On a small smartphone screen in a tier 3 town in Uttar Pradesh, a woman scrolls through a catalogue of sarees priced lower than a movie ticket. She selects a couple of them, shares it on WhatsApp and waits. A few hours later, an order pings. For her, this is not just a sale, it is a source of income and, with that, the entry into India’s vast digital economy.

This is the world Meesho built.

Founded in 2015 by Vidit Aatrey and Sanjeev Barnwal, two IIT Delhi graduates, Meesho did not begin as the e-commerce giant it is today. Its first version was a hyperlocal fashion app called Fashnear, designed to connect users with nearby fashion retailers.

In an interview, Vidit Aarey said, “Tried this for about three, four months, very quickly realised that people do not buy fashion the same way they buy food. People are looking for a lot of selection, which is not available with a few shops around you. When people in India buy online, especially fashion, they’re looking for discounts that are not available until the end of the season.” The founders knew they had to start again.

During groundwork, the founders noticed women selling clothes through WhatsApp and Facebook within their social circles. That insight led to a full pivot, and Fashnear became

© The Financial Express