Falguni Nayar’s beauty business has catapulted her into the top 1% of the world’s wealthiest people. Falguni, owning approximately half of Nykaa, is now worth about $6.5 billion after the company’s stock soared as high as 89 percent in early trade on Wednesday. According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, she has become India’s wealthiest self-made female billionaire.
Nykaa’s parent company, FSN E-Commerce Ventures, is India’s first woman-led unicorn to list on the stock exchange. It raised 53.5 billion rupees ($722 million) in its first public offering, which was priced at the top end of an advertised range. As of 10:36 a.m. in Mumbai, the stock was up 78 percent.
Nayar started Nykaa in 2012, only months before turning 50, after leading a renowned Indian investment bank. Most women in the nation bought beauty and hair care items from their local mom-and-pop shops, where the range was limited and trials were unheard of.
Since then, the company has expanded to become the country’s largest beauty retailer, bolstering online sales with demo videos from attractive Bollywood actresses and celebrities and more than 70 physical locations.
Exfoliation creams, bridal make-up basics, and hundreds of hues of lipstick, foundation, and nail colour to fit Indian skin tones, skin types, and local weather are among the things sold by Nykaa, which is derived from the Sanskrit word for heroine. According to its filing, sales increased by 35% to $330 million in the fiscal year ending in March. Nykaa is a profitable company, which is unusual among internet startups making their public debut.
While Nayar is India’s richest self-made female billionaire, Savitri Jindal is the country’s wealthiest woman, controlling the OP Jindal Group conglomerate built by her late husband. According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, a ranking of the world’s 500 wealthiest people, her fortune is worth $12.9 billion.
