Nothing India Head Manu Sharma to Step Down in January 2024

The India operations of London-based consumer tech startup Nothing have seen their first major leadership change, with country head Manu Sharma announcing he will step down from his role effective January 2024.

Sharma has spearheaded Nothing's India business since the company launched in 2021. In a LinkedIn post on Thursday, he confirmed his last working day will be January 20, 2024, and thanked the brand for the opportunity.

As the General Manager and Vice President of Nothing India, Sharma was pivotal in establishing the upstart brand in a competitive market against industry giants like Apple and Samsung. He built the business from scratch - setting up operations, forging key partnerships, hiring talent and implementing strategies to drive growth.

Under his leadership, Nothing saw sales of its smartphones and true wireless stereo (TWS) earbuds increase significantly over the past year. The company now has around 1% market share in India for phones and TWS.

While Sharma cited personal reasons for his decision to leave, his departure comes at a time when key people have left Nothing's India operations.

Losing an experienced industry veteran like Sharma, who spent over two decades at Samsung, represents a setback for the ambitious young company's expansion plans in India. Who will replace Sharma and help drive the next phase of Nothing's growth in India remains to be seen.

As Nothing works to establish itself globally with new product launches, the company is expected to unveil its next flagship smartphone, the Nothing Phone (3), at MWC in February 2024.