Chapter 01 · 2020 → 2023
Classes and a squash court
I studied commerce at Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, University of Delhi, and spent the rest of my time competing on the squash court.
Where it started.
Four chaptersOpen a chapter to read it
Chapter 02 · DuckDuckBaby · 2023
Joining before there was anything
I joined DuckDuckBaby as one of its first ten people. There was no store and no catalogue yet, and my part was to build the baby-gear category from nothing.
From pre-launch to the first retail store.
What happened
I picked the brands, brought the vendors on board and chose what we would launch with. I set the prices and margins on the most expensive products in the business, and built the catalogue: how everything was organised, listed, written up and photographed.
I helped hire a small team and then ran it, working with marketing, supply chain and operations until the category was ready. It was on the shelves when the first retail store opened.
Chapter 03 · FinSetu · 2024
Betting my own money
Bninemine Financial found every customer over the phone. I believed they could find them online, and I put my own money behind the idea while the founder was still sceptical.
It ended in an acquisition.
What happened
I built the whole thing: the website, the paid ads, IVR and AI voice calls, and the qualification step that passed good leads to the loan team. I hired the people who ran it with me, and when it was needed, I let people go.
The channel made money from the day it launched. In 2025 Bninemine Financial acquired it, and that was my first exit.
Chapter 04 · Cask & Crystal · 2025 → now
Built a brand of my own
Then I started a company of my own. Cask & Crystal makes barware and sells it online and to restaurants, hotels, companies and weddings.
Built, and running today.
What's happening
I founded it in 2025 and set its direction: the brand, the range, and the glassmakers in Firozabad we work with. Today the team runs the online store, marketing and fulfilment.
Alongside the online store, our B2B side supplies logo-branded glassware to restaurants, hotels and events, and handles gifting for companies, Diwali and weddings, from the first brief to delivery.
Behind the team, five AI workflows handle cataloguing, ads, order-to-delivery and customer care. The fifth checks the other four and fixes their mistakes.
Visit caskandcrystal.in ↗