Tuco Kids, a rising personal care brand catering to children and teens, has announced Chanakya Gupta’s appointment as its co-founder. The move comes shortly after the company secured $2 million in seed funding from Fireside Ventures and Whiteboard Capital, signaling an aggressive growth strategy in the kids’ personal care market.
Gupta, a former Flipkart executive with over 23 years of experience, deeply understands consumer businesses, brand scaling, and strategic growth. Before joining Tuco Kids, he held leadership roles at Flipkart, including Vice President of Strategic Partnerships, where he played a key role in launching Flipkart Boost, a D2C brand accelerator, and 2GUD, a platform for refurbished products.
Most recently, Gupta served as Business Head for Play (formerly Fitso) and Group CHRO at Curefit, where he contributed to the brand’s expansion in health and wellness. He also spent nearly a decade at Hindustan Unilever (HUL), leading modern retail partnerships and brand development initiatives.
Founded in 2023 by Aishvarya Murali, Tuco Kids offers natural and sustainable personal care products for children aged 3-13 years. The brand’s portfolio includes soaps, lotions, shampoos, deodorants, sunscreens, and even kids’ makeup, all made with Indian ingredients and eco-friendly packaging.
Welcoming Gupta, Murali stated: “We are thrilled to have Chanakya join Tuco Kids. His expertise in scaling consumer brands will be instrumental as we grow our presence in the kids’ personal care segment.”
Gupta expressed enthusiasm for his new role, highlighting the brand’s commitment to sustainability and innovation: “Tuco Kids presents a unique opportunity to build a meaningful brand in an underserved market. I look forward to contributing to its vision and expanding its impact.”
With its recent funding, Tuco Kids plans to accelerate growth across Amazon, Flipkart, Myntra, Nykaa, FirstCry, Blinkit, Zepto, and Instamart. Gupta’s transition to Tuco Kids also underscores a broader trend of ex-Flipkart executives—known as the ‘Flipkart Mafia’—taking leadership roles in India’s startup ecosystem.
Notably, former Flipkart leaders such as Vipin Kapooria (now CFO at Blinkit) and Amitesh Jha (head of Swiggy Instamart) have made similar moves, reflecting Flipkart’s legacy as a startup talent incubator.
As Tuco Kids continues its expansion, Gupta’s leadership is expected to strengthen its market position and pioneer innovation in the kids’ personal care segment.
