Understand a Founder Before You Invest: Rishabh Mariwala

Rishabh Mariwala, founder & managing partner, Sharrp Ventures credits his early bootstrap venture in soap-making for shaping his empathy for founders. After selling his small business, he committed full-time to investing through Sharp Ventures, the family office arm of Marico. He emphasized that his strength lies more in investing than entrepreneurship, having backed over 40 consumer-focused businesses including early bets on Mamaearth and Nykaa.

“I’m a better investor than I am an entrepreneur,” he said, speaking in a fireside chat at Entrepreneur’s India Investment Forum 2026.

Mariwala explained that his conviction in direct-to-consumer (D2C) brands stemmed from observing shifts in marketing, social media, and influencer culture around 2017. He saw opportunities in beauty, personal care and his entrepreneurial background gave him a “bird’s eye view” of consumer trends. Failures, however, taught him the importance of decoding a founder. 

“During COVID, I invested in a founder we only met over Zoom. The product was just okay, but I was impressed by the marketing and brand. However, later, another investor told me the founder had even tried to bribe him. That was a wake‑up call. My biggest learning is to understand the founder before investing. Capital, caliber, and character matter most,” he explained. 

On investment philosophy, he stressed that Sharp Ventures focuses on consumer categories, beauty, health, food, beverages, fashion, and wellness. “I believe long-term success hinges on resilience and insight. The investment philosophy is not defined by the companies you back. It is equally defined by the opportunities you choose to walk away from,” he said. 

Mariwala emphasized that in consumer investing, every category demands a distinct playbook. The go‑to‑market strategy, retention levers, and category management vary widely depending on what the consumer expects. For instance, food, fashion, beauty, or wellness each require tailored approaches to distribution, pricing, and engagement. He underscores that success in consumer ventures isn’t about applying a one‑size‑fits‑all formula, but about decoding the nuances of category dynamics and aligning them with evolving consumer behavior. 

Unlike venture funds, family offices enjoy patient support without exit pressure. This, he argued, benefits founders by avoiding ‘burn to earn’ growth pressures.

Looking ahead, he sees India’s consumption curve evolving: premium customers moving toward luxury, mass shifting to mass-premium, and new niches like fragrances and pet food emerging. While he is not looking to invest in sectors beyond consumer, talking about emerging trends such as deep tech, he believes that tech is a great way to modernize or make busineses efficient, however, caution is needed. “AI tools improve efficiency in marketing and content creation, but brand trust and consumer insight should remain inherently human,” he concluded.