Nykaa.com, an online beauty and wellness retailer, has raised $10 million (about ₹60 crore) in its second institutional funding led by TVS Shriram Growth Fund and a number of other big ticket investors.
They include Techpro Ventures, the family office of Atul Nishar (Chairman of Hexaware Technologies), family office of Harsh Mariwala (Marico Chairman), former Warburg Pincus top executive Dalip Pathak in his personal capacity and former President of Givaudan Fragrances Michael Carlos.
“We strongly believe that as a leading e-commerce vertical in the beauty space with a focused management team, Nykaa will continue to grow exponentially,” Mariwala family office said in an e-mail, confirming the development.
Founded in 2012 by FSN E-Commerce Ventures, Nykaa.com is spearheaded by former Managing Director of Kotak Mahindra Capital Investment Banking Falguni Nayar.
“We greatly value the confidence our investors have reposed in our strategy and our commitment to building a sustainable online beauty and wellness business. We will continue to bring the best of globally available products, trends, content, tools and services to the Indian customer,” said Nykaa Falguni Nayar, Founder and Chief Executive Officer.
Following the investment, Narayan Ramachandran, former Country Head of Morgan Stanley-India, will join the Nykaa board as TVS Capital nominee.
About 30 per cent of the funds came in from investors, who had supported its ‘Series A’ round (first institutional round). In June 2014, Nykaa.com had raised $3.2 million (about ₹20 crore) from a consortium of Indian investors.
The company will use the latest funding to support its growth in e-commerce, launch private labels, marketing and building its team. In addition, it will enable Nykaa to add to its suite of beauty and wellness products, and grow its gross merchandise value (GMV) five-fold.
More storesThe company is also planning to open stores across Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru.
With more than 350 brands and 35,000 products, Nykaa.com offers a comprehensive selection of makeup, skincare, haircare, fragrances, bath and body and luxury products. Nykaa.com has sold 1.25 million products to date, with over 4 million visitors to the site every month.