2018-19, and would have at least two investment banks as the lead book runners. 
 
Talking of the conflict, co-founders <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/slideshows/sai/heres-how-startups-like-oyo-paytm-snapdeal-reacted-to-budget-2017/sanjay-sethi-ceo-co-founder-shopclues/slideshow/56938870.cms">Sanjay Sethi</a> and Radhika Aggarwal are dealing with accusations from co-founder and former CEO Sandeep Aggarwal, regarding the issue of illegally taking away his voting rights. Both Sethi and Radhika Aggarwal have denied the charges, and are being supported by the company's board. 
 
In other development, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/shopclues-launches-shopclues-surety-to-ensure-quality-products-on-its-platform/articleshow/57667609.cms">ShopClues</a> is looking to raise a fresh funding of somewhere between $75 million and $100 million, a transaction that's expected to be a mix of primary and secondary components from its investors Nexus Venture Partners, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/billionaire-chase-colemans-tiger-global-made-a-nearly-500-million-bet-on-fiat/articleshow/57156399.cms">Tiger Global</a>, GIC (the sovereign fund of the government of Singapore), and Ronnie Screwvala, founder of Unilazer Ventures, among others. 
 
(Image source: LiveMint)

Internal conflicts aside, ShopClues might bring out an IPO

The 21st <keyword id="631373" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Wharton-India-Economic-Forum">Wharton India Economic Forum</keyword> has announced the finalists of its Fourth Wharton <keyword id="4020304" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="india-startup-competition">India Startup Competition</keyword> (WISC). The competition is a hallmark of WIEF, giving startups from India the opportunity to present in front of an esteemed panel of judges in India. 
 Founded in 1996, the Wharton India Economic Forum is an annual conference hosted by the students of <keyword id="6442384" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Wharton-School">Wharton School</keyword> at the <keyword id="83492" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="University-of-pennsylvania">University of Pennsylvania</keyword>. It is a global business forum focussed on understanding and engaging with India’s startup landscape. 
 
Last year, WISC had more than 750 startups apply to the competition. The total number of applications received this year were 534. 
 The panel of judges included Aditya Nair (Investor, Nyca Partners), Ajay Hattangdi (CEO India &amp; Group COO, Innoven Capital Group), Ankit Shah (VP, Unilazer Ventures), Sameer Verma (Director &amp; Junior Partner, Nexus Venture Partners), <keyword id="872474" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Saurabh-Joshi">Saurabh Joshi</keyword> (Strategy Manager, Paypal), and <keyword id="1255844" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Shantanu-Gangal">Shantanu Gangal</keyword> (Head-Analytics, Fundbox). 
 
Since 2015, the competition has increased its outreach by 50% to all leading schools, Wharton alumni, incubators, accelerators, and VC funds. The finals of the competition will be held in Mumbai on January 6, 2017. The winning team will receive a funding mentorship from a leading venture fund. 
 
Here are the teams which will lock horns for the final prize:

Meet the 11 startups which have made it to Wharton India Startup Competition Finals

Eyeware retailer <keyword id="1518229" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Lenskart">Lenskart</keyword> has raised Rs 135 crore in fresh capital in its third round of funding. The company has in its Series C (final rounding of early funding cycle) raised the funds as co-investment from <keyword id="141646" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="TPG-Growth">TPG Growth</keyword> along with Hong Kong-based TR Capital and its existing investor IDF Ventures. 
	 Interestingly, the company has raised a total of Rs 200 crore in three rounds of funding that has happened so far. In February 2013, the company had received an investment of Rs 53 crore from <keyword id="25725" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ronnie-Screwvala">Ronnie Screwvala</keyword>’s Unilazer Ventures along with IDG Ventures India. 
	 
	“In TPG, we found strategic partners and advisors with proven capability to build a large consumer-centric enterprise. The TPG brand is another feather in our cap. With this new investment, we will be hiring the best talent and give them a world-class environment to innovate and solve India’s eyewear problems at a very large scale,” said Peyush Bansal, CEO &amp; Founder of Lenskart. 
	 
