She Capital leads $2.7 mn Series A round in Samosa Singh

Bengaluru-based fast food brand Samosa Singh has raised $2.7 million in a Series A funding round led by She Capital. New investors Equanimity Investments, AET Fund Japan and AL Trust participated in the round with returning investor Fireside Ventures.

The company will utilise the capital to scale up operations, increase production capabilities and expand to multiple cities through its cloud kitchen model for business-to-consumer supply. The company plans to set up 100 cloud kitchens by the end of 2020.

The brand, which has an omnichannel retail strategy, works with food delivery services and food technology platforms such as Swiggy, Zomato and on-demand delivery service provider Dunzo. It has a presence in Bengaluru and Hyderabad, and also supplies its brand of samosas to INOX, PVR Cinemas and Cafe Coffee Day.

Founded in 2016 by former biotechnology professionals Nidhi Singh and Shikhar Veer Singh, the company currently has a 5,000 square feet facility under management.

“Over the years, we have managed to automate the process of making samosas, which has helped us scale and maintain consistency on the end product. It was a challenge as there were no machines in the market to scale this and we have improved on the shape and size through customer feedback,” Nidhi Singh told TechCircle. She added that the shape and automation have helped the brand make their products 56% healthier due to lower oil absorption.

The company has also entered a partnership with multinational retailers for its ready-to-eat and ready-to-cook range of samosas.

“As our first investment, Samosa Singh is a great embodiment of this vision. Building on technology, scientific research and key consumer insights without diluting the experience or quality for end users is what makes this brand a great bet,” Anisha Singh, founding partner at She Capital, said in the statement.

Homegrown consumer brands, that leverage technology to build capital efficient businesses, have seen increased interest with dedicated funds like Fireside Ventures tapping into the growing space. In December, Fireside Ventures invested in women’s workwear brand Fable Street. Another Fireside portfolio company Vahdam Teas bagged $10.5 million in a Series C round in October 2019. Earlier this month, FMCG brand Rage Coffee raised early stage funding from Refex Capital.