Pearl Uppal quits Fashionandyou.com as CEO

Uppal, who had partnered with Harish Bahl to launch the e-commerce portal, will continue to remain involved in building Fashionandyou.com as co-founder and shareholder.

Pearl Uppal, co-founder and CEO of Fashionandyou.com, the online fashion and luxury e-commerce portal, has quit the organisation. Uppal had partnered with Harish Bahl, founder and chief executive officer, Smile Group to launch the online retail venture in early 2010.

After leading Fashionandyou.com for close to three years, Uppal now plans to turn entrepreneur. However, she will continue to remain involved in building Fashionandyou.com. The company will announce the name of her successor shortly.

Commenting on the development, Bahl says, "Fashionandyou.com has seen a huge growth in the last two years and Pearl Uppal has played a critical role in building this brand. We see this development as a part of the growth phase for both, the company and Pearl.

"Fashionandyou.com will continue to focus on becoming India's leading brand in the online fashion and luxury e-commerce space."

To ensure a smooth operating transition for the incoming CEO, Uppal will continue to actively run the CEO's chair for the next few months.

Uppal says, "My journey as the co-founder and CEO of Fashionandyou.com has been very fulfilling and enriching. I now look forward to taking up new challenges that will expand my entrepreneurial horizons. As a co-founder, I will continue to remain strategically involved with the company post my transition from the CEO's role. Smile Group provided an effective incubation platform and a healthy eco-system, which helped me to develop Fashionandyou.com as one of the leading players in the fashion e-commerce space."

It may be noted that this is the second high profile exit from the Smile Group. Gaurav Kachru, co-founder and CEO of daily deals site Dealsandyou.com, resigned to start his own venture along with two other partners. Kachru is expected to make a formal announcement about his venture in the coming few weeks.