Fluid
Ventures, the direct-to-consumer (D2C) focused venture capital fund, has
announced its debut investment in Fabriclore from its Rs 80 crore fund. Fabriclore
is a Jaipur-based leading digital retailer of fabrics that offers one of the
widest ranges of fabrics, producing one of the largest and versatile fabric
catalogs on a digital platform.
With
pandemic hitting the world last year, consumer behavior has changed drastically
and it is likely to stay and with an agility of digital platforms, quality and
diversity of products and quick dispatch and delivery is engaging consumers in
digital shopping more than visits to physical stores, both far and near. Fluid
Ventures had envisaged the need for D2C platforms much earlier. So with the aim
to promote the startup ecosystem in India, the fund announced its first close
this year in May’2021 and is going to invest in 15 Direct to consumer startups
from its fund.
“We
invest in startups that have successfully executed their capability and have
achieved customer validation in the addressed market. In Fabriclore we found a
startup which has defined competitive advantage. We not only provide funds but
also provide hands-on support to the start-ups in achieving business
milestones,†said Amit Singal, General Partner, Fluid Ventures.
Singal
added the fund will be deploying the entire corpus of Rs 80 crore in Direct to
Consumer Indian products and brands over the next three years, with a ticket
size of Rs 2-4 crore per deal in Pre-Series A and Series A rounds.
Fluid
Ventures is leading the current round with $ 2,40,000 in Fabriclore that is
being deployed primarily for customer acquisition and international expansion.
Fabriclore from its 10,000+ catalogue offers customization of garments,
accessories and home furnishing over a digital platform along with maintaining
the quality of the fabrics. The company has acknowledged an Annual Revenue
Requirement (AAR) of Rs 11.25 crore for the year 2021-22.
Dhianu
Das, General Partner, Fluid Ventures, said, “While investment in D2C companies
seemed risky to many investors because of the pandemic situation, we at Fluid
Ventures felt it was necessary to boost up the morale of our home-grown D2C
start-ups. D2C is the way ahead and the entrepreneurs need our encouragement
and support. We will continue to provide it.â€Â