IPO-bound Lenskart's CFO quits likely to join Coke India as finance chief

Bengaluru/Delhi: IPO-bound Lenskart’s chief financial officer Mukti Hariharan has resigned and is likely to join Coca-Cola’s Indian arm in a similar role shortly, three people familiar with the matter told Mint.

With this, Lenskart, which is one of the most anticipated IPOs in the Indian startup ecosystem, is now tasked with the responsibility of finding a new chief financial officer as it prepares to go public in 18-24 months.

Hariharan, according to her LinkedIn profile, had joined Lenskart in April 2023 from Hindustan Unilever Ltd, where she was heading finance for its homecare division. Hariharan has about two decades of experience in finance and has held several leadership positions, including at Credit Suisse.

If her transition to the beverage major goes through, Hariharan will succeed Coca-Cola’s current CFO Harsh Bhutani, who will be joining the company's largest bottler, Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages Pvt. Ltd (HCCB), in a similar role effective 1 October as it prepares to go public.

While Hariharan denied the development, Coca-Cola declined to comment. Lenskart did not respond to Mint's request for comment.

Hariharan's expected appointment at the beverage major is particularly crucial as India is the fifth-largest market for Coca-Cola globally—a market it re-entered in the 1990s and where it sells brands such as Thums-Up, Sprite, Fanta and Limca, apart from Coca-Cola, or Coke.

As for Lenskart, the eyewear marketplace has raised nearly $1 billion in capital over the last 18 months and was valued at about $5 billion. The Gurugram-based company’s operating revenue more than doubled to ₹3,788 crore in 2022-23 from ₹1,502 crore a year earlier. Its losses narrowed to ₹64 crore from ₹102 crore in FY22.

Coca-Cola's designs on India

Hariharan's potential move to the beverage giant follows a series of recent senior appointments at Coca-Cola.

Greishma Singh took over as vice president of marketing effective 1 September, replacing Arnab Roy, who was recently named global category president, Coca‑Cola Trademark. Singh was most recently vice president of customer and commercial leadership for Coca-Cola's India and Southwest Asia operating unit.

At HCCB, Bhutani’s appointment to oversee the company's financial operations is important as the bottling subsidiary plans an initial public offering.

Coca-Cola has been bullish on India’s growth prospects as it looks to reinvest a significant portion of its capital to build capacity in the country. Earlier this year, HCCB said it was building several new plants in Telangana and Maharashtra. It also said it would invest ₹3,000 crore to set up a juice and aerated drinks facility in Gujarat.

Last year, Coca-Cola’s developing and emerging markets business grew by 2%, led by countries including India and Brazil, partially offsetting the suspension of its business in Russia in 2022. It also saw its value share gain in non-aerated, ready-to-drink beverages led by share gains in India, among other countries.