Online beauty brand Plum raises $35 million in funding led by A91 Partners

Mumbai: Direct-to-consumer (D2C) beauty brand Plum has raised $35 million (Rs 270 crore) in fresh capital led by A91 Partners.

This comes at a time when the segment has seen increased traction from investors.

Existing backers Unilever Ventures and Faering Capital also participated in the round.

The funding values the firm at $250 million (around Rs 1,900 crore), according to Shankar Prasad, founder and CEO of Pureplay Skin Sciences, the parent company of Plum.

Plum has raised over $50 million (Rs 380 crore) in institutional capital so far.

Founded in 2013 by Prasad, Plum has a portfolio of vegan, cruelty-free and toxin-free beauty products across skincare, haircare, personal care, and makeup.

The company does about 40% sales through offline channels, a quarter of sales on its own online platform, and the rest from online marketplaces.

Its offline presence spans 250 towns and cities in India, through nearly 1,000 assisted outlets such as Shoppers’ Stop, and over 10,000 unassisted outlets (grocery stores, pharmacies).

The startup will use the funding to grow its omni-channel presence and accelerate expansion in categories beyond skincare, and also add new geographies. It will also invest in marketing and technology.

Plum also has three exclusive outlets in Mumbai and Chennai and plans to scale it to 12-15 outlets in the next 2-3 months.

Prasad said while brands start online first because it is more measurable and less capital intensive, they cannot ignore the bigger offline market.


“Despite the aggressive expansion we've seen over the last two years, online still accounts for around 10% of the overall beauty market in the country. Therefore, as brands look to scale, you will definitely find them going into the larger 90% of the offline segment,” he said.

The online beauty market, which has been traditionally dominated by large multinational companies, has exploded and startups like The Good Glamm Group, Sugar Cosmetics and Mamaearth have raised substantial funds in 2021. Purplle raised $75 million in October last year.

ET reported in January that India had seen over 500 D2C brands from 2019 to 2021, according to data sourced from Tracxn, a market intelligence provider for private companies. D2C companies raised $493 million in 2021, more than twice the amount the segment raised over two preceding years, according to Tracxn.

What’s added to the interest among investors is the blockbuster Nykaa IPO last year, when it debuted on the Indian bourses at a $7.1 billion market capitalisation.

“As the beauty category advances and consumer preferences evolve there is room and space for many more brands to have a shot as opposed to just large national brands. And that's exactly what you're seeing play out,” Prasad said.

Abhay Pandey, general partner, A91 Partners said, “Plum’s relentless focus on product and brand in a noisy space of new age consumer brands positions it uniquely to build an enduring business.”