Deep Kalra to step down as MakeMyTrip CEO, co-founder Rajesh Magow to take over

MakeMyTrip, on February 12, announced that Deep Kalra would step down from his role as group chief executive officer of the company and take up the post of executive chairman.

According to a statement by the company, Kalra’s place will be succeeded by Rajesh Magow as the group CEO.

“Deep Kalra … will devote his full time to pursuing strategic initiatives, including product innovation and expansion, geographic growth, business model innovation and corporate development, in his new role as Group Executive Chairman,” the company said.

“In his role as Group CEO, Mr Magow will focus on driving the next phase of growth for the MakeMyTrip Group through its three strong brands, MakeMyTrip, Goibibo and Redbus and will continue to work closely with Mr Kalra,” the statement added.

The NASDAQ-listed company had a market cap of $3.02 billion as of February 11.

The company’s adjusted operating loss narrowed to $11 million (over Rs 78 crore) for the quarter that ended in December 2019 as compared to a loss of $22.2 million for the same period last year

The adjusted revenue for the quarter that ended in December 2019 stood at $206.7 million (over Rs 1,470 crore), a rise from the $179.9 million (over Rs 1,280 crore) reported for the same period year ago.

Kalra, who founded MakeMyTrip in 2000, was a key player behind the acquisition of rival online travel operator Ibibo Group.

According to The Economic Times, the acquisition allowed MakeMyTrip to corner 60 to 70 percent of the online travel market.