As Swiggy prepares for a public market entry, the company has appointed Amitesh Jha, formerly a senior vice president of category and marketplace at Flipkart, as the new CEO of its quick-commerce business, Instamart, according to an email from co-founder and group CEO Sriharsha Majety to employees.
Phani Kishan Addepalli, who previously led Instamart, will now head Swiggy’s central growth team, overseeing initiatives such as the subscription service Swiggy One. Additionally, Addepalli will take on the role of Chief of Staff to Majety. Majety noted in the email that ET has reviewed that Addepalli, who assumed leadership of Instamart last year, has significantly enhanced the business by improving consumer experience and profitability.
In the same email, Majety also announced that Swiggy’s Chief Growth and Marketing Officer, Ashwath Swaminathan, has departed from the company.
Swaminathan, who joined Swiggy from Hindustan Unilever in February of this year, had overseen the brands and consumer insights team. This team will now report directly to Majety.
Prior to his new role at Swiggy, Jha had a 14-year tenure at Flipkart, where he began as a category head in 2010 and advanced through various teams, including the logistics division Ekart and the value-products unit Shopsy. Swiggy officially confirmed his appointment in a news release on Thursday.
“I am convinced that a revolutionary upheaval is about to occur in India’s consumer internet sector. According to the statement, Jha expressed confidence that Swiggy, with its innovative DNA, strong customer focus, and brand trust, will lead the way in changing customer behavior and setting new industry norms.
Jha’s appointment comes amid several high-profile changes at Swiggy. On August 5, ET reported the hiring of former Amazon executive Sairam Krishnamurthy as Chief Operating Officer and Senior Vice President of Instamart. On July 22, the company appointed former Reliance Retail executive Himavant Srikrishna Kurnala as Head of Product for Instamart.
In April of last year, Swiggy’s former Chief Technology Officer Dale Vaz left to start a trading platform, Aaritya Tech. Former Senior Vice President Karthik Gurumurthy, who built and led Instamart, departed towards the end of last year to start his own venture. Additionally, former Head of Revenue and Growth Anuj Rathi left in September last year and now leads Flipkart’s travel booking unit, Cleartrip.
The changes are part of a broader top-level reshuffle as Swiggy prepares for a potential initial public offering (IPO) later this year. The company has confidentially submitted draft documents to the markets regulator for a ₹10,414 crore ($1.25 billion) public offering and is reportedly aiming for a valuation of around $15 billion. Swiggy last raised funds at a valuation of $10.7 billion in early 2022.
On August 23, ET reported that 360 One WAM, formerly known as IIFL Wealth Management, had valued Swiggy at $11.5 billion as of June. Additionally, on August 28, ET reported that the family office of actor Amitabh Bachchan and Raamdeo Agrawal, Chairman of Motilal Oswal Financial Services, had acquired stakes in the company.
