Pureplay Skin Sciences (India) Pvt. Ltd, which sells Plum beauty products, has raised a Series A round from Unilever Ventures. The amount of the investment was not disclosed. Plum is a 100% vegan and cruelty-free beauty start-up positioned to tap into India’s growing beauty industry. The business has been bootstrapping since its launch and this represents the first significant funding the brand has raised.

The brand was founded in 2013 by Shankar Prasad who studied chemical engineering at Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai, and had stints at Hindustan Unilever, McKinsey & Company, and Everstone Capital.

Prasad noted, “We weren’t looking to raise money initially, but we realized that as the business grew, it needed money. Unilever Ventures has come on board as a pure financial investor.”

“We have had a long-term interest in digital-first beauty brands and have been impressed with the work Shankar and his team have been doing over the last few years, crafting the Plum brand, with a clear positioning and purpose, appealing to an engaged consumer audience,” said Pawan Chaturvedi, investment director at Unilever Ventures.

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