Bengaluru, NFAPost: Clovia, India’s fastest growing e-commerce platform designed to offer lingerie and sleepwear brands, has raised a pre-Series C round funding led by a clutch of investors including Golden Birch Investments and SheCapital Venture Fund. The $4 million raised will continue to fuel its growth in the coming year.
The Noida-headquartered company also announced the appointment of Anisha Singh, Founder of SheCapital Venture Fund, to its Board of Directors as part of adding a bigger thinktank to Clovia’s customer-focused strategy at its Board level.
Clovia’s board of Directors & Advisors currently leverages collective expertise and leadership from a broad spectrum of sectors including technology, consumer, e-commerce and finance. Singh’s appointment is a step towards strengthening the same.
Clovia Chief Executive Officer and Founder Pankaj Vermani said the company welcomes the trust reposed in Clovia by new and existing investors and the funding puts Clovia in a strong position to continue making an impact in 2021.
“Our categories are essential products in the wardrobe and Work-from-home has given further boost to the sales both for innerwear and our loungewear. Activewear is also coming up as one of the core categories for us. In the next 2-3 years, we plan to continue to grow from strength to strength on the back of category growth, and product innovation,” said Clovia Chief Executive Officer and Founder Pankaj Vermani.
Clovia Chief Executive Officer and Founder Pankaj Vermani said Clovia is currently loved by 2 million customers and the number should double up in the 2-3 years.
“While we are steadily on that path, we’re also encountering a host of organic/inorganic opportunities to grow internationally,” said Clovia Chief Executive Officer and Founder Pankaj Vermani.
Besides husband-wife duo Pankaj Vermani and Neha Kant, Clovia co-founder includes Suman Choudhry. The company which started its operation in 2015 and has total employees of around 120. The company has now a total six investors.
Clovia is India’s premier lingerie, sleepwear and activewear brands, enabling women to access designer and comfortable lingerie at an affordable price range. The company designs, manufacture and sells a host of products including premium lingerie, nightwear, loungewear, activewear, shapewear and swimwear.
SheCapital Founding Partner Anisha Singh says as women growing up in India, if they had to buy female lingerie from any local store, which most likely all customers did, they would understand why a startup like Clovia is so relevant to the ecosystem.
“They are solving a very real problem that exists. The founders are brilliantly executing on a vision that we’re clearly excited to get behind. We at SheCapital are extremely happy to be part of their growth journey going forward- I know it’s going to be phenomenal,” said SheCapital Founding Partner Anisha Singh.
The fresh capital will be used for growth in all key business segments of the firm. Funds will be deployed to expand into new categories, pushing the brand message, enhancing technology, and strengthening the teams all directed towards a better customer experience for the brand.
Clovia, owned by Cloe Holdings Private Limited, has witnessed a remarkable spike in the business, amid the pandemic and FY’20 recorded a 50% growth over FY’19 with 85% sales coming from online channels. Off-late there has been a 6X scale in sleepwear & loungewear, 3X scale in Maternity lingerie, and feeding nightwear. Clovia has achieved profitability post lockdown with a double-digit EBITDA at the back of improved gross margins.
At present, Clovia is manufacturing almost a million units per month and ships close to 2 million units in a quarter. Clovia is present in over 200 stores across 50 locations with a wide physical presence in metros, tier II and tier III cities. Of this, there are 13 EBOs across Delhi-NCR, Punjab, and Gujarat.
Clovia sells through multiple channels including its exclusive online store www.clovia.com, all major online marketplaces, a network of its exclusive retail stores across India and also through most of the premium large formats in the country. At Clovia highly skilled designers and fashion experts create exquisite, playful and designer products, keeping up with the international designs and styles.
Sophisticated, sharp, and suave, contrasted with flirty, fun, and bold prints, Clovia wants to redefine the Indian lingerie market and help customers choose beyond standard cuts, shapes, and colours. The company’s proprietary technology stack ensures it has one of the most efficient supply chains in the country. The company has been shipping over 600,000 units a month. Clovia is backed by Ivy Cap Ventures, Zurich-based Mountain Partners AG and Singapore based AT Capital.
