Fashion & e-comm won't click for Myntra founder Mukesh Bansal anymore

After 9-year journey, Bansal says not talking to investors yet

Mukesh Bansal, the name synonymous with e-commerce fashion, has decided not to touch the space in his next start-up venture. Mukesh, who founded fashion portal Myntra nine years ago and then moved on to be in the top-three club (all of them Bansals but not related to each other) at Flipkart, and resigned as head of commerce and advertising around two weeks ago.

When Business Standard caught up with the founder of Myntra, which was acquired by Flipkart in 2014, at a trendy hotel on Tuesday morning over herbal tea, Mukesh said he was yet to finalise his next destination. But he is sure it will be a technology-led start-up, having no direct interest in e-commerce or fashion. Mukesh not just built Myntra as a fashion brand but also helped Flipkart get an edge in the crucial segment.

At the outset, he said that he was in transition, indicating that it would not be a tell-all interaction.

How did the elevation of Flipkart co-founder Binny Bansal to the post of CEO and his own exit remain such a closely-guarded secret in the day and age of social media? He said, "It was something that was just between the three of us (Sachin, Binny and Mukesh). No fourth person knew about it till very late…. We have learnt to keep things under wraps by now."

Would your decision have been different if you were elevated as Flipkart CEO? Mukesh smiled and simply said it was time to move on after nine long years.

What did Sachin say? "It was a consensus between all three of us that Binny would be the right person to lead Flipkart. Also, last year, we got high-quality top leadership in key areas. And I felt it would be overkill if I were to continue." According to Mukesh, this was a logical end to a nine-year journey.

Mukesh also dismissed the talk of Binny wanting to leave the organisation at any point. "Both Binny and Sachin are committed to Flipkart," he said.

Mukesh's immediate plan after leaving Flipkart is to travel long and far, read, meet people and learn about the tech space for at least three to four months before springing back into the start-up world.

It's tough to believe but Mukesh said he was not talking to investors at this point. "I don't think raising money would be tough this time around." He laughed off at the suggestion that he must have got calls from rival companies on hearing the news of his exit from Flipkart. "I'm not interested in any of them… My bet is on Flipkart and Myntra combine to emerge as the long-term winner." Mukesh said his connection with Flipkart and Myntra will continue as he would continue as advisor to the two companies. In addition, he has a financial stake in Flipkart. However, he refused to divulge the quantum.

On the signs of slowdown in investments, he said there was nothing worrisome for the leading players. "In case of a slowdown, number three and four may be squeezed out, and we are not complaining if that happens." According to him, the e-commerce game is largely about Flipkart and Myntra versus Amazon, apart from the niche smaller players such as Zivame, Urban Ladder and a few others. On the buzz around Chinese major Alibaba talking to Flipkart for investment, Mukesh said there's nothing to it. Ruling out an IPO at this point, he pointed out there have been no discussions internally on the subject.