Falguni Nayar

Founder, Executive Chairperson, MD and CEO — Nykaa (FSN E-Commerce Ventures)

About Falguni Nayar

Key facts Role: Founder, executive chairperson, managing director and chief executive Organisation: Nykaa (FSN E-Commerce Ventures) Country: India Sector: Beauty and fashion e-commerce Headline figures: Revenue from operations of ₹10,022 crore in the year to March 2026, up 26 per cent; roughly 55 million customers Falguni Nayar started 2026 with a fresh five-year mandate and has spent it proving the point. In January, shareholders of FSN E-Commerce Ventures, the listed parent of Nykaa, re-appointed her as executive chairperson, managing director and chief executive for five more years. The resolution passed with 90.14 per cent of votes cast in favour (ScanX, 29 January 2026). By August the company was reporting its fastest growth and highest margins in three years. Profit more than tripled in the June quarter, and its fashion arm turned positive at the EBITDA level. The role As founder and chief executive, Nayar controls strategy at India's best-known beauty and fashion platform, a business spanning e-commerce, physical stores, business-to-business distribution and a growing stable of its own brands. In the year to March 2026 Nykaa's consolidated revenue from operations rose 26 per cent to ₹10,022 crore. EBITDA climbed 59 per cent to ₹752 crore and net profit rose 183 per cent to ₹204 crore, according to Forbes India (22 June 2026). She told the magazine that Nykaa had about 13 million customers when it listed in November 2021 and now has roughly 55 million. The numbers The June 2026 quarter extended the run. Revenue from operations rose 29 per cent to ₹2,782 crore and EBITDA rose 68 per cent to ₹236 crore, a margin of 8.5 per cent. Net profit rose 3.3 times to ₹79.8 crore (Business Standard; Fortune India, 4 August 2026). Beauty gross merchandise value rose 28 per cent to ₹4,105 crore. "This quarter marked continued acceleration in our growth momentum and Ebitda margins, both reaching their highest levels in the last 12 quarters," Nayar said, pointing to new international brand launches on the platform including Rare Beauty, SK-II and Judydoll. During the quarter the company also took a majority stake in Aminu Wellness. “We are building a future L'Oréal or an Estée Lauder out of India,” — Nayar, to Forbes India Background Her career began in finance. According to Forbes India, she spent nearly two decades at the Kotak Mahindra group and became managing director of Kotak Mahindra Capital before launching Nykaa from a single Mumbai office in 2012. Forbes India credits her with building the market for premium beauty in India, making serums, sunscreen and ₹1,500 moisturisers part of the vocabulary of consumers well beyond the metros. Rivals such as Myntra, Tira and quick-commerce apps are now competing for that market. The strategy Her strategy now has two main thrusts. The first is brands: "We are building a future L'Oréal or an Estée Lauder out of India," she told Forbes India. Nykaa owns or partners 12 brands, among them Dot & Key, Kay Beauty and Nykaa Cosmetics, and has taken Kay Beauty to the UK and the Middle East. The second is fashion, which she says addresses a market five times the size of beauty. She says the fashion business is growing at about 40 per cent. At the same time, the company is building out quick delivery to compete with 10-minute commerce platforms. Her influence reaches beyond one company. Nykaa's listing and turnaround have made her the reference point for India's consumer-internet founders, and in particular for women founders. Her decisions on which global brands enter India, and how, also shape the market for international cosmetics groups. What to watch: whether fashion profitability holds, how quick commerce affects margins, the performance of Nykaa's own brands overseas, and whether the company keeps growing at close to 30 per cent. She ranks 15th because she founded and still runs, with a renewed five-year mandate, the listed platform that sets the terms of India's beauty market. Sources ScanX, Nykaa Shareholders Approve Falguni Nayar's Re-appointment as Executive Chairperson for 5-Year Term , 29 Jan 2026 Forbes India, W-Power 2026 | Falguni Nayar: The Woman Who Redefined Beauty Retail in India , 22 Jun 2026 Business Standard, Nykaa Q1 FY27 results: Net profit rises 3.3 times to ₹79.76 crore , 4 Aug 2026 Fortune India, Nykaa Q1 profit more than triples as revenue climbs 29%; fashion business turns EBITDA positive , 4 Aug 2026

Why this entry is on the list

She ranks 15th because she founded and still runs, with a renewed five-year mandate, the listed platform that sets the terms of India's beauty market. Nykaa's revenue from operations rose 26 per cent to ₹10,022 crore in the year to March 2026, and she says it now has roughly 55 million customers.