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December 7, 2025
Gargi Sarkar, Inc42
7 December 2025
The past year has been nothing short of monumental for LensKart — from reporting another operationally profitable quarter in Q2 FY26 to making the public markets leap in November, and crossing a market capitalisation of INR 70,000 Cr despite a muted stock market debut.
A clear shift this year has been Lenskart’s effort to move beyond the image of a ‘basic D2C eyewear’ brand selling prescription glasses and sunglasses. The company is now working to reposition itself as a new-age tech brand.
Further, Lenskart is rethinking where and how its products are manufactured. Currently, around 20–25% of its frames are reportedly manufactured in India. The company is ramping up its domestic production. As a new manufacturing facility in Telangana is a work in progress, Lenskart intends to gradually shift most of its manufacturing operations from China to India.
In many ways, 2025 has been about scaling up for Lenskart, and as it embarks on a fresh journey as a publicly listed company, let’s take stock of the company in 2025 and where it might be headed in 2026.
Lenskart’s Smart Eyewear Bet
Lenskart began its smart eyewear journey last year with the launch of Phonic, its audio glasses. It later deepened its push into the segment by announcing a strategic investment in Ajna Lens, a Mumbai-based deeptech company that develops AI-powered XR glasses. Back then, Peyush Bansal described the move as the “next chapter” in Lenskart’s smart glasses journey.
Cut to December 2025, the company is all set to launch its AI camera smartglasses, B by Lenskart, by the end of this month.
What makes B by Lenskart noteworthy is that it isn’t being marketed as just another pair of smart glasses. The new eyewear features an integrated Sony camera that enables hands-free photo and video capture. The glasses come with a built-in AI assistant powered by Gemini 2.5 Live. They are designed to offer natural, conversational interactions and pack in a range of advanced features — from hands-free UPI payments and live translation to wellness insights and more.
What makes the move even more significant is Lenskart’s decision to open B by Lenskart to India’s developer ecosystem. By making its AI and camera technology accessible to consumer apps and independent developers, the company is enabling integrations across categories such as food delivery, entertainment, and fitness.
“By opening its AI smartglasses to third-party developers, Lenskart is moving from a one-time product-sale model to a platform ecosystem model. In the long run, this could unlock recurring revenue streams and higher margins,” said a product developer.
Besides, the company is aligning itself with a younger customer cohort, aided by affordability, style, and technology.
“That’s what seems to define their current strategy. Over time, they’ve also brought in elements of innovation like virtual try-ons, and any product, feature, or service that brings novelty and appeals to younger customers has become part of their brand approach,” said Devangshu Dutta, the founder of Third Eyesight.
Next, the timing couldn’t be better for Lenskart to place its bet on smart glasses. An IDC report reveals that despite a slowdown in smartwatch and earwear segments in the second half of 2025, smart glass shipments shot off more than 1,000% over the last year.
However, it’s not going to be smooth sailing from here.
At its core, Lenskart is still a consumer-facing company, and it needs new products to keep its revenue growing. But the competition is already heating up. Jio unveiled its own AI-powered smart glasses, Jio Frames, at Reliance Industries’ 48th annual general meeting. And of course, Meta continues to lead the global smart glasses market.
At this point, smart eyewear is a niche category, which comes with a hefty price tag.
“Unless cost drops dramatically, mass adoption is still a distant dream. As of now, the product will only attract early adopters and tech enthusiasts, rather than the mainstream consumer,” Dutta adds.
Lenskart’s Make In India Push
Lenskart is not only widening its product range but also ramping up its manufacturing. The company currently operates centralised manufacturing facilities in India (Bhiwadi in Rajasthan and Gurugram in Haryana), Singapore, and the UAE. It also has manufacturing operations in China.
Back home, Lenskart has also signed a non-binding MoU with the Government of Telangana for setting up a greenfield manufacturing facility for optical glasses. The proposed investment stands at INR 1,500 Cr and will be supported by certain incentives and assistance from the state government.
The new production facility is expected to strengthen Lenskart’s domestic manufacturing capabilities while reducing its exposure to foreign exchange fluctuations and import-related volatility.
However, the expansion comes with its own set of challenges. While the new manufacturing plant in Telangana is expected to strengthen Lenskart’s vertical integration, it will come with a hefty cost burden.
Profitability Still A Troubling Question
The cost structure is becoming increasingly important for Lenskart. Despite its headline-grabbing profitability, the company is still operating on fairly thin margins.
