The funding, which also saw participation from existing investor Tano Capital and Brand Capital (part of the Times Group which publishes The Economic Times), will help the Mumbai-based startup expand into new cities across the country and even overseas.
MyGlamm is also in talks to raise another $4 million from a large Indian consumer internet company, said Founder Darpan Sanghvi.
“This is the first instance globally of a beauty company investing in a tech-enabled startup in the space,” said Sanghvi, who founded the company last year. “The strategic support of L’Occitane in our growth will also be a big differentiator over the competition.”
Sanghvi also runs offline beauty and wellness business under another company called Sanghvi Brands, which has the master franchise of L’Occitane Spa and other high-end salons and spas like Warren Tricomi, Elle Spa & Salons and Holyfield Gyms.
Globally, companies like China’s Helijia, which raised $50 million from IDG Capital & Qiming Venture as well as US-based GlamSquad, which raised $24 million from SoftBank Capital & NEA have attracted funding in this space.
But in India, investment in MyGlamm comes at a time when players in the hyperlocal services space have found it hard to raise follow-on funding. Competition in the space is now primarily between horizontals, which includes Quikr and Sulekha along with new players like Housejoy and UrbanClap.
Last year, UrbanClap raised $25 million led by Bessemer Venture Partners while Amazon-backed Housejoy has built a strong business in the space under a brand called Beautyjoy. Beauty has also emerged as the focal point for competition between these players because of high value and repeat business.
MyGlamm claims that it does 600 services a day in Mumbai and Pune, with repeats contributing to more than 60% of the business. “Repeat customers spend a lot more than new customers.
Source: The Economic Times