FabAlley, Indya owner reports 21X growth in FY19 net profits

High Street Essentials, which owns women-centric fashion brands FabAlley and Indya, has reported a 21 times increase in net profit for 2018-19 at Rs 1.3 crore, led by strong sales growth and lower base effect.

The company has reported an operating profit of Rs 3.3 crore, its second operating profit in a row, an official statement said.

The Delhi-based startup has seen revenue doubling on year to Rs 90.3 crore on account of improved distribution, product expansion and platform strengthening.    

In addition to the online business, the company claims to operate 30 physical stores, 350 shops-in-shops and a scaled-up online marketplace presence across both brands. 

Total expenditure increased to Rs 88.5 crore in the reporting fiscal from Rs 53.5 crore a year ago, led by higher input costs and employee benefits, regulatory filings show. 

Short-term borrowings increased to Rs 2 crore from Rs 1.3 crore a year ago. As on March 31, 2019, it has reserves and surplus of Rs 53 crore.

“FY19 has marked our transition from a primarily online company to an omnichannel entity while ensuring our infrastructure, supply chain, and product lines expanded efficiently to accommodate both online and offline retail growth with continued capital efficiency,” the company’s founders said.

In the next 12-18 months, the company aims to expand its retail footprint by increasing exclusive brand stores count to 50 and doubling its shop-in-shops to more than 600 outlets. 

High Street Essentials was started in 2012 by Shivani Poddar and Tanvi Malik with fast fashion brand FabAlley. In 2016 they launched, Indya, an ethnic-fusion brand, in response to the growing demand for contemporary Indian wear. 

In the midst of the festive season, High Street Essentials has also announced the launch of jewellery brand Zyra, focused on young women, priced in the range of Rs 600 and Rs 3,000. The new business will be operated through its website, kiosks and Indya outlets.

In December 2018, the company raised $8.5 million in a Series B round led by SAIF Partners. Indian Angel Network had also participated in the round.