Himanshu Arya of Luxury Cart on Trust, Financing Access, and the Rise of Pre-Owned Luxury EVs in India

StartupTalky presents Recap'25, a series of exclusive interviews where we connect with founders and industry leaders to reflect on their journey in 2025 and discuss their vision for the future.

In this edition of Recap’25, StartupTalky speaks with Himanshu Arya, Founder & CEO of Luxury Cart, who shares how the company is reshaping trust and accessibility in India’s pre-owned luxury car market. He discusses the realities of building credibility in a high-value segment, the operational discipline behind inventory quality, and how financing and technology are expanding access for India’s new-age luxury buyers.

Arya also highlights the growing role of electric vehicles in the luxury resale space, the importance of post-sale engagement in building long-term customer confidence, and why focusing deeply on one category has become Luxury Cart’s biggest competitive advantage. Looking ahead, he outlines the company’s NCR-focused expansion strategy and its vision to make pre-owned luxury car buying in India a process defined by transparency, reliability, and repeat trust.

StartupTalky:  Luxury Cart operates in the pre-owned luxury car market. What was the most significant challenge you overcame in 2025 to build trust and ensure authenticity in this high-value, high-risk segment?

Himanshu Arya: The biggest issue in India’s pre-owned car market has always been trust, and that makes building it at scale challenging. The 15-day money-back guarantee came from a simple place, if customers were unsure, they needed the comfort of an exit. It wasn’t about promotion, but about standing by the quality of our cars and the way we operate.

What mattered just as much was what happened after the sale. We stay closely involved with customers once the car is delivered, helping them through everything from understanding features to managing post-sales service, RC transfers and insurance transfer formalities. Making ourselves available, answering questions patiently, and following through rather than deflecting concerns has played a large role in building trust. Over time, this consistency has helped Luxury Cart earn its place as a dependable name in pre-owned luxury cars, reflected in strong repeat business and referrals.

StartupTalky: Beyond sales volume, what are the two or three non-obvious KPIs you track to measure the true health of the luxury resale market and the quality of your inventory?

Himanshu Arya: One of the most critical metrics we track is inventory ageing and car sales turnaround time. This offers a far clearer picture of demand alignment and pricing discipline than monthly sales volumes alone. A healthy inventory should move within predictable timelines, especially in the luxury category.

Gross margin per car is equally important. You can grow sales quickly without margins, but it eventually catches up with the business. A third internal metric we closely monitor is the ratio of total car sales to headcount. A lower ratio reflects stronger organisational efficiency and, over time, contributes directly to profitability and scalability.

StartupTalky:  You’ve stated that luxury can be affordable. How does Luxury Cart’s business model leverage technology and financing to broaden access to high-end vehicles for India’s self-made millionaires?

Himanshu Arya: At Luxury Cart, technology is used to solve real problems, not to create surface-level visibility. Our internal systems across ERP, CRM and data are built to work together so information stays accurate, processes move faster and decisions remain transparent. On the customer side, we stay deliberately omnichannel. Luxury buyers still value conversation and physical touchpoints, but their discovery journey is increasingly digital, and our approach reflects that balance.

Financing has become a defining part of access. Nearly 60 percent of luxury car purchases today involve loans, compared to 20–30 percent just a few years ago. Customers want flexibility and speed, not delayed gratification. Technology has helped simplify approvals and reduce friction, making ownership easier and more immediate, without encouraging reckless decisions.

StartupTalky:  The luxury car market is rapidly moving towards EVs. How is Luxury Cart adapting its inventory, servicing and customer education to meet demand for pre-owned luxury electric vehicles?

Himanshu Arya: Luxury Cart has been an early mover in the EV resale space. Electric vehicles account for approximately 22 percent of our overall sales portfolio, and at any given time, at least 20 percent of our live inventory consists of electric models across price points.

Most electric cars already come with long manufacturer warranties, so there has been no urgency to set up separate EV servicing. Our focus has stayed on getting the inventory mix right and making sure the sales team genuinely understands what they are selling. As newer electric models enter the market, teams are kept up to date on ownership realities and charging basics, which helps us respond to demand without overcomplicating the business.

StartupTalky:  The resale market is expected to drive much of the luxury auto sector’s growth. What is Luxury Cart’s core strategic differentiator for sustained leadership in 2026?

Himanshu Arya: Luxury Cart does only one thing, pre-owned luxury cars. Working in one space, day after day, helps the team understand how pricing behaves, what buyers worry about, and where things usually go wrong. The business has grown by paying close attention to the basics, checking cars thoroughly, staying available to customers and working with people who come back again.

StartupTalky:  Looking ahead to 2026, what is Luxury Cart’s biggest product or market bet?

Himanshu Arya: In 2026, our attention stays on the NCR market. A significant share of luxury car transactions in India already comes from this region, which makes it important to build depth here rather than look elsewhere too quickly. The effort is on improving on-ground coverage across NCR so that availability, inspection and delivery remain consistent. The buying journey already combines digital discovery with personal interaction, and the focus is on refining that balance while keeping the experience familiar, responsive and hands-on for buyers.

StartupTalky:  Five years from now, what do you hope will be Luxury Cart’s lasting legacy in the Indian luxury market?

Himanshu Arya: Over time, we want Luxury Cart to be closely associated with dependable pre-owned luxury car transactions across India. That recognition is expected to come less from scale and more from how consistently customers experience the process. Much of the effort is spent ensuring customers experience the same level of trust and quality every time. When buyers are able to approach the pre-owned luxury market with confidence, ask questions freely, and complete transactions without hesitation, it changes how the category functions. As comfort replaces caution, participation increases naturally, and the market expands in a way that feels organic rather than forced.

StartupTalky:  What is the single most important lesson you would share with a founder building a high-touch, luxury-focused platform in an emerging market?

Himanshu Arya: Before expanding, we spent time making sure the basics were working without friction. In the luxury segment, customers tend to remember where something breaks rather than where it performs well, and expectations remain high across every interaction, including after the sale.

Issues that might be overlooked in mass categories tend to carry more weight in luxury. Even a small unresolved concern can change how a customer views the entire experience. That is why effort has gone into testing systems, processes and teams under real operating conditions before adding scale. Moving carefully has mattered more than moving fast, particularly in an emerging market where trust builds slowly and is hard to recover once it slips.

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