Indian DTC brand Nat Habit received $4 million (about Rs 30 crore) in a Series A funding round led by Fireside Ventures with participation from existing investors.

WHO: Nat Habit, founded in 2019 by engineers Swagatika Das and Gaurav Agarwal, is a natural ayurveda personal care brand with over 200 stock-keeping products. The business has a strong supply chain to deliver fresh, natural, preservative, and chemical-free products.

WHY: The new funding will be used to accelerate growth, increase channel presence, expand categories, invest in marketing and technology, and building the team.

IN THEIR OWN WORDS: "The brand has pushed the envelope of the personal care industry. It has given consumers an offering that perhaps never would have been given in the traditional realm of personal care," said Swagatika Das, founder, Nat Habit. "Our vision is to grow into a Rs 1000 crore natural living brand in 5 years, bringing as many as possible, truly close to nature."

Gaurav Agarwal, co-founder, Nat Habit said, "The brand was largely built online using social media platforms such as Instagram and Facebook to draw shoppers. Currently, 90 percent of the brand's revenue comes from its own website. The fresh funds will be used to increase channel presence including presence in offline stores, expand categories, and invest behind marketing, technology."

He said, "We feel, from a growth perspective, a lot can be driven by the marketplaces. Once we hit a run rate of Rs100 crore is when we should start focusing our energies on the offline space."

"They are innovating and re-imagining the way personal care is consumed and used in India," said Dipanjan Basu, Partner Fireside Ventures. "By using fresh from the kitchen ingredients, they are bringing back the roots of India to the customers."

DETAILS:

• Nat Habit received $4 million (about Rs 30 crore) in a Series A funding round led by Fireside Ventures along with participation from existing investors.
• In its earlier seed rounds, Nat Habit closed $2 million in funding from investors including Surge Ventures (Sequoia), Whiteboard Capital, and founders and CEOs of consumer-facing brands such as Spencer's Retail, Snapdeal, Paperboat, Epigamia, and Yogabar.
• The round provided exits to some of the early angel investors.
• To date, the brand has served 250,000 consumers, selling 2.5 million units a year with a repeat purchase rate of 55%.
• Nat Habit has recently started listing products on online selling platforms like Amazon, Flipkart, Tata Cliq, and Meesho.
• Dipanjan Basu, Partner Fireside Ventures, will be joining the Nat Habit board.