Beauty e-commerce startup Nykaa raises fresh funding from Max Ventures

Max Ventures and Industries Ltd, part of industrialist Analjit Singh's Max Group, said on Friday a unit has acquired a 1.99% stake in online beauty essentials retailer Nykaa.

The stake was bought by wholly owned subsidiary Max I. Ltd, the company said in a stock-exchange filing.

It didn't disclose the value of the investment. However, based on Nykaa's estimated valuation of around Rs 800 when it last raised funds, Max likely invested about Rs 16 crore.

This is the second time this year that Nykaa, run by FSN E-Commerce Ventures Pvt. Ltd, has raised funding. In September, the firm raised $12 million (Rs 82 crore) in a round led by Hero Group's Sunil Munjal.

Nykaa was founded in 2012 by investment-banker-turned entrepreneur Falguni Nayar, former managing director at Kotak Mahindra Capital. The online marketplace sells products across categories ranging from skincare, hair care, fragrances, bath and body, and luxury products for both women and men.

In an interaction with VCCircle last October, Nayar had said that the company intended to expand its presence through brick-and-mortar stores, launch its own branded products and bring international brands to India. The firm had been focussing on opening multi-brand retail outlets at malls in Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru.

In October 2015, the company raised growth capital from a mix of investors. It raised Rs 60 crore ($9 million) in its second institutional funding round led by private equity firm TVS Capital. Techpro Ventures, the family office of Atul Nishar (former Hexaware promoter) and the family office of Marico chairman Harsh Mariwala, among others, also invested in this round.

Prior to that, Nykaa secured round $3.4 million from family offices and high net-worth individuals in July 2014.

In the online beauty e-tailing segment, Purplle.com, run by Mumbai-based Manash Lifestyle Pvt Ltd, had secured $6 million in July in a Series B round led by JSW Ventures with participation from existing investors Blume Ventures and IvyCap Ventures.

Beauty e-tailers also face competition from horizontal e-commerce players such as Snapdeal, Flipkart and Amazon.