	Commenting on the same, Manas Tandon, Director, TPG Growth said, “TPG globally is an active investor in the Internet sector. We are excited about the evolution of Internet in India and are delighted to partner with Lenskart as our first investment in this space. The Lenskart team brings to the table an impressive focus on customer service and keen commercial instincts, thereby building a dominant position in the eyewear space, while maintaining attractive unit economics.” 
	 Currently, the company clocked in revenues of nearly Rs 100 crore and has been growing at 15% every month. Lenskart was founded in 2010 by <keyword id="2674246" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Peeyush-Bansal">Peeyush Bansal</keyword> along with Amit Chaudhary and Sumeet Kapahi. The company claims to have grown by over 200% year on year.

Lenskart
Raises Rs 135 Crore As Fresh Capital

For startups to grow they must garner funds from investors; and to gather funds, startups need to have a robust product-market fit along with a promising team and a solid business plan with the potential to scale. Then comes the role of angel investors and <keyword id="6357097" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="venture-capital">Venture Capital</keyword> (VC) <keyword id="6357455" type="EVENT" weightage="100" keywordseo="Funding">funding</keyword> that usually surfaces when larger amounts are required to grow a business. 
 Lately, major <keyword id="982553" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Indian-startups">Indian startups</keyword> have seen a tremendous boost from venture capitalists. To start with, we saw how Tiger Global Management, Softbank Corp., Morgan Stanley, Sequoia Capital, Accel Partners, IDG Ventures India and SAIF Partners managed to support promising Indian startups like that of Flipkart, Snapdeal, Ola, Zomato, ShopClues, Urban Ladder and many others. Moreover, it is not only the bigger firms who are eyeing VC funds, relatively younger and smaller firms like OYO Rooms, Swiggy and Grofers have also joined the race. 
 Apart from ruling the e-commerce and fashion industry, <keyword id="153868" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="VC-funding">VC funding</keyword> is now gradually moving into other sectors too, such as agriculture, healthcare and education. As per the data from the upcoming Wharton India Economic Forum (WIEF), which is all set to launch the Wharton India Startup Competition (WISC) with over 500 entries, though majority of applicants (around 25%) belong to the e-commerce industry, the healthcare segment is not far away with around 22% applicants. Moreover, most of the participating startups already have pre-seeded and seeded funding arrangements and around 31% of them have listed themselves as social enterprises. 
 
The ecosystem for VC funding for Indian startups would be discussed at length at the Wharton India Economic Forum (WIEF). WIEF is a two-day event starting from January 6, 2017, which will bring together the best entrepreneurs, investors, distinguished Wharton faculty, students and inspirational speakers. Attendees will not only have numerous opportunities for interaction and networking across the board but will also witness in-depth discussions in terms of understanding the evolving business landscape in India and the need for business model innovation from the government, various industry leaders, and distinguished Wharton faculty. 
 
The relevance of this summit doesn’t end there. It is also known for hosting the Wharton India Startup Competition (WISC) which is giving Indian startups the opportunity to present themselves in front of an esteemed panel of judges and also win cash prizes of over $25,000 and unparalleled mentorship of up to 4 months from some of the most renowned names in the industry on strategy and funding. The jury for WISC comprises top-notch personalities with the likes of Bharati Jacob (Co-founder of Seedfund), Nipun Mehra (Investor at Sequoia Capital India), Rehan Yar Khan (Managing Partner of Orios Venture Partners), Tarun Davda (Managing Director of Matrix Partners), Aditya Nair (Investor at Nyca Partners), Ajay Hattangdi (CEO India &amp; Group COO of InnoVen Capital Group), Ankit Shah (Vice President at Unilazer Ventures), Sameer Verma (Director &amp; Junior Partner of Nexus Venture Partners), Saurabh Joshi (Strategy Manager at PayPal) and Shantanu Gangal (Head – Analytics at Fundbox). Also, past finalists of this prestigious event includes names such as Ketto, Haptik, Zoomcar, Zostel, Targeting Mantra, Qlicket, Samaan and Ambitioni. 
 
