Shark Tank India judge Vineeta Singh is one of the most popular entrepreneurs in India’s startup circuit. She’s also one part of a prominent founder-couple, the other being her husband Kaushik Mukherjee. The two met during their MBA days at Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Ahmedabad and later created their success story together. 

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Before founding two startups with Vineeta, Kaushik worked for global names like Goldman Sachs and McKinsey & Company. The couple got married in 2011 and then founded Sugar Cosmetics. Their first funding happened in 2017. 

The company earned Rs 52 lakhs in just the first year, a pleasant yet unexpected surprise. The sales grew to Rs 11 crore in 2017 and had spiked to Rs 105 crore by 2020. Sugar Cosmetics reached a valuation of around $500 million (over Rs 4,000 crore) in May 2022 after raising $50 million in Series D funding. 

Who is Kaushik Mukherjee, co-founder and COO of Sugar Cosmetics?

While Vineeta is Delhi born and schooled, Kaushik grew up in Kolkata’s New Alipore. He did his schooling from Don Bosco School. Like Vineeta, he is also an electrical engineer. His wife did her engineering degree from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras. He earned his degree from the equally prestigious Birla Institute of Technology and Sciences (BITS) Pilani. At IIM-A, he was selected as the “best all-rounder” of his batch.

Kaushik comes from a “very aspirational” middle-class Bengali family where he was driven to be good in studies. Growing up, he tried his hands on a number of skills in arts and sports including playing cricket and hockey, learning to play the sitar, and singing, he once revealed in an interview.  He also likes music and swimming. The power couple stays in Mumbai’s Powai in their lavish residence and run the fast growing cosmetics brand together. 

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