Myntra’s Musical Chairs

Earlier this week, when Myntra announced that Nandita Sinha would be stepping down as CEO, it may be a surprise to those who may not have followed Myntra’s journey since the very beginning. But it’s something that Myntra has done time and again at critical junctures.  

Now begins the Sharon Pais era. The new Myntra CEO, also a Flipkart veteran like her predecessor, is being seen as someone who can carry the torch forward ahead of a potential IPO. 

“The recent leadership transition reflects the depth of internal leadership and a planned evolution as the business enters its next phase. Myntra has a strong bench of leaders, and the focus remains on continuity of execution and long-term growth,” a Myntra spokesperson told Inc42. 

Sinha took over from Amar Nagaram (now, the founder of Virgio) in late 2021 who himself had only been the CEO for two years after the exit of former McKinsey executive Ananth Narayanan, who led the company from 2015 to 2019. 

A Flipkart insider since 2013, she took Myntra towards profitability in four years as CEO and got it to the position of one of the leading fashion ecommerce platforms in the world. 

Even if Sinha’s replacement was not surprising, the timing was. After all, it was under her leadership that Myntra finally broke into profits. 

It was also during Sinha’s tenure that Myntra branched out into private labels, new channels like quick commerce and experimented with multiple apps within its main app.

Many might say Sinha, who had been CEO since the beginning of 2022, took Myntra to a comfortable position even in the face of growing competition from AJIO, Amazon, Meesho and others. 

Naturally there are questions about the timing. 

After The Turn To Profits

“She knew the Flipkart Group inside out, could drive top line and profitability, and manage the complex relationship between Myntra and its parent, Flipkart and Walmart. She did deliver on those fronts,” one source close to the Myntra leadership said.

When Sinha joined in 2022, the company was loss-making. It reported a loss of ₹782 Cr in FY23. Tables turned, and the ecommerce fashion major swung into the black in FY24, reporting a profit of ₹31 Cr. The bottom line further soared to ₹548 Cr in FY25, while revenue climbed 18% to ₹6,042 Cr.

For the first time in its history, Myntra was meaningfully, and not nominally, profitable.

According to sources close to the Flipkart group, it is the only consistently profitable business within the broader Flipkart ecosystem, especially with an IPO said to be on the horizon for the ecommerce giant. 

Sources indicate that Myntra’s profitability surge has been substantially driven by two levers — improved logistics efficiencies and cost rationalisation. 

Unlike Amazon, Myntra mandates that sellers use its own Myntra Logistics platform for all fulfillment and shipping. This automatically gives Myntra an extra revenue lever in the tight marketplace unit economics scheme of things.  

Besides this, Myntra slashed warehousing and inventory storage costs by allowing sellers to store, pack and label inventory, which is being seen as a game-changer in the fashion ecommerce space.

On the face of it, the business seems to be growing well and is showing improved margins as well. So why did the parent Flipkart Group decide to switch things around now? The answer may lie in where Myntra’s focus was till last year.  

The Private Label Drag

Insiders close to Flipkart Group CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy revealed that Myntra’s private label business is the one under scrutiny now. 

 At its peak between 2020 and 2023, Myntra’s private labels, including Roadster, HRX, Here & Now, Dressberry, among others contributed as much as 25%-30% of the platform’s revenues, according to sources we spoke to.

Private labels, by definition, offer higher gross margins because the ecommerce platform owns the brand and has complete control over pricing, inventory positioning, and customer experience. It also reduces Myntra’s sourcing burden when it comes to other brands. 

However, in the past 15-18 months, Myntra’s private label revenue share has fallen substantially, sources told us The business has not scaled in proportion to Myntra’s overall growth, even though products and brands continue to be listed.

Building and scaling private labels requires deep investment in design, sourcing, inventory, and marketing. This business demands working capital, has inventory risks, and needs sustained investment towards brand building. 

This does not align with the broader fashion ecommerce market trends, which is bent towards affordable categories and wider selection as well as audiences in smaller cities and towns. Myntra’s private label brands faced a structural problem within this trend. 

Private label brands are inherently more premium in terms of pricing and therefore better suited for urban and affluent shoppers. On the other hand, new users in India are coming from smaller cities and are focussed on affordability as a proposition. 

This is where private labels cannot compete, and why unbranded marketplaces such as Meesho continue to grow.  

The costs of maintaining the operations of these private labels, like design teams, exclusive sourcing relationships, and brand marketing, have continued to mount, even as revenues are declining.

“Right now, 90% of Myntra’s private label manufacturing is being outsourced to third-party vendors due to rising costs related to workforce and sourcing,” a source said.

As Inc42 has reported, textile manufacturing has taken a hit due to worker shortage in key states and regions as the LPG crisis has spiralled out of hand. This will continue to add pressure on private label margins.

The New Playbook: Back To Roots

Now, with Pais at the helm and the IPO clock ticking, private labels are the last thing on Myntra’s mind. The Flipkart Group’s expectation is that Myntra needs to turn its private label business around and show improved margins. 

Established Indian and international brands, are its focus, along with new-age brands for Gen Z shoppers.

Myntra’s international brand portfolio saw 50% growth YOY in the March quarter, as part of 40 new brands brought on board in 2026. From a house of brands, Myntra is back to its marketplace beginnings. 

It wants to work with global brands seeking a structured entry into the Indian market.

“Myntra’s pitch is access to 75-80 Mn monthly active users, delivery coverage across 98% of serviceable pin codes, and a platform built on personalised discovery and data-driven fashion intelligence.” 

Venu Nair, a retail veteran of 30 years and former MD and CEO of Shoppers Stop, is heading strategic partnerships and omnichannel at the company. 

M-Now, the quick commerce vertical launched by Sinha and team in November 2024, is another focus area for new brands. As of November 2025, M-Now accounted for approximately 10% of total orders in the 10 cities it is present in.

Pais and co will have to double down on the M-Now growth and capitalise on enabling newer brands to tap this route to ultimately make this new strategy work. Currently, Myntra still lacks a wide selection of SKUs and brands to command leverage. Will that change under Pais’ leadership? 

It’s also clear that the Flipkart Group wants to keep a closer eye on Myntra, and Pais’ background of leading Flipkart Fashion — a pure marketplace business, one might add — is certainly going to be central to Myntra’s return to the marketplace roots, as we said. 

For Myntra, 2026 marks a turning point. Sources say the real story is all about cost-cutting, rethinking private labels, and stress-testing every revenue stream before Flipkart files its draft IPO papers.  

It’s also clear Myntra is no longer a high-risk, high-reward experiment. Will Pais be the one to lead Myntra into this new phase? 

Edited By Shishir Parasher & Nikhil Subramaniam

Creatives By Abhyam Gusai 

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