Lenskart reported a net profit of INR 297 Cr in FY25, a notable turnaround from a loss of INR 10 Cr in FY24. However, market analysts caution that the business’ core operations were unprofitable. It was largely “other income” or investment income that drove the FY25 bottom line.
“Though Lenskart has increased its revenue from INR 3,789 Cr in FY23 to INR 6,651 Cr in FY25, the company’s profitability has largely improved due to a rise in other income. While it reported a PAT of INR 297 Cr in FY25, a closer look shows that the profit was driven significantly by an increase in other income, which jumped to INR 356 Cr in FY25,” SimranJeet Singh Bhatia, senior research analyst for equity at Almondz Group.
The point of concern here is that Lenskart turned operationally profitable only after its market debut. Bhatia believes that at least three to four quarters of consecutive profitability will be needed to prove the company’s underlying strength.
However, making matters worse are the company’s climbing expenses, which stood at INR 1,980.3 Cr in Q2 FY26, up 18.5% YoY.
What Lies Ahead?
The year was equally sour for the eyewear major. While its IPO generated significant buzz and saw strong subscription levels, its market debut turned out to be a muted affair.
At the upper end of its INR 382 to INR 402 IPO price band, the public issue implied a price-to-earnings (P/E) multiple of roughly 235–238 times its FY25 profits, placing it among the most expensive consumer tech listings in India.
On its first day of trading, Lenskart Solutions Ltd. was listed on the NSE at INR 395 per share, a discount of 1.74% to the issue price of INR 402. The stock, however, fell close to 9% shortly thereafter. On the BSE, it debuted at INR 390, marking a discount of nearly 3%.
After the IPO, Bhatia adds, the biggest concern surrounding Lenskart is the store-level unit economics, particularly because a significant share of the IPO proceeds is being directed toward expanding its company-owned, company-operated store network.
Entering the new year as a public company, Lenskart will have to prove that its scale-up plans are justified and that it has greater control over its balance sheet. 2026 will be a critical juncture for the company, as the next three to four quarters will be closely watched for signs of sustainable growth, improved margins, and stronger operational discipline.
[Edited by Shishir Parasher]
(Published in Inc42)
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September 24, 2025
Shabori Das & Sagar Malviya, Economic Times
Bengaluru/Mumbai, 24 September 2025
Chinese fast-fashion platform Shein plans to triple the number of launches in India and shrink its design-to-launch timeline by a third to deepen its push into an increasingly competitive market, a top official said.
The company, which re-entered India through a partnership with Reliance Retail in February this year, said it is overhauling its supply chain to enable faster turnaround times. To achieve this, it has moved away from large-scale manufacturing hubs to smaller production lines with each line focused on creating a single new design daily.
“Our current timelines, measured from ‘thought to site’, stand at 46 days. We are targeting 30 days,” said Vineeth Nair, chief executive of Reliance’s fashion platform Ajio that steers Shein in India. “We currently deliver 320 styles a day – about 10,000 a month – and plan to scale that to over 30,000 styles monthly in the coming months,” he told ET.
Speaking about the speed of manufacturing, Nair said, “We quantify our options in terms of production lines, with each line optimised to deliver one design option per day, rather than factories. Some of our large production units have been repurposed into multiple lines.”
Shein first launched in India in 2018 with its own online shop. However, the app was banned by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) along with TikTok, WeChat and over 55 other Chinese apps.
One of the primary issues and controversies surrounding Shein’s India operations was the use of the consumer data by the Chinese apparel retailer.
Under the current partnership model, Reliance Retail is operating Shein under licensing agreement and ensures complete customer data ownership as per the company.
Unlike international markets, Shein India products are made in India.
“It’s still early days – just about three months since we introduced Shein to the India Gen Z,” Nair said. “And we are still in the process of adding multiple products, which we intend to do in the next few months.”
He said the brand is witnessing two million daily average users, dominated by 21-year-old women who account for 62% of the traffic.
Shein, the world’s biggest ecommerce-centred fashion retailer, however, may find it hard to replicate its global success in India, according to Devangshu Dutta, founder of retail consulting firm Third Eyesight.
“Shein’s edge internationally has been its speed of dropping its products, and the width of its product category. The India model is not the same. The India model of fashion is slower, and the product category width is not as large,” he noted. “Hence, the brand will in all probability end up competing with the already established market like Myntra, Zudio and the likes.”
