Darshan Mehta, former Managing Director & CEO of Reliance Brands Ltd (RBL), who transformed Reliance's luxury and lifestyle retail business, died on Wednesday, according to people aware of the development.
Mr Mehta, 64, who was an avid mid-distance runner and Himalayan trekker, died after suffering a heart attack.
He was leading RBL as its managing director till last November, after which he transitioned into a mentoring role as a non-executive director.
Mr Mehta, who joined Reliance in 2007 to start RBL, is known for introducing leading global brands such as Valentino, Balenciaga, Tiffany & Co., Ermenegildo Zegna, Giorgio Armani, Bottega Veneta, Jimmy Choo, Burberry, and Pottery Barn to the Indian market.
Besides, RBL also partnered with several Indian designers, including Abu Jani & Sandeep Khosla, Manish Malhotra, and Rahul Mishra, introducing them to the global fashion landscape.
Presently, RBL has a portfolio of over 60 leading global brands, operating in the fashion retail space.
Besides, at RBL, Mr Mehta also launched Reliance Group's two retail centres in Mumbai, which have redefined luxury retail in India -- Jio World Drive and Jio World Plaza.
He was also instrumental in Reliance's acquisition of the UK-based toy chain Hamleys in 2019.
Mr Mehta, a chartered accountant by profession, started his career with PwC India.
Later, he joined the Lalbhai Group, where he spent over two decades. He held leadership positions at Grey Advertising -- part of the Lalbhai group before being acquired by WPP -- Anagram Stock Broking, and finally took over as the CEO of Arvind Brands Ltd, where he built a fledgling portfolio of mainstream license brands into a formidable portfolio of international fashion partnerships.
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