Can a Woman Lead a Tech Startup in India? Suchi Mukherjee Proves It’s Possible. Suchi Mukherjee, who is the founder and CEO of LimeRoad, an Indian online shopping platform, is an Indian entrepreneur who is famous for her making way into the Indian e-commerce market. How she managed to rise up from a middle-class upbringing in Haryana to heading a successful startup is an example of her determination, vision, and leadership.
Early Life and Education
On July 6, 1973, in Haryana, India Suchi Mukherjee was born and showed academic prowess at a very young age. She finished her undergraduate program in St. Stephen’s College, Delhi University, and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree major in Economics. Her academic career moved to the University of Cambridge where she undertook a B.A. Honors in Economics with Mathematics during the years 1994-1996.
At Cambridge, she became the first Indian to get the Cambridge Commonwealth Trust Scholarship for Economics in 1994, a prestigious award. She had the Chadburn Scholarship and also made a university record in Development Economics. Mukherjee also graduated with a Master of Science in Finance and Economics from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) between 1997 and 1998 with a British Chevening Scholarship.
Professional Career
Her career path started in the year 1998 at Lehman Brothers Inc., where she was a Senior Associate in Corporate Finance and was responsible for the Telecoms, Media, and Technology sectors. In 2003, she moved to Virgin Media after five years of experience. Therefore, she was appointed as the Director of Change and Development at the company. She was a member of the Management Team of the Consumer Division and her role in the company was to increase the company’s revenue to $2.5 billion.
In 2005, Mukherjee joined eBay Inc. as the Head of Business Seller Programs and Customer Service. She thereby became part of the UK Operating Management Team. Her time at eBay was highlighted by the company’s growth in the UK market due to her huge inputs.
Later, she was employed by Skype in 2006, fulfilling the role of Director and the Member of the Executive Management Team. At Skype, she ran the teams that were accountable for product planning, user interface design, payments, brand management, and advertising channels. Her management abilities came to the fore manifesting through the completion of a substantial series of product upgrades at the time.
In 2009, Mukherjee took up the position of the Managing Director and General Manager of Gumtree, which is a web-based classified ad and community website headquartered in the UK. Through her strategic approach, Gumtree skyrocketed from third to first place in the UK OCM (online classified market) category.
Entrepreneurial Venture: Founding LimeRoad
LimeRoad was first an idea, and personal experiences gave birth to it. Shortly after Mokherjee’s second child was born, she was leafing through a magazine when she saw jewelry that she is drawn to.
Although, it was hard to shop for this item as there was no open channel to link customers with such products. This observation was the driving force behind her later LimeRoad concept. An e-commerce platform has been introduced to help customers discover and buy rare and fascinating products within budget.
In 2012, Mukherjee along with his co-founders Ankush Mehra and Prashant Malik established the LimeRoad project. The platform was primarily directed at ladies and was offering diverse items, which included clothes, accessories, and household décor.
LimeRoad by introducing social discovery features made it possible for users to create as well as share with others their preferred fashion through personalized scrapbooks. This original idea of connecting people turned out to be the secret to the company’s success and now LimeRoad has become the “it” thing in the e-commerce industry.
Growth and Achievements
Mukherjee has effectively governed LimeRoad through the situation of a fast pace of expansion. The platform announced the fact that 150% revenue growth and traffic was achieved and now for the second place in the online fashion sector in India at the end of 2017.
LimeRoad’s users became more than just a user, 50 million were the number of visitors and it had outstanding conversion rates as well as capital efficiency. It has connected its sellers as well as women curators to the community that, in turn, has given rise to the introduction of thousands of new fashion items to the market every day, creating a platform that is both dynamic and attractive to users.
Awards and Recognition
Mukherjee’s entrepreneurial journey has already been rewarded with the following accolades:
- INFOCOM Women of the Year Award (2015)
To express appreciation for her role in the technological and business fields.
- Women Super Achiever Award
As proof of successful female entrepreneurship she won this award.
- Sanmarg ‘You Inspire’ Special Award for Pride of Bengal at the Sanmarg Aparajita Awards (2017):
Paying tribute to her as a model for entrepreneurial hopefuls.
- Woman Entrepreneur of the Year at NDTV Unicorn Start-up Awards (2016)
In the start-up ecosystem, her role was recognized due to her leadership and inspiration.
- ASSOCHAM Women Entrepreneur of the Year (2018)
Appropriate words of praise to her for her business community participation.
Family and Personal Life
Suchi Mukherjee’s spouse is Sandeep Kunte, a director (Treasury) at Barclays. The couple met in New Delhi and got married in 2006. They have a daughter and a son. Family has become a common theme, which Mukherjee’s personal struggles and achieving a balanced life due to their support have been discussed by Mukherjee in numerous instances.
The Final Note
In the end, Suchi Mukherjee’s journey from a middle-class upbringing in Haryana to becoming the founder and CEO of LimeRoad is a remarkable story of perseverance, vision, and leadership. Her academic excellence, illustrious corporate career, and entrepreneurial spirit have redefined the e-commerce landscape in India.
LimeRoad’s innovative approach, combined with Suchi’s commitment to empowering women and small businesses, has made it a game-changer in the fashion and lifestyle industry. Her achievements, both personal and professional, continue to inspire countless individuals, proving that with determination and ingenuity, barriers can be broken, and aspirations can become reality.
