Investors
see a big promise in India’s fastest growing new age FMCG brand with the
potential of leading the premium personal care category for millennial India
Mumbai… June 4th, 2019… In a development highlighting its exemplary
growth, mCaffeine, India’s 1st Caffeine Infused Skin and Hair Care Brand, raised $2
Million in its latest round of Series A fundingfrom a consortium of investors led by RP-SG
Ventures. Other key investors include Mr. Apurva Salarpuria, LV Angel Fund, Mr.
KRS Jamwal and Telama Investments. Earlier, mCaffeine had raised $0.5
Millionearlier and the existing investors, Mr.
HarminderSahni, Mr Kaushal Aggarwal along with others have also participated in
this round of funding.
As the story
goes, mCaffeine was founded by Vikas Lachhwani and Tarun Sharma in October of
2016 after 9 months of extensive research. The research yielded that Caffeine is
basically a superfood - It is a rich source of antioxidants and has several
benefits for skin and hair. Thus Caffeine became the primary ingredient in all
of their products. mCaffeine products are currently present in 3 major
categories - Face Care, Hair Care and Body Care and the brand currently has 10
products in its portfolio. The brand has served more than half a million
customers since its inception.
Comienting on the rapid pace of
growth, Tarun Sharma, Co-founder & CEO, mCaffeine said,“The
aspirations and requirements of today’s young Indians is rapidly evolving. With
a surge in disposable income, millennials are becoming more discerning and
indulgent. In an evolving trend in India, youth are beginning to look at
innovative personal care products created specifically for them. mCaffeine
plans to penetrate the market aggressively by giving more emphasis to a
customer-driven approach especially for the young millennials of India with
mass premium offerings. Currently, our products are available at18000 pin codes
across India. We will increase our online and offline
presence substantially. Venturing into this competitive market with a very superior product range which is natural
and organic has helped us to be ahead of the game. Our new product range using
green tea has already been a super hit. We are targeting1 million
customers and INR 100 Crores ARR in the next
12 months. A laser
sharp focus on online as a channel has
been very fruitful for us. MCaffeine focuses on India
for now with global potential for the future.”
Personal Care Market in India is set to touch US$ 20 Billion by 2025
from the current $ 6.5 billion on the back of rise in disposable income of
middle class and growing aspirations of people to live a good life and look
good, according to Assocham. To suit consumption across different levels of purchasing power, FMCG companies are coming out
with a variety of products in different price range. The semi-urban and rural population too is joining the mainstream. The
consumption pattern of personal care products among millenials has gone up
substantially in the last decade because of increasing self awareness and a
desire to look good. In fact, this product category is among the fastest
growing segments for the manufacturers of a range of products. Over 68 percent
of young adults feel that using grooming products boost their confidence.
Commenting on the investment, Abhishek Goenka, Head of RPSG Ventures, said, “Natural & organic
personal care is amongst the faster growing category in personal care with a
strong demand and large addressable market. However, it is increasingly getting
cluttered with little or no real differentiation. We believe the “caffeine”
based sharp positioning of mCaffeine sets them apart, which is also reflected
in their growth profile. The team’s focus on customer engagement and execution
is excellent and we are very excited to partner with mCaffeine on this journey.” As part of the investment,
Goenka will also be joining the board of directors of mCaffeine
About 62 percent of young consumers in big cities prefer to buy online
beauty and grooming products. Both quality and value for money is being sought
by consumers. Top brands are being pushed as mass market products with high
focus on young adults and rural youth. Price barriers are also being broken
both by the consumers and the manufacturers. There is a rising aspiration among
millennial to look better groomed, which has led to the rapid growth in the
Indian grooming market in the last 5 years. Additionally, as more Indian men
are looking to remain competitive in the workforce, they are seeking products
to help them maintain a youthful look.
Commenting on the funding, Vikas Lachhwani,
co-founder of mCaffeine said, “mCaffeine is a digital-first brand focused on millennial India. All of
the mCaffeine products are envisioned, engineered, designed & manufactured
in India. The products are manufactured after extensive Research &
Development. We embody millennial philosophy
of natural first in the form of clean label. We see product development
as an exercise to address the needs of modern lifestyle. We believe in pure,
natural, ingredients and pursue strict clinical and dermatological testing
regime. For us,
research is paramount. The recently acquired funds
will be utilized to further invest in Research & Development, expand
distribution across digital channels and continue to grow our operations. Along with this, mCaffeine plans to expand its
product portfolio to include 30 more products in the next twelve months.”
About mCaffeine:
mCaffeine as
a brand is for the Bold | Young |
Confident and is positioned as a unisex brand for emerging and
evolving millennials aged 20 to 28. mCaffeine believes that beauty has no
colour or gender, it’s all about well-being. With caffeine at the heart,
mCaffeine’s products are designed to bring you the best in skin & hair
care. They believe that Skincare, Haircare and most importantly Self Care is
for everyone. The brand’s promise to the world is that they will never sell
fairness creams. The brand embodies the millennial ethos with key
principles of: clean label (natural as a choice), why hurt (no
animal testing), confidence over colour (don't sell insecurities or fairness
products).
mCaffeine
products are available on its own e-commerce portal www.mcaffeine.com and also sell through all major
shopping portals namely – Amazon, Nykaa, Flipkart. Their products are already
gaining cult status in the Indian beauty community. mCaffeine’s Coffee Body
Scrub has become a favourite of the community, recently winning the ‘Best
Scrub’ Category in the Cosmopolitan Beauty Awards. mCaffeine Coffee Body Scrub
ranks No.1 in Amazon’s ‘Body Scrub’ as a category and is in the Top 50 out of
37 lakhs products listed in the overall beauty category. Similarly, mCaffeine’s
Choco Body Butter ranked No.1 in Amazon’s ‘Body Butters’ as a category. It
achieved this within a month of its launch.
About RPSG Ventures
RPSG Ventures
is a USD 50 million SEBI registered VC Fund backed by RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group as
its sponsor investor. The Fund is focused on investing in early stage consumer
businesses across their Seed, Series A & B rounds with ticket sizes ranging
from USD 0.5 - 3 million. Sectors of interest for the Fund are FMCG, food &
beverage, lifestyle goods & durables and consumer technology. You can learn
more about the Fund at www.rpsgventures.com.
Social Media Details:
Website: mCaffeine.com
Facebook: facebook.com/mCaffeine
Insta: mcaffeineofficial
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ReplyDeleteDerma Touch
They have really good products which have helped my skin look much healthier and even tone.