Why Zepto’s young founders are obsessed with hiring seasoned execs

In November 2021, after operating in stealth mode for six months, 10-minute grocery-delivery platform Zepto announced a Series A fundraise of $60 million from Glade Brook Capital, Nexus, and Y Combinator, among others. The market was at its competitive peak then, with Instamart, Blinkit and Dunzo all looking to win investor capital with fast deliveries.

During the funding process, the 19-year-old founders, Aadit Palicha and Kaivalya V, faced a common question from investors: why Zepto? In response, they told the investors to look at their team. 

By then, the Mumbai-headquartered startup’s C-suite was up and running. It had hired industry veterans for the roles of COO, CBO, CMO and CFO. These specialists had been poached from Rivigo, Flipkart, PharmEasy and Uber Eats.

In December, about 45 days after the Series A round, Zepto announced another $100-million round led by YC Continuity, at a $570 million valuation. The following month the startup hired its CHRO and CCO.