Indian DTC beauty and skincare start-up Pilgrim, operated by Heavenly Secrets, raised $1.95 million in a Series A round led by Fireside Ventures and Rukam Capital.
WHO: Pilgrim was founded in 2019 by Anurag Kedia and Gagandeep Makker, both IIT and IIM alumni who have spent more than 15 years in the beauty industry. Pilgrim is a multicategory DTC concept that currently consists of two product ranges. The first is a K-Beauty–inspired range called Secrets of Jeju Island, Korea. The second, a French-inspired anti-aging collection based on vinotherapy, is vegan, free of harmful toxins, and not tested on animals. The total offering of both lines consists of 28 SKUs across hair, face, and bath-body with pricing that targets a millennial consumer.
WHY: The start-up will use the current funds to grow its team and brand awareness and enhance its research and development capabilities.
IN THEIR OWN WORDS: "We did a small angel round a year and a half ago. We had a lean team until a couple of months back when we started building up with the funds we raised," said Anurag Kedia, co-founder and Chief Executive Officer at Heavenly Secrets, which operates Pilgrim. "Team hiring is going to be a critical area,"
He continued, "At the core of Pilgrim exists a passionate team that is curating 'native' global experiences and not merely importing global ingredients. This funding strengthens our belief in the potential of the Indian D2C personal care and beauty industry. It takes us closer to our vision of empowering the modern millennials with global beauty rituals at the click of a button."
Vinay Singh, co-founder and partner, Fireside Ventures said, "The founding team of Pilgrim has a unique vision of bringing the best of global beauty rituals and ingredients to Indian consumers. They have the right attitude and skill-sets to be able to achieve this vision." He added, "In a short span of time, Pilgrim has created a differentiated position in the market and the consumer feedback is very encouraging. We believe that Pilgrim will serve the millennial consumers globally and will become an international beauty brand in the future."
Archana Jahagirdar, Managing Partner, Rukam Capital, said, "Pilgrim is an innovative and unique beauty brand that is making the best of global traditions accessible to millions of people. We believe that this brand will be the major disruptor in the global beauty and personal care market shortly."
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