Thread by @BiIndia

Former #Myntra CEO started #MensaBrand in May ⁠and it’s already worth a billion dollars

businessinsider.in/business/start…

By @Krittiiii

@Krittiiii .@MensaBrands, founded only six months ago by Myntra’s former chief executive Ananth Narayanan (@ANarayanan24), is the latest as well as the youngest #startup to enter the #unicorn club.

@Krittiiii @MensaBrands @ANarayanan24 Mensa brand’s business model is based on the New York-based e-commerce player Thras.io, which acquires small merchants and brands listed on #Amazon marketplace.

@MensaBrands @ANarayanan24 c

@Krittiiii @MensaBrands @ANarayanan24 .@MensaBrands reached that milestone, after raising $135 million in a funding round led by Alpha Wave Ventures. Prosus Ventures (previously known as Naspers) also joined the fundraise as a new investor.

@ANarayanan24

@Krittiiii @MensaBrands @ANarayanan24 Ananth Narayanan (@ANarayanan24) served as the chief executive officer (CEO) of Myntra for four years, between 2015 and 2019. Prior to that, he worked at management consultancy firm McKinsey for almost 16 years and rose to the position of a managing partner.

@Krittiiii @MensaBrands @ANarayanan24 He is also a board member at one of the biggest consumer products companies in India, Marico, which owns popular brands like Saffola (cooking oil) and Parachute (hair oil).

@ANarayanan24 @MensaBrands

@Krittiiii @MensaBrands @ANarayanan24 He started Mensa Brand in May this year. It is a Thrasio-style house of brand company, which will acquire local retail brands and scale them up.

@ANarayanan24 @MensaBrands

@Krittiiii @MensaBrands @ANarayanan24 .@MensaBrands is the first Indian Thras.io-style company to be valued over a billion dollars. The company has acquired a dozen brands already and now plans on closing 20 more deals soon.

@ANarayanan24

@Krittiiii @MensaBrands @ANarayanan24 “We are truly platform neutral and our brands are present across different platforms like Amazon, Flipkart, Meesho and others. We are excited to back more founders and brands and scale them further,” Narayanan said.

@MensaBrands @ANarayanan24