Minimalist
Leadership History
2 leaders · 2020 to present
Mohit Yadav is the CEO of Minimalist, in the role since 2020.
| Name | Role | From | To | Years in role |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mohit Yadav | Co-founder & CEO | 2020 | Present | 6 |
| Rahul Yadav | Co-Founder | 2020 | Present | 6 |
Minimalist is one of India's best-known 'science-first' D2C skincare brands. Founded in Jaipur in October 2020, it sells serums, moisturizers, sunscreens and hair treatments whose labels state the active ingredient and its percentage. It raised a $15 million Series A in 2021, grew past ~$58 million (₹500 crore) revenue in FY25, and became a 90.5%-owned HUL subsidiary in April 2025. The company is headquartered in Jaipur, India. The revolutionary Indian "science-first" clinical skincare brand was founded in October 2020 in Jaipur, Rajasthan, India, by brothers Mohit Yadav and Rahul Yadav under Uprising Science, disrupting opaque beauty marketing with radical ingredient transparency.
Minimalist sells its own branded skincare, haircare and bodycare products; product sales account for all of its revenue. Most sales come through its D2C website (beminimalist.co) and marketplaces such as Amazon, Nykaa and Flipkart, with quick-commerce apps and offline retail adding reach. Advertising and promotion is the largest cost: ~$27.3 million (₹235 crore) in FY26, over 35% of total expenses, while marketplace commissions and distribution cost ~$11.3 million (₹97.4 crore). Since April 2025 the brand sits inside HUL's Beauty & Wellbeing division.
Co-founder & CEO
2020 – Present
6 years (current)
Raised a $15 million Series A in 2021, kept the business profitable in FY24, and negotiated the 2025 sale of 90.5% to Hindustan Unilever.
Chartered accountant and former Credit Suisse AVP who built Minimalist around front-of-pack ingredient disclosure.
Co-Founder
2020 – Present
6 years (current)
Yadav aggressively modeled the brand's aesthetic and chemical transparency directly after the massive global success of 'The Ordinary,' perfectly tailoring the pricing strategy to capture the highly budget-conscious Indian middle class.
As Co-Founder, he steers the company's incredibly successful direct-to-consumer digital marketing strategy, heavily utilizing Instagram and YouTube influencers to rapidly build brand trust.
Advertising spend grew 55% to ~$27.3 million (₹235 crore) in FY26, keeping EBITDA margin at about 5.8%. Minimalist competes with fast-growing derma D2C brands such as The Derma Co, Foxtale and Dr. Sheth's, and with large owners buying similar brands, including L'Oréal's 2026 deal for a majority stake in Innovist (Bare Anatomy, Chemist at Play). Integrating into HUL without losing its founder-led, ingredient-first identity is an ongoing test.
Co-founder Mohit Yadav has led Minimalist since its 2020 launch and continued after HUL's acquisition.
Yes. He joined Shark Tank India Season 5 as a judge.
Growing revenue to ~$80.1 million (₹690.2 crore) in FY26 and selling 90.5% of the company to HUL at a ~$343 million (₹2,955 crore) valuation.
Mohit Yadav serves as CEO of Minimalist, co-founding the company with his brother Rahul Yadav. Mohit is an engineering graduate from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) who previously founded Carbingo (acquired by CarDekho) and built tech-enabled consumer ventures. He applies quantitative engineering discipline, rigorous supply chain metrics, and transparent communication to beauty marketing.
Mohit Yadav has consistently advocated for capital efficiency over hyper-dilutive growth. Despite significant investor interest, Minimalist only raised a single Series A round, using operational cash flows and in-house manufacturing margins to finance research laboratories and global expansion.
Because Minimalist sources pharmaceutical-grade active ingredients directly from leading chemical suppliers in Europe (such as BASF) and Japan, the leadership team operates vertical blending and packaging facilities in Jaipur, maintaining multi-month buffer inventories to ensure consistent product supply without price hikes.
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