Needless to say, such competitions and summits go a long way in not only promoting upcoming startups but also in educating the audience and the participants regarding the funding scenario. Not many seem to be aware about the types and rounds of funding, the know-how of VC funding and even the right way to go about securing such funds, hence this is surely going to be one the most-sought after events at the start of the next year. 
 
(Image Credits: Thinkstock) 
 
(About the Author: This article has been authored by Aman Jain, Chairperson WIEF 2017)

How VC Funding Fuels the Indian Startup Ecosystem

If the last weekend, you enjoyed watching the sports we all have grown up playing, you must know that <keyword id="2190307" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Pro-Kabaddi-League">Pro Kabaddi League</keyword> has begun. 
 
There are a total of eight franchises and the teams have players not only from India, but also from other parts of the world, including Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Iran, Japan, the UK, Indonesia, South Korea, Oman, Taiwan, Kenya and Turkmenistan. 
 
The teams: 
 
Bengal Warriors, Kolkata 
This team is owned by Future Group, and is coached by Raj Narain Sharma. 
 
Bengaluru Bulls, Bengaluru 
This team is owned by Kosmik Global Media, and is coached by Randhir Singh. 
 
Dabang Delhi, Delhi 
This team is owned by Do It Sports Management, and is coached by Arjun Singh. 
 
Jaipur Pink Panthers, Jaipur 
This team is owned by Abhishek Bachchan, and is coached by Kasinathan Bhaskaran. 
 
Patna Pirates, Patna 
This team is owned by Rajesh Singh, and is coached by RS Khokhar. 
 
Puneri Paltan, Pune 
This team is owned by Insurekot Sports, and is coached by Ramphal Kaushik. 
 
Telugu Titans, Vizag 
This team is owned by Veera Sports, and is coached by J Udayakumar. 
 
U Mumba, Mumbai 
This team is owned by Unilazer Sports, and is coached by Ravi Shetty. 
 
The costliest player at the auction was Rakesh Kumar, gold medallist from the 2007 World Cup. Patna Pirates bought him for Rs 12,80,000. 
 
The winning team would be awarded the prize money of Rs 50 lakh, with Rs 25 lakh for the runner-up team and Rs 12.5 lakh for both the semi-finalists. 
 
Other than this, the best raider, defender, the best catcher will be given Rs 10,000 each in every match. 
 
Talking of big bucks, the organiser, Mashal Sports, will keep 80% of the revenue coming from all the eight franchises. World Sport Group, which is the marketing partner, will receive 10% of it and the remaining 10% will be put across for the league. 
 
One interesting trivia of this league is that every team has at least one player who is more than six feet in height. In total, there are 16 players who are taller than six feet. 
 
The schedule of the upcoming matches can be found <a href="http://prokabaddi.com/schedule/">here</a>. There will be a total of 60 matches at eight venues, out of which the semis would be held at Kanteerava Indoor Stadium in Bengaluru on August 29th. 
 
Image courtesy: <a href="http://www.indiantelevision.com/">Indian Television</a>

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Strife At The Top: These 11 C-Suite Execs From India Were ‘Let Go’ In 2013

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Lenskart gets funding of $95 million from global investment firm KKR

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Zivame to expand offline footprint, eyes break-even in 12 months

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Internal conflicts aside, ShopClues might bring out an IPO

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Meet the 11 startups which have made it to Wharton India Startup Competition Finals

Anushree Singh

Lenskart Raises Rs 135 Crore As Fresh Capital

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How VC Funding Fuels the Indian Startup Ecosystem

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Here Is Everything You Need To Know About The Pro Kabaddi League

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