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Rejected 1 CR job offer to build her 3000 CR cosmetics empire. 1. After completing her MBA at the prestigious IIM Ahmedabad, Vineeta Singh received an astounding 1 CR job offer from Deutsche Bank. However, she was not happy as she wanted to start her startup. She turned down the offer and started looking for ideas. 💡 2. She encountered a gap in the beauty market. Most products were aimed at Western skin types and did not suit Indian skin tones and climate. Vineeta wanted to build a high-quality, inclusive brand tailored to Indian customers. In 2015, she started a company with her husband, Kaushik. Sugar Cosmetics was born. 🚀 3. Vineeta started with a lipsticks and eyeliner range, but the challenge was how customers would trust Sugar when giants like Loreal and Lakme dominated the Indian market for decades. She had to come up with an answer. And then it clicked. 🤔 4. Sell directly to customers. Vineeta started selling dthrough its website and ventured into Nykaa and Amazon with cruelty-free, affordable, and durable products. She further set three rules for growth ⏩ Listening to consumers, staying away from discounting, and content for consumers. And the idea worked. ✅ 5. Sugar had a bestseller in Matte As Hell crayon lipstick, known for its long-lasting, smudge-proof formula and shades designed for Indian skin tones. By May 2017, they scaled to a revenue of 9.4 CR and raised 14.8 CR, led by RB Investments and India Quotient. But Sugar still had no retail outlet when 50% bought offline. 👇 6. With funds, Vineeta scaled to retail with 400 general trade touchpoints across India and state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities in Germany, Italy, India, the USA, and Korea. In February 2019, it opened its first 300 sq ft exclusive brand outlet (EBO) in Kolkata's Forum Mall, raising 76 CR and becoming a 300 CR company. 📉 7. Sugar Cosmetics was on a sugar rush. In 2019, it launched three more EBOs in Bangalore, Gurugram, and Hyderabad. It was now available at 770 retail outlets in 92 cities, including Shoppers Stop and Lifestyle. By 2021, it grew sixfold to clock 128 CR in revenue and raised 153 CR, led by Elevation at a valuation of 729 CR. 💰 8. With a presence in 10,000 outlets, Sugar Cosmetics became one of the top five cosmetics brands by sales contribution in most of these stores. By the next year, it tripled to 30,000 outlets and doubled its sales to 254 CR. On 20th May 2022, it raised 388 CR, led by L Catterton, and became a 2800 CR company. 💵 9. Today, Sugar Cosmetics clocks a revenue of 505 CR and is available in 45,000 outlets and over 200 EBOs. It continues to give a tough fight to the giants, with over 550 products and 5 million loyal customers. 💪 ➡️ Everybody doubted Vineeta when she left her 1 CR job offer. Hardly no one knew she would build a 3000 CR company later! 🙏