New Delhi, Delhi, India
12K followers
500+ connections
12K followers
500+ connections
About
Founder at Rozana.in ,a rural commerce platform, bringing E-Commerce to almost a billion…
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12K followers
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Ankur D. shared thisLike always, I wanted to share something close to my heart. 3 months ago, Samuh did not exist. Today, it is at a 100 Cr revenue ARR. Honestly, this journey started with Adwait . He saw something very early, spent sleepless nights thinking through it, learning, unlearning and questioning a lot of conventional wisdom around how consumer brands are built in India and whether Bharat is truly being seen deeply enough. What kept pushing all of us further were our consumers, peer partners, on-ground teams and our conversations with some incredible FMCG leaders like Hemant Malik, Kannan Sitaram, Adarsh Menon, Kanwaljit Singh @Nitin Paranjpe, Rajneet Kohli, Vivek Gupta, @Deepak Aggarwal, Rishabh Jain, Harsh Mariwala, Rishabh Mariwala and Damodar Mall . It kept pointing us in one direction, towards a market we were already living inside every single day. And this feels like proof of something much larger. For years, most modern consumer brands in India have been built looking at the same consumers, the same cities and mostly the same channels. Meanwhile, the largest consumption market in the world kept sitting in plain sight. Rural India is not a “future market”. It is already one of the most powerful consumption engines on the planet. What it lacks is not aspiration. It lacks access, trust, better choices and brands built deeply enough for its realities. That is what we are trying to build with Samuh and Rozana :) A gateway to a billion hearts and a billion dreams. What we think about everyday is how can we make all our partners part of this growth. Not just by helping them earn more, but also by bringing back the empathy that often goes missing in large systems like a simple thank you, a founder visiting you and deeply listening to all the good and bad things a consumer or partner has to say. Grateful to all the amazing people who decided to continually work on making Samuh a brand we all can be proud of, I’ll write about some of these leaders in stories to come :) Looking forward to everything that comes ahead in this journey Thank you all for the love, belief and continued support in this incredibly meaningful journey Grateful 🙏 Rozana Bertelsmann India Investments Fireside Ventures Vivek Gupta Adwait Vikram Singh Mukesh Christopher Rohit Sood Pankaj Makkar Kanwaljit Singh https://lnkd.in/gqXhSasZRozana's rural FMCG brand Samuh hits ₹100 crore run rate in 3 monthsRozana's rural FMCG brand Samuh hits ₹100 crore run rate in 3 months
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Ankur D. shared thisWe’re looking to add rockstars to build for the forgotten billion! Do you know over a billion people live away from the flashy cities in deep rural Gram Panchayats, away from the Qcom ,flashy malls and squeaky clean airports? It's a world where children still aspire for sketch pens, crayons and sparklers are only in dreams. If you are motivated to build this 24x7, as a mission to dedicate precious years of your life. Open roles : 1. Founder’s Office 2. Category Managers/Leads 3. Business Finance These roles are not for everyone. The grit is hard but the experience is super rich. It will expand your universe and thinking. You’ll deal with ambiguity. You’ll jump between strategy, operations, data and growth in the same week. Some days you’ll be in a spreadsheet. Some days you’ll be in the field understanding how villages shop and how we can serve them better. But if you like building things and solving hard problems, you’ll love it. Lets Change India What you’ll do: * Work closely with founders on high-impact problems * Turn ideas into execution * Solve complex, real-world problems If this sounds exciting, we should talk. 🚀 Pls feel free to reach out by filling this form, we will get back asap :) https://lnkd.in/gEWciQBH
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Ankur D. shared thisMany rock stars change the world from behind scenes. Their humility is their greatness. PS: Rocking with the real life Rockstar 😀 @Nandan Nilekani
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Ankur D. shared thisToday, Licious turns 10. A milestone not just in time — but in belief, grit, and quiet reinvention. When we think of great companies, we often think of scale. Numbers. Markets. Headlines. But I have had the privilege of witnessing the human story behind one of India’s boldest food brands. And I’ve learned this — Licious isn’t just built on meat. It’s built on madness. On method. And on a kind of belief that doesn’t waver when the world does. Vivek — you’ve been more than just a founder I admire. You’ve been a builder I’ve learned from. Someone who reminds us that every brand we see… began with someone betting everything on an idea that felt — too early, too ambitious, too “India won’t get this.” You taught the world to expect better. And then built the team, the supply chain, the emotion to deliver it. Here’s to the dreamers , the believers — Abhay Hanjura and Vivek Gupta and to 10 years of Licious To all the people behind it. And to the next decade of building brands that are not just successful — but deeply loved. Tons of love ❤️ From Rozana and Us :) Adwait & Ankur #LiciousTurns10 #Thodaaur #Founders #BrandLove #Belief
