Plum, a beauty business, obtains $267 million in investment led by A91 Partners

Plum, a D2C brand, raised 267 crores in a Series C round headed by A91 Partners at a value of 1,908 crores, with participation from previous backers Unilever Ventures and Faering Capital. So far, the cosmetics brand is said to have raised about Rs. 381 crore. Plum will welcome Abhay Pandey, a general partner of A91 Partners, to its board of directors.

Plum, a beauty business, obtains $267 million in investment led by A91 Partners

Plum, a popular cosmetics company, has raised $35 million (Rs 270 crore) in a Series C round headed by A91 Partners, a late-stage venture capital firm. The company claims to be a cruelty-free, vegan, and toxin-free beauty brand. Existing investors Unilever Ventures and Faering Capital also participated in the investment round. Plum has received nearly $50 million from consumer-focused institutional investors to date, indicating that it will continue to develop as the category leader in the new-age, direct-to-consumer beauty industry. A91 Partners' Abhay Pandey will join the Plum board of directors as part of the deal.

"A91 Partners are ardent supporters of the Indian consumer story, and we are thrilled to have them join us on our mission to develop a scale that matters," said Shankar Prasad, Plum's CEO, and founder. "The A91 team has a proven track record of identifying great consumer brands and partnering with them on their growth paths."Plum's strategy to increase its omnichannel presence, establish new categories outside of its core skincare sector, and improve R&D capabilities is likely to gain traction with the new funding. It would also hire top staff, with a focus on marketing and technological initiatives.

The brand is now widely accepted across channels and categories, including skin, hair, body, men's care, and now makeup, indicating its potential for domination in the fast-rising clean beauty sector. Plum's goal is to quadruple its ARR, which is currently Rs 225 crores on a net revenue basis, in the next 12 months.

"Equally satisfying is the reaffirmation of faith from both our existing investors, Unilever Ventures and Faering Capital – both significant backers of consumer firms," Prasad said. "This fresh investment will enable us to advance on our exciting growth path, not just in our core skincare category, but also in adjacent major categories including as hair care, makeup, body care, and specialty care for men," says the company. We aim to do it in as many distinct and entertaining ways as possible to bring our brand ethos of 'being good' to life."

Prasad, an IIT-ISB-Unilever alum, founded Plum in 2013. Plum has expanded 15 times since its first fundraising round in late 2018, thanks to a strong leadership and investor team dedicated to creating value for people, the planet, and profit-sharing participants. It is still one of the most rapidly expanding brands in the new-age cosmetics industry. This, according to the company, is attributable to its high-quality product ranges, endearing brand personality, and omnichannel presence.  

It is not only one of the most popular brands on major e-commerce platforms like Amazon, Flipkart, Nykaa, and Purplle, but it is also available in over 250 Indian cities. This is accomplished through approximately 1,000 assisted retail shops and over 10,000 unassisted retail outlets, both of which are rising month after month. Mithila Palkar, an actress, has recently joined the brand as a brand ambassador.

"In a noisy world of new-age consumer brands, Plum's unrelenting focus on product and brand positions it uniquely to build an enduring business, and A91 Partners is privileged to be a partner in this journey," said Abhay Pandey, general partner, A91 Partners.