Fearless, confident, and smart, Apeksha Gupta became the youngest CEO and creative director of one of the leading D2C eyewear brands, John Jacobs, in 2018. Her strong sense of clarity channels her mindset for a revolutionary, technology-driven future for eye fashion. Her on-the-go style preference of a sleek dress, blazer, and structured eyeglasses identifies her fierce, chic, and feminine bent.
Apeksha started her career in a luxury space, a segment where India was still lacking. She worked as an intern with Future Brands and later shifted to Reliance Brands, Diesel, and Super Dry. The branding and provocative imagery used by Diesel in its heydays came as a fresh outlet for a bigger change. Demonetization and its impact on the luxury space allowed her to expand her focus towards larger markets, where external problems were not much of a hindrance for the business.
She also learned the children’s business at Marks and Spencers, to break into the larger space. Apeksha’s early likes of exploring the omnichannel and online retail segment in Diesel increased her curiosity towards exploring more of the retail segment in the fashion industry.
Having worked with many international luxury brands, Apeksha had realized that hopping on global and larger markets was a good way to shine out. She joined John Jacobs at its nascent stage and focused on building it as a digitally native Indian customer brand that focuses on larger markets as well as niche areas.
She said, “We realized price in India is an easy battle to lose. We focused on a customer base that values transparency, ease of lifestyle, and curation. Two years ago, we became the largest independent brand in the country.” Apeksha aims John Jacobs to be the default eyewear option for customers by seamlessly blending into their lifestyle.
Her forward-thinking mindset and product-focused technology-driven strategies led to the successful evolution of an economic model that aces on its quality, style, authenticity, and innovation. Overcoming every obstacle with flamboyance and allowing work to speak for itself, Apeksha Gupta is one of the true women entrepreneurs, who have revolutionized the world of business.
