Fit To Lead | Shark Tank India & SUGAR Cosmetics' Vineeta Singh: 'Running a business is quite like running a marathon'

Vineeta Singh, 39, CEO and co-founder, SUGAR Cosmetics.

Note to readers: Fit to Lead is a series of interviews with business leaders on their approach to fitness, leadership and navigating the new normal.

Vineeta Singh has an infectious energy and it is impossible to not be uplifted by it even on a video call. Singh, 39, with her engineering degree from IIT, Madras, and MBA from IIM, Ahmedabad, could easily have been a top dog in any corporate set-up yet she chose entrepreneurship and SUGAR Cosmetics is her second successful venture. Between all of this she raises two children, competes in marathon and Ironman triathlon races, appears on Shark Tank and honours multiple appearance and interview requests — sometimes all in a single day.

Singh’s interest in running was sparked when one of her IIM friends challenged her to run the Mumbai Marathon 16 years ago. “it proved to be a life-altering moment. I’d never run more than a kilometre until then but ended up signing up for this 42km-long race and that experience taught me so much that I was hooked to the idea of being a lifelong runner,” says Singh, who used to play badminton while in college. “My love for running has pushed me to participate in 20 marathons, ultramarathons (including her Comrades Ultra in South Africa) and about a dozen half-marathons. I have also been part of several triathlons, the most prominent being the Ironman in Austria in 2017.”

With Shark Tank returning and SUGAR Cosmetics setting itself up for launching a whole range of new multitasking products, Singh, who grew up in south Delhi, is constantly rushing between meetings and shoots. Despite all this, she is remarkably on track with her training for the upcoming Tata Mumbai Marathon and even finished on the podium in a local race, which she participated in as part of her training run, recently.

Edited excerpts from an interview:

Your fitness routine…

I started running for about an hour a day as exercise but soon realised that working out was cathartic. The pandemic pushed me to further adapt my fitness regimen. It was walks around the building and home workouts in the beginning. Gradually, my friends and I started a virtual bootcamp…exercise forms ranging from HIIT to tabata. This variation kept me from losing motivation and I continue exercising as a means to de-stress mentally and emotionally.

Favourite fitness activity…

Running and being an Ironman, marathon and ultramarathon athlete. Just as music and art do for most, running for me is an escape from the mundane. A long run every morning helps me feel refreshed and energised for the rest of the day.

Vineeta Singh at the Ironman.

The toughest?

The Ironman, which involves a 3.8-km swim, a 180-km bicycle ride and a 42-km full marathon. It is not something you just wake up one morning and decide to do, it takes months of training and focus.

The new normal for you…

The first two-three months of the pandemic were a survival crisis. We had planned for aggressive expansion at SUGAR but business had stopped. We had just three-five months’ worth of cash left. To add to this, there was a 2-year-old and 5-year-old with us at home and we had to figure out ways to keep them busy while firefighting at work. The team cooperated and rationalised everything. Things improved for us sooner than expected but that was a time of extreme stress and I turned to exercise to cope. Post-pandemic, I start my mornings early with a long run.

Has your fitness routine helped you navigate the uncertainties of recent times?

My long working hours never gave me the opportunity to workout more than thrice a week, even when I was training for Ironman. However, during the lockdown I took on a 100-day workout challenge, but stuck to it for 120 days. Looking back, I realise that it helped me remain calm during an uncertain time. My workouts have helped me regulate my stress levels and to become a better CEO and human being.

The one change you would encourage your teammates to make, to deal with the challenges of current times.

I always encourage my teams to treat mistakes as learning opportunities — something I have followed throughout my career. We recently published a limited-edition book called Fail Forward, a compilation of stories of failure and the learning from those failures submitted by our team members, for our employees.

Leadership lessons in your fitness journey…

Running a business is quite like running a marathon. You have to be patient, consistent and against all odds to get to the finish line. It always seems impossible at the start but as you work harder and break the race down into smaller milestones, it seems more achievable. Building this agility, both while running a business and a marathon was crucial. I learnt a lot about running a business through my races.

What impact does your image of a “fit leader” have on your team?

My fitness journey has also helped my mental well-being, and I am very happy to see it inspire my team members. To see them make time to focus on themselves and participate in sports activities has been delightful. We have a dedicated sports committee that organises sports competitions, which are a positive outlet for our competitive side, help us bond and also feel refreshed.

Has being fit helped you become a better leader and a better version of yourself?

On the days that I run, I feel a lot more energetic and a better version of myself as a CEO, parent, and human being.

Your leadership style…

As a runner and entrepreneur, I have learnt that no matter what challenge is thrown at you, agility matters. I believe that growth is not about how fast one achieves success but how well you sustain it once you’ve arrived. Being unfazed in adversity and staying consistent in my approach are mantras I apply to both work and sports.

Goals and challenges  for the next year…

My short-term goal is to maintain my workout routines and not miss a single day. In the long-term, I look forward to participating in many more marathons, further challenging myself and pushing my limits. At SUGAR, we want to double our business and achieve a net revenue of Rs 500 crore in 2023. We have a big launch calendar ahead and will introduce new multi-tasking products with hydration, sun block, etc.