Most worthwhile investment has been the energy I put into raising my daughter - Mira.
About Simran Khara:
Simran is the founder and CEO of Koparo. Koparo is a D2C toxin-free home-care brand which she built during COVID. Koparo hit its inflection point after she pitched it on Shark Tank India. She has an MBA from the Indian School of Business and is an alumnus of the London School of Economics and Shri Ram College of Commerce. With over 16 years of experience, she has advised, built, and monetized in her roles at McKinsey & Co, Star TV, and Juggernaut Books. Now, she is building Koparo. I asked her:
What is one of the best or most worthwhile investments you’ve ever made? Most worthwhile investment has been the energy I put into raising my daughter - Mira. She keeps me sane (insists I disconnect from devices), purposeful and gives me the fastest feedback on products! Looks! And how present I have been for her (or not).
How has a failure, or apparent failure, set you up for later success? Do you have a “favorite failure” of yours? I don’t have a favourite failure - but whenever I have operated from a position of less empathy, less care I have failed be it in personal relationships or a professional sphere. I was leading a big sales transformation in a previous role and I was terrible in my people dealings (firings and restructuring), I look back with some horror and shame at that period. But it transformed me like nothing else.
What is an unusual habit or an absurd thing that you love? Written to-do lists
What are bad recommendations you hear in your profession or area of expertise? Everything is set, it’s all going well - don’t change a thing.
What do you do when you feel overwhelmed or unfocused or have lost your focus temporarily? I reach out to my mentors - some of them are my ex-bosses over the years, they know me professionally and personally. They know what will give me energy and purpose. I have lunch and a candid conversation.
What is the book (or books) you’ve given most as a gift, and why? Or what are one to three books that have greatly influenced your life? Brain Rules for Baby by Dr John Medina - I’ve gifted it most of all to to-be-parents, the other book that I do gift - Educated by Tara Westover. They why for Brain Rules - science-based book which offers practical inputs and can get both parents involved in the early years. Love Educated because it is raw (makes you uncomfortable) and you begin to realise how even being Educated is a privilege and how it shapes generations.
Listen to Simran’s journey from McKinsey to becoming Koparo’s founder and CEO.