Ameesha Prabhu

Ms. Ameesha Prabhu shoulders the responsibility of nurturing all the initiatives of Trust for Retailers and Retail Associates of India (TRRAIN) as its Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer. 

Ameesha has been with TRRAIN since its inception in 2011, contributing to all its initiatives. She is responsible for incubating, developing and nurturing the various projects which directly impacts the life of retail associates, persons with disabilities (PwDs) and young women from marginalised backgrounds in India. 

In particular, the work TRRAIN does to create sustainable livelihoods for Persons with Disabilities and young women from marginalised backgrounds, through their TRRAIN Pankh and TRRAINHer Ascent programmes, respectively, is noteworthy. With her being the driving force of the team at TRRAIN, TRRAIN has impacted the lives of over 43,000 individuals in India. TRRAIN has received accolades for its work in the livelihood sector, including awards from NGO BOX’s 5 Impact Awards and HCFI CSR Awards for the TRRAIN Pankh livelihood creation programme, thanks to Ameesha’s guidance and support throughout the journey. 

Ameesha began her career in retail over 32 years ago. Her hands-on experience in various department and specialty stores, as well as lifestyle and value formats, has provided her with an in-depth understanding of the buying and merchandising function, along with end-to-end category management. She has worked with leading organisations such as Tesco Hindustan Wholesaling Ltd, Aditya Birla Retail, Crossword Bookstores, Swatch Group, and Shoppers Stop Ltd. Ameesha specialises in range and product development, including private labels, assortment planning, and understanding the retail customer. Her understanding of the retail environment, coupled with her empathy for front-end associates, has evolved through her personal journey from shop floor associate to Head of Buying. 

She has attained a holistic perspective of the social sector and understands the needs and motivations of a retail associate. She enjoys working with the retail fraternity and serves as a role model and mentor to the enthusiastic, young team at TRRAIN. She relishes opportunities to share her insights with aspiring retail professionals and entrepreneurs and to contribute to improving the lives of people with disabilities and young women from marginalized backgrounds in India.