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Ankur D. shared thisThe Forgotten Billion! This is exactly what Rozana stands for, the underserved billion. If we all imagine a world where children do not have access to quality stationary, women do not have access to quality lipstick. These billion dreams and aspirations is what Rozana focuses on building. It was humbling to have, Damodar Mall , Nitin Paranjpe , Kanwaljit Singh visit Rozana villages and see how we are changing communities in rural India. This is to an empowered Billion Consumers! Adwait, Kanwaljit, Vivek, Mukesh ,Abhijit, Adarsh, Amit, Nitya, Pankaj, Rohit, Madhu Rozana Fireside Ventures Bertelsmann India Investments , 3one4 CapitalAnkur D. shared this‘Humko ab bada mobile (smartphone) chalana aata hai. Phone pe Order karna, Delivery tracking, Return…sab kar letey hain..’. ‘Kya cosmetics aur hamare kheton ke liye beej bhi phone order pe mil sakta hai?’ Women in UP villages share their confidence and wishes with us. Emerging, yet asserting new Bharat 👌🏾! Thank you Rozana for taking us lifelong HUL friends - Kanwaljit Singh , Nitin Paranjpe & me on a rural market day, together. Amazing energy, exciting possibilities for Rozana, under the founder leaders Ankur D. Adwait Vikram Singh .
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Ankur D. shared thisIt's with great pleasure that share that I have been nominated for the prestigious ‘ET Startup Awards’! This year has seen my ups and downs, from securing Series A investment from India’s top funds Bertelsmann India Investments, Fireside Ventures, 3one4 Capital to the honour of receiving "Express Awards" , presented by 'Financial Times & IndusInd Bank' and now this humbling nomination from The Economic Times. But this isn't just my journey, there have been moments when life slowed me down, when I am hospitalised, being away from the very thing I build . Today, when I look around, many spectacular people have joined the Rozana team and have continued to run the ship better than I alone could , their strength gives me mine. But today , more importantly,I want to take this opportunity to write about the scope of first generation women entrepreneurs making it in the corporate world, specially those with humble beginnings. This is the best time since the start of humanity for women and especially from rural backgrounds to not only dream but achieve big. This nomination is truly humbling but I also want to share this with every woman from a small town, from a village who dared to defy circumstances, who envisioned a life beyond what the world prescribed for her. This is our time, this the time to not only dream , to not only break free from chains of what once was impossible but also to fly. I hope and look forward to more women from rural India break the shackles of their predestined fate and make their dreams come true. I am beyond grateful thankful to the ecosystem, friends and family who keep supporting me in this journey every minute. You are the reason I am able to write this today, and this honour belongs to all of you . Thank you :) Adwait Vikram Singh Vivek Gupta Kanwaljit Singh Pankaj MakkarRohit Sood Nitya Agarwal Ronnie Screwvala Roopa Satish Gaur Gopal Das Mukesh Christopher Abhijit Upadhye Indian Institute of Management, Lucknow
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Ankur D. shared thisMy diary from 2 weeks on a hospital bed - Since Rozana’s investment, we’ve been investing our days and nights in building India’s most loved rural company. I'vent mentioned it before, I've suffered with migraines. They’ve been almost like a life partner. But over the last month,they've shifted in with me. As any founder would know, they became my last priority. I pushed through my packed schedule, ignoring this unwelcome co-passenger. Just before a big trip to Amsterdam, where I was excited to speak at Bertelsmann SE & Co. KGaA Conference and meet inspiring people, on my co-founder’s insistence I went to see one of India’s top neurologist. Tests came perfect,just before letting me go,doctor decided to do a lumbar puncture, seemed like a normal test. I went in,hoping to get out in max 48 hrs . Unfortunately the test wrecked havoc.I was in immense pain,couldn’t even get up from a lying down position.The doctor got worried and got MRIs done.They realised the pressure in brain has gone down. For last few days, I was still in high spirits and wasn’t agreeing to cancel my trip. Ultimately it dawned on me that I have to keep lying down straight on a bed. For a person who couldn’t