Peyush Bansal

Bengaluru-based Asaya, a research-driven skincare brand, has raised ₹28 crore in pre-Series A funding led by RPSG Capital, with participation from Dot & Key Skincare founders Suyash Saraf and Anisha Agarwal Saraf, along with existing investors OTP Ventures and Huddle Ventures. Founded by Neeraj Biyani, along with two FMCG and consumer industry veterans with over 23 years of experience each, Asaya focuses on solving hyperpigmentation through its patented molecule MelaMe™, clinically proven to deliver results in 14 days. The brand has achieved 400% YoY growth and 5x revenue growth in the last year. The funds will support a new innovation center and the launch of six skincare products over the next 12 months, strengthening Asaya’s position in India’s science-backed beauty market. Read Full Article: https://lnkd.in/gNmMhUdA #RPSGCapital #OTPVentures #HuddleVentures #Skincare #Funding #Innovation #asaya

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Lenskart Gets SEBI Approval for ₹2,150 Crore IPO After Turning Profitable. The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has given its clearance for the highly anticipated Initial Public Offering (IPO) of Lenskart, the leading Indian omnichannel eyewear company. The public issue is expected to help the company raise a substantial ₹2,150 Crore. The IPO clearance follows Lenskart’s impressive financial turnaround. Reports indicate that the company has transitioned from losses to profitability, achieving a net profit of ₹297 Crore in the Financial Year 2025 (FY25). This crucial profitability milestone is expected to significantly boost investor confidence in the offering. Lenskart's IPO will be a major test for the Indian startup ecosystem, demonstrating the market's appetite for successful, growth oriented consumer technology brands. The funds raised will likely be used for business expansion, both domestically and internationally. #LenskartIPO #SEBI #Eyewear #StartupIndia #marketing #rajapillai #branding

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Old Stitch vs New Stitch : The Fashion Retail Face-Off.... on a lighter note ! Once upon a time in the bustling malls of Mumbai or the high streets of Cannaught Place, stood a fashion retailer who knew his customer like he knew his morning coffee ...strong, loyal, and predictable. Enter the Gen Z retailer.... hoodie on, TikTok open, and ready to disrupt “the system” before brunch bro. Let’s be honest: the battle isn’t about style it’s about survival. The experienced fashion retailer has weathered recessions, denim explosions, and even the rise and fall of cargo pants (twice). They believe in product margins, supply chain hygiene, and customers who walk into stores. They trust in footfall the way Gen Z trusts in "engagement." They still think a CRM is something that helps build loyalty not just a popup on a website. On the other hand, the Gen Z retailer doesn’t even own a cash register. Their store? A swipe-up story. Their model? Drop culture meets influencer hype. They sell out before legacy retailers finish aligning their assortment plan. But ask them about return rates, last-mile costs, or inventory holding and you might at times get a blank stare followed by “Let me check with my growth hacker bro.” The experienced retailer wins on scale, process, and predictability. The Gen Z-er wins on agility, noise, and memes. One builds brands. The other builds communities. But both are now in the same playground trying to win the same fashion-forward, budget-aware, short-attention-span consumer. In the end, the smartest player may not be the oldest or the trendiest but the one who learns fastest, fails cheapest, and adapts quickest. That’s fashion Darwinism, darling. So, who wins? The jury’s out.... But the runway is open. #RetailWars #FashionFaceOff #OldSchoolVsNewGen #RetailHumour #FashionBusiness

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⚡ How Zepto became a disruptor ⚡ Most players in retail fight on price. Zepto changed the battlefield: time. Here’s the playbook 👇 1️⃣ Redefined “convenience.” Next-day? Same-day? Irrelevant. Zepto set a new benchmark: 10 minutes. 2️⃣ Built for speed and efficiency. Dark stores + hyperlocal clustering = fast and cost-conscious. This isn’t just growth theater. It’s operations science. 3️⃣ Created behavioral lock-in. Once you’ve had groceries at your door in 10 minutes… you don’t go back. 💡 The insight: Disruptors don’t win by being different. They win by resetting consumer expectations so completely that incumbents are forced to play catch-up. Zepto didn’t just join quick commerce. They redefined what “convenience” means in India. Now comes the real test: ⚖️ Can they balance speed and profitability at scale? #RetailStrategy #QuickCommerce #Disruption #Zepto #BCG

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From Corner Stores to Category Leaders: How Zithara.AI is Reimagining Indian Retail In Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities across India, shopkeepers once knew every customer by face—but not by data. That was the gap. 📍That’s where Zithara.AI stepped in. Launched in 2022 without VC backing or Silicon Valley buzzwords—just a bold vision, relentless founders, and one mission: 👉 To democratize AI-powered customer intelligence for every Indian retailer. The insight? Indian retail was rich in footfalls, but poor in follow-up. No CRM. No segmentation. No structured retention. Loyalty was assumed, not engineered. So, the Zithara team built a solution from scratch: A full-stack retail CRM platform — 9 products, one unified interface. Simple enough for a paanwala to use. Smart enough for a luxury jeweller to rely on. 🚀 From pilot stores in Hyderabad to 500+ high-intent retailers across India, Zithara is now driving: ✅ 3x repeat sales via precision WhatsApp marketing ✅ 28% lift in customer retention ✅ 25% increase in acquisition through referral automation ✅ 100% lead capture from every channel — walk-ins, social, or digital ✅ True omnichannel orchestration — SMS, Email, RCS, Meta, Push, and more But this journey wasn’t just about tech. It meant winning trust in a market where pen and paper were still the CRM. Where “data” was seen as optional, not transformational. Zithara didn’t just build a platform. It built a new way for Indian retailers to think about customers — as relationships to grow, not transactions to close. 💡 The belief that carried them forward? “Solve for the user, not the investor.” No vanity dashboards. No hollow metrics. Just tangible outcomes. ⸻ In just two years, Zithara.AI has become the quiet force behind India’s smart retail revolution — powering everyone from local kiranas to national chains. Because in tomorrow’s India, even the smallest shop deserves enterprise-grade intelligence. Made in Bharat. Made for Bharat. Scaling beyond Bharat. This is just the beginning. Sridevi Reddy Varun Kashyap

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