Flipkart mafia: How Flipkart's legacy fuels 44 thriving startups

BusinessLine Podcasts

In this businessline podcast, Anjana PV discusses with Parvathi Benu on the recent trend of employees moving out of Flipkart and creating their own businesses. The former employees of Flipkart, known as "flipsters," have gone on to start their own successful startups. The discussion covers the history of the 'Flipkart mafia', its connection to Flipkart's ESOP buyback exercises, and the correlation between these buybacks and the founding of new startups.

Parvathi mentions that 44 startups have been founded by ex-Flipkart employees, with some achieving unicorn status, including PhonePe. The trend is not entirely new, as the first flipster startup was incorporated in 2011. The ESOP buybacks from Flipkart contributed to many employees becoming millionaires and billionaires.

The Flipkart founders, particularly Binny Bansal, have supported and invested in several of these startups. The podcast also explains the diverse sectors these startups operate in, with a focus on e-commerce, fintech, health and fitness.

Listen in now.