ShopClues Founder, Radhika Aggarwal: First Indian Woman to Join the Unicorn Club
Radhika Aggarwal’s journey inspires millions of women who aspire to become independent. Here are the key takeaways from her story.
The e-commerce company ShopClues, which was founded in 2011 with barely 10 employees, currently has Radhika Ghai Aggarwal as its Chief Business Officer (CBO) and Co-Founder. She is the country of India’s first woman co-founder whose business has joined the unicorn club. Sandeep Aggarwal, who co-founded ShopClues with Radhika and Sanjay Sethi, was Radhika’s husband. Before leaving the company in 2013, Sandeep was its CEO.
A family of soldiers gave birth to Radhika Ghai Aggarwal. Her mother worked as a nutritionist, while her father served in the Indian Army. She married Sandeep Aggarwal, whom she had first met while attending college. But the couple ultimately divorced in 2017. When Sandeep was detained by the FBI in 2013, their bond began to deteriorate.
We shall honour and discuss Radhika Aggarwal’s battle against all the hurdles in this article as she founded the online shopping company ShopClues and overcame all obstacles to become the first woman in India to join the unicorn club.
Radhika Aggarwal’s early life and education
She was an Army ward and spent her youth attending various schools in 10 different towns, including Pathankot, Ahmednagar, and Jodhpur. She was able to meet new people and adjust to the challenging change as a result of her travels, which enabled her to run a business without being impacted by difficult obstacles and changes.
After her father retired from the Army at the age of 45, he opened his fitness club in 1992, with active assistance from Radhika. When her father’s business was just getting started, she worked as a fitness trainer. She also received her 400 rupee first pay check in this manner.
In 1997, she established her very first advertising agency in Chandigarh, adopting her father’s supreme business mind-set. Although she had an entrepreneurial streak, she would say that Chandigarh’s lack of options had a major role in her decision to start her own advertising agency.
Talking about her educational front, after finishing her undergraduate studies and concluding her brief tenure as the proprietor of an advertising agency, Radhika Aggarwal eventually enrolled in an MBA programme in 1999. From Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, Radhika pursued an MBA. She also has a post-graduate degree in public relations and advertising. Additionally, Radhika took part in a Stanford University executive programme.
Radhika Aggarwal’s stint with ShopClues
ShopClues was founded in 2011 by Radhika Aggarwal, Sandeep Aggarwal, and Sanjay Sethi. Prior to that, she ran FashionClues, a platform for NRI women’s content. In four years, the company reached a valuation of $1.1 billion and joined the club of unicorns. It reached its peak in the Indian e-commerce market in 2016 with half a million sellers on the site. ShopClues was purchased by Qoo10 in 2019 for $70 million. Aggarwal continues to serve as the company’s CBO. Since she founded ShopClues, she has received various honours. At the Entrepreneur India Awards in 2016, Aggarwal was awarded Woman Entrepreneur of the Year. Aggarwal founded Kindlife.com in 2021 as a new business. It is a marketplace for different types of organic goods. Many Indian women who wish to launch their own businesses look up to her as an inspiration.
Radhika Aggarwal’s journey inspires millions of women who aspire to become independent. Here are the key takeaways from her story.
Radhika Aggarwal became the first Indian woman to join the Unicorn club after founding ShopClues. The woman has put a lot of effort into starting from scratch, working hard to get experience in a variety of industries. Her experience shows us that perseverance is the secret to success. It instils in us a sense of commitment, resolve, and endurance. We can achieve our goals if we work hard every day. Second, we must never quit and always learn from our failures. Anyone, regardless of gender, is capable of anything. Never forget to have faith in your goals and in yourself.
The best example of a woman who successfully manages motherhood and her business while rejecting the word “sacrifice” is definitely the founder of ShopClues, Radhika Aggarwal. Her remarkable story continues to inspire millions of women around the globe.