sit still ,this hospital bed became my universe, while the world galloped on. Whoever knows me, life is about changing the world.For a person like that to fight a daily battle to just get up and sit on a bed has been the biggest war. Everyday, I feel the world is passing by and I am alone. After deep anguish, and thousands of tonnes of pain, I m fighting back.It has been truly suffocating to keep on looking at the blank ceiling for days with no access to outside world. I eventually am learning to focus & rebuild my energy. The doctors are of great help. With their help and motivation I hope to get up and run again. I've been trying for several days to get up, it has been like lifting a mountain on my head, like 100 migraines rolled into one. Slowly but definitely steadily I am winning back. After many days I am sitting on my bed without support. We take many things in life for granted, need to thank our stars to be physically abled to do our chores ourselves. I always knew it but the gravity of the situation just dawned on me. My eagerness to get back to my office and community has grown manifold. With more motivation than ever before, I will be working to change and revolutionising forgotten India . But it has also made me sensitive to small things in life, things that can change with just a little more empathy. I will be much harder as I get back to full work. But today I am fighting to get up back on my feet. God willing very soon I will be back in action. I want to say, that I am deeply missing the missed opportunity to speak at the Bertelsmann SE & Co. KGaA conference with Carsten. The missed opportunity to explore Amsterdam with Pankaj, Rohit, Adwait and Jayesh. But as we say, we live to fight another day. Shobhna Mohn Rozana.in Bertelsmann India Investments
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Ankur D. shared thisI am thrilled and deeply moved to share some incredible news about two of my dearest friends, Vivek Gupta and Abhay Hanjura They have been honored as Entrepreneurs of the Year by All India Management Association (AIMA) sharing this prestigious recognition with luminaries like Karan Johar, Sanjiv Puri , and N Ram of The Hindu. Witnessing them stand shoulder to shoulder with such titans was a profoundly inspiring moment. The journey of Vivek and Abhay - the powerhouses behind Licious is nothing short of awe-inspiring. I've often been left with goosebumps hearing about their relentless drive and the hurdles they've overcome. They are not just brilliant entrepreneurs but shining beacons for me and countless others, guiding us with their wisdom and integrity. Vivek, has been a monumental figure in my life—caring for me, inspiring me, guiding me, and sometimes even scolding me, all of which has profoundly shaped me. Every day, I strive to reflect his values in my work at Rozana.in, hoping to infuse it with the same love and dedication that makes Licious so special. While we at Rozana have always seen them as our entrepreneurs of the year, it’s heartwarming to see AIMA recognize their remarkable contributions too. Eagerly looking forward to witnessing the continued growth and success of Licious, and to all the new benchmarks you will undoubtedly set in the future. Upwards and Onwards Doston 🙌 Vivek Gupta Abhay Hanjura Adwait Vikram Singh Mukesh Abhijit Licious Rozana.in All India Management Association (AIMA) Bertelsmann India Investments Fireside Ventures 3one4 Capital
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Thank you for the kind words and always being there Carsten Coesfeld . Grateful to all of you :) and especially Pankaj Makkar & Rohit Sood
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Ankur D. liked thisMilestones like this are won on the ground by exceptional people. Proud of the entire Rozana family for driving Samuh to this fantastic achievement! Great leadership update from Ankur D. - on to the next chapter of growth! 🙌Rozana's rural FMCG brand Samuh hits ₹100 crore run rate in 3 monthsRozana's rural FMCG brand Samuh hits ₹100 crore run rate in 3 months
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Ankur D. reacted on thisAnkur D. reacted on thisToday is a day of immense pride and celebration for our family. My wife, #Richa #Khoda, has been promoted as Chief Commissioner of Income Tax. 🇮🇳 Watching her journey as a dedicated civil servant in Income Tax, as a Commissioner, Women and Child Development, Rajasthan and as a Joint Secretary, Department of Health Research has been nothing short of inspiring. This elevation is a true testament to her stellar leadership, vast experience, and unwavering commitment to the service of the nation. #Congratulations, #Richa ! May this new chapter bring even greater opportunities to make a positive impact. So proud of you! ❤️ #GovtOfIndia #IRS #IncomeTax #WomenInPower #LeadershipExcellence #ProudHusband Maitreyi Singh Sumeet Jarangal Chaahat Khattar Vikram Singh Viraji Singh Uttam Siinghal Anisha Kukreja Rajiv Kaul
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