Product Manager

About Gajab

Gajab is reimagining online shopping for India's next 100 million value-seeking users. We're building India's first AI-powered bargaining marketplace — where technology negotiates on behalf of customers and sellers, recreating the interactive, joyful bazaar experience at your fingertips.

Our Mission: To bring the real desiness of shopping online — the thrill of negotiation, the joy of getting a great deal, and the human touch of India's vibrant bazaars — all powered by smart technology.

We're bootstrapped with 1000+ days of runway, backed by founders with strong business track records. Pre-beta launches next month. Our Brand Voice: Fun, playful, localized, and street-smart.

The Role

We're hiring a Product Manager to own our marketplace platform and growth initiatives. This is a balanced role requiring 50% strategic thinking and 50% hands-on execution. You'll report directly to the Founder initially, transitioning to product leadership as we scale.

You'll manage a cross-functional pod including tech, design, and marketing while coordinating with operations, content, and other teams. This is a generalist PM role covering the full marketplace with accountability for all platform health metrics - from activation to retention to GMV.

What You'll Build

• Marketplace Platform: Own the complete buyer journey from discovery to post-purchase, including search, browsing, bargaining flows, cart, checkout, and payment experiences tailored for tier 2/3 users. Build seller tools for listing, inventory management, and order fulfillment. Optimize transaction flows to maximize completion rates.
• Growth Features: Create viral loops and referral mechanics to drive organic growth. Design activation flows that convert visitors into buyers. Build retention features and gamification systems. Launch new categories, including Home and Kitchen Decor and Toys and Games.
• AI-Powered Bargaining: Make AI-powered bargaining feel authentic and culturally appropriate for traditional shoppers. Personalize experiences based on user behavior without being intrusive.
• Experimentation Framework: Establish A/B testing infrastructure from scratch. Define key metrics and measurement systems. Create dashboards for real-time platform health visibility. Build a data-driven decision-making culture.

First 6 Months Priorities

• Month 1-2: Establish product development processes and frameworks. Understand users deeply through research and data. Set up analytics and define baseline metrics.
• Month 3-4: Launch features that improve conversion and retention. Establish experimentation cadence. Fix top user friction points. Begin viral growth feature development.
• Month 5-6: Support category expansion launches. Ship viral mechanics that improve organic growth. Achieve measurable improvements across key metrics. Build foundations for 10X scale.

Key Responsibilities

• Define product vision, strategy, and roadmap for the marketplace.
• Own end-to-end product development from ideation to launch.
• Work with engineering and design to ship features rapidly.
• Conduct user research, analyze data, and derive actionable insights.
• Run A/B tests and experiments to optimize metrics.
• Collaborate across teams on product launches and initiatives.
• Build product processes, documentation, and frameworks from zero.
• Monitor metrics daily and make data-driven decisions.
• Prioritize features and manage product backlog based on impact.
• Solve for growth across acquisition, activation, retention, and referral.

Metrics You'll Own

• Activation: New user to first transaction rate, time to first purchase
• Conversion: Visitor to buyer rate, bargaining success rate, checkout completion
• Retention: D7/D30 retention, repeat purchase rate, and user lifetime value.
• Transaction Health: Completion rate, drop-off reduction, GMV, and order volumes
• Growth: Organic growth rate, viral coefficient, referral conversion, CAC trends
• Engagement: DAU/MAU, session metrics, feature adoption rates