(Published in Economic Times)
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April 15, 2024
Sagar Malviya, Economic Times
Mumbai, 15 April 2024
Spanish fashion company Inditex said it will launch youth clothing brand Bershka and Zara Home in India this year.
“Bershka will open its first store in Mumbai Palladium, and Zara Home will open in Bangalore,” it said in its latest annual report.
Inditex had launched fast fashion brand Zara in 2010 and premium clothing brand Massimo Dutti eight years ago. Its new offering, Bershka, will pitch it directly against Reliance Retail’s Yousta, which too targets the younger consumer segment.
Being the world’s second most-populous country, India is an attractive market for apparel brands, especially with youngsters increasingly embracing Western-style clothing. Fast fashion brands such as Zara and H&M became runaway successes soon after they entered the country.
Experts said Bershka’s target consumer profile is mostly teens to mid-20s, slightly younger than that of Zara, which is pitched at 20-40-year-old fashion-driven customers.
“The product assortment is different, with a higher share of knits, fewer dresses and more casual overall compared to Zara, keeping in line with the lifestyles of the customer group. So in that sense it wouldn’t cannibalise Zara in any serious way, though some of the younger set among Zara buyers could migrate some of their purchases to Bershka,” said Devangshu Dutta, founder of retail consulting firm Third Eyesight. “The biggest question is, can they hit the price points that young Indian fashion consumers want as with domestic brands such as Zudio, Yousta and others, or will consumers overlook higher prices for the style mix and a European brand pull in significant numbers to make the brand viable.”
According to a recent report by Motilal Oswal, the ₹2.5 lakh crore value fashion segment accounts for 57% of the total apparel market and is one of the largest and fastest-growing segments. A substantial untapped opportunity beyond the metros and tier-1 cities, driven by better demographics, higher incomes and greater customer aspiration, has compelled several big players to enter a market that was previously dominated by regional and local operators.
Since its inception in 2016-17, Zudio has seen considerable expansion and reached nearly 400 standalone stores, outpacing most apparel brands primarily due to its competitively priced products with an average selling price of ₹300. Following the success of Zudio, a unit of the Tata Group’s Trent, the segment has seen the entry of national retailers in the affordable youth clothing segment such as Yousta by Reliance Retail, Style-Up by Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail and Shoppers Stop’s InTune.
(Published in Economic Times)
admin
February 21, 2024
The ability of fashion businesses to endure and thrive in the face of stiff competition and changing market dynamics is all about adapting to innovation, customer-centricity, and strategic planning. The correlation between high performing fashion business and product innovation is undeniable.
This panel discussion brings Design and Business Heads together to brainstorm on how fashion companies can devise strategies to drive innovation to remain competitive, meet evolving consumer expectations, and stay ahead of the race.
Moderator: Devangshu Dutta, Founder & Chief Executive, Third Eyesight
Panelists:
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March 25, 2020
T. Surendar, The Morning Context
25 March 2020
Standing on the porch of the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Mumbai suburbs, Diwakar Vaish, co-founder of Noida-based AgVa Healthcare, was trying to catch the attention of software industry executives. This is at the annual conference hosted by IT trade body Nasscom. Vaish’s stall was a side-show for startups to exhibit digital technologies in the healthcare sector.
On a cool, breezy February day, the atmosphere was nothing as grim you would expect in a hospital emergency ward. Vaish’s rig, comprising an iPad-like device on a short steel column mounted on wheels with dangling wires, was a cost-effective version of a ventilator used in critical care. There wasn’t much excitement about his solution, as few executives really understood the medical problem he aimed to solve.
Today, a robotic engineer by training, Vaish is super busy.
It is not easy to get him on the phone, as AgVa’s ventilator is suddenly in demand from all parts of the country. The company is running three shifts fulfilling orders, which have been pouring in since it became apparent that Indian hospitals did not have enough ventilators for patients rendered ill by the novel coronavirus.
Unwittingly, the need for ventilators has once again drawn attention to India’s medical devices industry or the lack of it. So much so that Anand Mahindra, chairman of the $17 billion Mahindra group, which has interests in automobiles, software and resorts, said that he was finding ways to manufacture ventilators in his factories. It isn’t easy putting together a ventilator, not when you are racing against time, but Mahindra is a hardy businessman with deep pockets, and maybe, just maybe, he will succeed.
