The story of Shark Tank India 5 judge Mohit Yadav is a powerful testament to resilience in the Indian startup ecosystem. After facing setbacks with two initial ventures, Yadav, along with his brother, took a monumental risk by mortgaging his family home to launch the skincare brand Minimalist. This bold move ultimately led to the creation of a brand valued at a staggering Rs 2,955 crore.
The Rocky Road Before Skincare Success
Mohit Yadav's entrepreneurial spirit was ignited long before he became a familiar face on Shark Tank India Season 5. A native of Jaipur, Yadav had a solid corporate foundation, having worked with giants like Deloitte and serving as an Assistant Vice President at Credit Suisse in the late 2000s.
His first foray into business began in 2008 when he partnered with his younger brother, Rahul Yadav, a chemical engineer from IIT Roorkee. Together, they launched Scopial Fashion, an online T-shirt store that later pivoted to become Mangostreet, a kids' fashion brand. Funded with family money, the venture struggled to scale and was eventually sold to Hushbabies.com.
Undeterred, Mohit then joined CarDekho as Vice President before leaving to start Free Will, a startup focused on customized haircare. While this company still exists, it failed to achieve the large-scale growth the brothers envisioned. These experiences, however, were not in vain.
Betting the House on Minimalist
The breakthrough came when Mohit and Rahul Yadav channeled the consumer insights from Free Will into a new concept. In October 2020, they launched The Minimalist, an ingredient-first skincare brand promising clean and transparent products, starting with a range of targeted serums.
The launch capital, however, came at a tremendous personal cost. On Shark Tank India, Mohit revealed the extreme risk he took. "We had mortgaged our house to raise a Rs 1 crore loan," he confessed. He acknowledged the gravity of the decision, stating he was aware that if the venture failed, his family might be left without a home.
The gamble paid off almost immediately. Starting with merely 200-300 Instagram followers, Minimalist's first product batch sold out in days. Its follower count skyrocketed to 10,000 within 48 hours, and the brand achieved a remarkable Rs 100 crore in revenue within just eight months of launch.
The Massive Payoff and Lessons in Failure
The brand's astronomical rise culminated in a landmark deal in 2025. Hindustan Unilever acquired over 90% of Minimalist's stake at a valuation of Rs 2,955 crore (approximately $350 million USD), marking one of the most significant exits in the Indian D2C skincare space.
Reflecting on his journey from failure to phenomenal success, Mohit Yadav shared a crucial lesson for founders on Shark Tank. He spoke about moving past the fear of personal failure associated with shutting down a business. "The best thing I did was to accept that that venture was not working out, move on and do something else... I wouldn't have been here if I was still doing apparel," he advised, emphasizing that a founder's identity should not be tied to a single venture.
His story underscores a vital narrative in India's booming startup culture: that calculated risk, learning from past mistakes, and the courage to pivot are often the bedrock of monumental success.
