11 months ago
Pitch To Get Rich Star Darpan Singh's Rs 7,000 Crore Beauty Empire Collapses
Imagine a very popular toy company that was growing super fast and getting lots of praise.
The owner, Darpan, wanted it to be the biggest ever, like a giant toy store!
He kept buying more and more smaller toy shops and making new kinds of toys, spending a lot of money to grow even faster.
He even had a huge plan to buy another giant toy factory, but it didn't happen at the last minute.
Because he spent so much money trying to get bigger and didn't focus enough on making sure his existing toy sales were profitable, the company ran out of money.
It was like running so fast that he tripped and fell.
Now, all the little toy shops he bought have to be sold to new owners, and the big company he dreamed of is gone.
Darpan Singh's beauty empire, Good Glamm Group, once valued at Rs 7,000 crore, has collapsed.
The downfall was attributed to an aggressive growth strategy, often termed the 'momentum trap,' prioritizing expansion over profitability.
A critical Rs 3,000 crore acquisition deal failed at the last moment, exacerbating a severe liquidity crunch.
The company struggled to pay salaries and vendors, leading to individual brands being sold off to new owners.
Singh admits his biggest mistake was not knowing when to stop and consolidate, instead continuing to 'burn to grow'.
- Who
- Darpan Singh, former CEO of Good Glamm Group and angel investor on 'Pitch To Get Rich'
- What
- His Rs 7,000 crore beauty empire, Good Glamm Group, collapsed due to aggressive expansion and a failed acquisition deal, leading to brands being sold piecemeal.
- Where
- Primarily in India, where the Good Glamm Group operated and expanded.
- When
- July 2025 (when he posted on LinkedIn), reflecting on the downfall which occurred after achieving unicorn status in early 2020 and a failed Rs 3,000 crore acquisition deal.
- Why
- Over-prioritization of growth and expansion ('burning to grow') over profitability and financial consolidation, a major acquisition deal falling through, and organizational chaos due to rapid scaling.
Darpan Singh's Perspective
Investor's Advice
Growth Strategy
Darpan Singh's Perspective
Felt the need to constantly expand and acquire, believing rapid growth was key to success, even at the cost of profitability and financial stability.
Investor's Advice
Advised focusing on profitability and consolidation rather than aggressive expansion, warning against the risks of unchecked growth.
Focus Metric
Darpan Singh's Perspective
Prioritized topline growth and customer acquisition to attract further investment and double valuation, even if it meant sacrificing the bottom line.
Investor's Advice
Urged for profitability, specifically CM2 profitability (profit after marketing costs), as the core metric to ensure sustainable business operations.
Key facts
- Founder
- Darpan Singh
- Company
- Good Glamm Group
- Previous Valuation
- Rs 7,000 crore
- Key Mistake
- The 'momentum trap' - prioritizing rapid expansion and acquisitions over profitability and consolidation.
- Acquisition Deal Size
- Rs 3,000 crore
- Timeframe of Decline
- Within a year after achieving unicorn status in early 2020
- Brands Sold
- MyGlamm, The Moms Co., Sirona, St. Botanica, Organic Harvest, POPxo, BabyChakra
Quotes
Darpan Singh
CEO of Good Glamm Group and participant on Amazon Prime Video's 'Pitch To Get Rich'
“I had raised money, finished acquisitions — that was the time to take a breath and stabilise. But instead, I pursued my biggest acquisition yet — a Rs 3,000 crore deal that could have doubled my valuation to USD 2 billion. I spent six months on it, trying to show monthly growth instead of fixing the P&L. I burnt a lot of money.”
indianexpress.com
“In 2021, my only focus was customer acquisition. By the end of the year, we had 3.5 lakhs transacting customers every month. I should have made those transactions profitable, but I didn’t. I lost 1.5 years — and around Rs 600 crore.”
indianexpress.com