In many ways, the Indian medical devices industry is an anomaly. India has a space programme, a nuclear programme, it is among the few countries that has developed patented medicines and a low cost version of anything from power turbines to trucks but when it comes to medical equipment, it fares poorly.
India is also the biggest supplier of FDA-approved drugs to the US, the biggest pharmaceutical market in the world. Even as the Indian market for medical equipment has grown at double-digit rates in the last five years to Rs 1 lakh crore, two-thirds of its needs are met by foreign companies such as Philips, GE Healthcare, Siemens and Abbott.
Import domination is all pervasive extending to even non-critical but common equipment like sonography machines, dentistry chairs and diagnostic equipment. Less than five Indian companies had revenue of more than Rs 500 crore a year and 90% were classified as small scale, with annual revenue less than Rs 10 crore. The biggest player in the domestic market is the Rs 1,300 crore Mumbai-based Transasia Bio-Medicals, which makes in vitro diagnostic solutions that are exported to Western markets too.
“For a long time, the government was the biggest buyer of medical equipment and they always preferred imported equipment. That meant that it was not lucrative for local entrepreneurs to invest their capital in the sector,” says G.S.K. Velu, managing director of Trivitron Healthcare, which makes and exports imaging equipment.
The proliferation of private hospitals in the last two decades also did not change things much. With well-entrenched foreign players and a liberal import duty structure to make available the best facilities in India, there were few local companies of scale who could invest big money to fend off competition. AgVa’s ventilators were priced at a fifth of the ones sold by the foreign competitors, yet it couldn’t make inroads into big hospitals. “It’s almost as if our cost was our barrier to sell. Being critical equipment, customers had a lot of inertia to even place test orders,” says Vaish.
Thanks to meagre domestic manufacturing. India also could not set standards of equipment specifications to suit the local needs. It had to tweak its own equipment standards to fall in line with those of foreign manufacturers. For example, in the US, defibrillators used to restore heartbeats by giving shock to patients had to last at least two shock cycles. But, in India, since access to hospitals and medical care was not as easy. patients arrive long after they have suffered heart attacks and Indian doctors use defibrillators for even 10 cycles at a time.
The local standards did not specify this need and as a result many imported defibrillators were not of much use in Indian conditions. “We still don’t have an act to regulate medical devices and it falls under the drugs category. Everything is still borrowed from the West,” says Aniruddha Atre, co-founder and director of Pune-based Jeevtronics Pvt. Ltd, which makes the world’s first hand-cranked defibrillator.
Trivitron’s Velu says that the share of locally produced medical equipment will increase within the next decade. This will be a combination of help from the government which will enforce more domestic manufacturing by overseas firms and increased entrepreneurship.
There is also a view that more global manufacturing will come to India, as firms de-risk their strategy of manufacturing everything in China. “In the past, when labour costs went up in the Chinese west coast, Indian garment companies were beneficiaries of increased orders even though other countries like Bangladesh and Vietnam too got a big share of it. The availability of labour and ability to scale up operations is something global players look for and to that extent India will always be an important outsourcing destination,” said Devangshu Dutta, managing partner at consultancy firm Third Eyesight.
The trend started even before the COVID-19 pandemic as companies in the US began to brace themselves for a trade war with China. For example, a US-based company has started sourcing Indian tyres at a 10-15% premium as it wants to diversify its risk from China. “India has witnessed a surge in mobile phone manufacturing. This is bound to increase the ecosystem in electronic manufacturing which in turn create ecosystems for industries like medical equipment,” says Sharad Verma, senior partner who oversees industrials at Boston Consulting Group.
The timing is also right for increase in local manufacturing, argues Verma. One of the important criteria for that is viable domestic consumption. It’s happened time and again in sectors like automobiles, mobile phones and more recently in manufacture of metro bogies after domestic consumption has reached a scale where it makes sense for companies to set up manufacturing facilities. “The industry is no longer small and the incidence of medical technology will only go up from here making it viable for even foreign companies to look at a manufacturing set up in India,” says Verma.
It will be interesting to see how it all plays out. The sector, so far, hasn’t seen much by way of private equity or venture investment. The most prominent one was an investment by a Morgan Stanley fund and Samara Capital in Surat-based Sahajanand Medical Technologies and Fidelity Growth Partners’s investment in Trivitron. But starting 2014, a government fund run by the Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council-incubated several companies who are slowly bringing their products to market. As some of these products hit home, especially in the wake of COVID-19, the action is definitely bound to pick up.
(published in The Morning Context)