Must-Have Requirements

• Experience Background 3-6 years total experience with 2-4 years in product management, Marketplace/e-commerce, OR consumer tech B2C experience (any one mandatory) 0-to-1 product building experience - launched products from scratch Growth product experience - worked on acquisition, retention, engagement features Early-stage startup experience in a 0-50 people company for at least 1 year Bootstrapped or resource-constrained startup environment experience
• Market Knowledge Built products for Bharat, vernacular, or regional market users. Conducted user research with tier 2/3 audiences. Understanding of tier 2/3 user behavior, affordability constraints, and preferences. Knowledge of traditional retail and bazaar shopping behaviors
• Education: Engineering degree OR MBA from a recognized institute (mandatory). An engineering plus MBA combination is strongly preferred
• Technical Skills - All Mandatory Product management tools: Jira, Asana, ClickUp, or Notion Analytics platforms: Google Analytics, Mixpanel, Clevertap, or Firebase Design collaboration: Figma or Adobe XD SQL and data querying for independent analysis A/B testing platforms: VWO, Optimizely, Firebase, or similar
• Product Skills - All Critical User research and customer empathy Data analysis and insight generation Writing clear PRDs and technical specifications Prioritization frameworks like RICE or ICE A/B testing and experimentation methodology Stakeholder management and cross-functional communication Roadmap planning and execution
• Cultural Fit - Mandatory Extreme ownership mindset - full responsibility, no excuses Bootstrap mentality - resourceful, does more with less Hands-on execution - not a purely strategic role Jugaad mentality - creative problem-solving within constraints. Cultural Fit - Preferred Comfortable with ambiguity and fast-paced environments

Immediate Disqualifiers

• Purely MNC or corporate background with no startup experience.
• Expecting a purely strategic role without hands-on execution.
• Cannot work in fast-paced, ambiguous environments.
• No 0-to-1 product building experience, only a mature product.
• Lack of data-driven decision making relies on gut feel.
• No understanding of tier 2/3 India or Bharat market dynamics.

Nice to Have

Built viral or referral features with measurable growth impact. Scaled products from zero to high GMV or large user volumes. Deep understanding of bazaar dynamics and traditional retail. Experience with vernacular or regional language products. Community building or user research with tier 2/3 audiences. Side projects or personal products built, Experience with AI or ML product features

Why Join GAJAB

• 0-to-1 Opportunity: Build a category-defining product from scratch. Your decisions will shape the company's trajectory. This is rare - most PMs only optimize existing products.
• Founder Access: Work directly with the Founder. Participate in strategic decisions. Learn how to build a startup from the inside. Better than any MBA for entrepreneurship.
• Fast Growth: Scale with the company. Today you're a PM, in a year you could lead a product team, in two years you could be VP of Product or CPO.
• Unique Problems: Solve India-specific challenges without copying Western playbooks. Digitize bargaining culture. Built for limited digital literacy. Create trust in online transactions.
• AI-Powered Products: Work with AI at the core, not as a bolt-on feature. Develop intuition for AI capabilities and constraints.
• Real Impact: Help millions of tier 2/3 families get better deals and improve their quality of life. Every feature you ship directly affects real people.
• Culture: Alternative Fun Fridays. High-ownership environment. Direct impact without bureaucracy. Your ideas can ship without layers of approval.
• Compensation: Competitive pay based on experience. Meaningful equity to benefit from company success.

Interview Process

• Round 1 - HR Screening (30-45 min): Assess experience fit, cultural alignment, and role expectations. Your opportunity to ask questions about GAJAB.
• Round 2 - Product Case Study (60-90 min): Evaluate product thinking through a relevant case study. Assess structured thinking, user empathy, data orientation, and communication skills.
• Round 3 - Founder Round (45-60 min): Discussion on strategic thinking, cultural fit, and mutual alignment. Two-way conversation to assess if GAJAB is right for you.
• We move quickly and complete all rounds within 1-2 weeks. Feedback is provided at each stage.

Work Location

5 days per week at our office in Marol, Andheri East, Mumbai. Saturday work-from-home for flexibility. Must be Mumbai-based or willing to relocate immediately.

Ready to Build for Bharat

If you're excited about building products for millions of tier 2/3 families, solving hard problems without playbooks, taking extreme ownership, and being part of something meaningful from day one - apply now.

This role is not for you if you want a cushy corporate job with defined processes, minimal ambiguity, or purely strategic work without execution.

This role is for you if you're hungry, scrappy, ready to build something extraordinary, see startups as a growth opportunity, and believe in democratizing e-commerce for Bharat.

• Apply now and let's create something extraordinary together.