India’s organic skin & personal care startup brand Juicy Chemistry was founded in 2014 by Megha & Pritesh Asher
Juicy Chemistry offers certified organic products across face, body and hair care products from ingredients sourced from around the world
The company is started from a 10×10 make-shift kitchen, with Rs 5000 and a dream to change how the beauty and cosmetics industry
India’s organic skin & personal care brand Juicy Chemistry has raised $6.3 Mn in a SeriesA funding round led by Belgium based investment firm Verlinvest.
This marks the largest Series A raise in the D2C beauty and personal care space. Veda Corporate Advisors was the exclusive financial advisor for the transaction.
Juicy Chemistry was founded in 2014 by Megha & Pritesh Asher. Juicy Chemistry offers a complete range of certified organic products across face, body and hair care. Juicy Chemistry offers over 100 product range of natural and organic skincare products consisting of cleansers, moisturisers, floral waters, gourmet soaps, hair masques, baby massage oil, cold pressed oils and lots more in relation to face, body, hair, and aromatherapy and kids’ products.
Their products formulated with the highest quality organic ingredients sourced from around the world which are not only pure and highly concentrated in vitamins, minerals and nutrients, but also deliver superior efficacy on application.
Organic beauty segment
Commenting on the funding, Juicy Chemistry Cofounder and CEO Pritesh Asher said it is an incredibly exciting time for the company.
“The investment will enable Juicy Chemistry to further strengthen its position as a leader in the clean and organic beauty segment. We are keen to leverage this capital for the rapid expansion of Juicy Chemistry’s thriving e-commerce platform and omnichannel distribution capabilities, to reach new and existing geographies, to hire talent, for brand building and to cater to the increasing demand for products both domestically and in the international market” said Pritesh Asher.
Below are a few firsts for them :
- One of the first beauty organic brands in India,to receive funding by Amit Nanavati.
- A brand which is not started by skincare experts or who have studied skincare or have an ayurvedic or naturopathy degree.
- The brand is 6 years old, and their ingredients as are organic come from exclusive farms in Bulgaria for organic rosewater, rose essential oil and hazelnut oil, olive oil from Spain, chilli seed oil and fig seed oil from Turkey, green apple water from Serbia, matcha tea from Japan, caecilian blood orange from Tuscany and lemon from Italy.
- Their products do not pollute air, water or air and, since they are minimally processed, consume negligible energy and generate almost zero waste (the fruit and vegetable pulp from their production is used as cattle fodder)
- They are a perfect example of walking the talk!
- With over 100 certified organic products, Juicy Chemistry has been growing at over 100 per cent in terms of revenue year on year, and is present in 30 countries apart from India.
- Juicy Chemistry is certified organic , from soil to soil.
- The company has grown by 300% in last fiscal year and currently is a 200 cr company. They also have raised funds of $6.3 Million in a Series A funding round led by Belgium based investment firm Verlinvest, the go-to investor for mission driven entrepreneurs and category-defining global brands. Veda Corporate Advisors was the exclusive financial advisor for the transaction.
Boot-strapped until 2019, the firm raised an Angel round from Amit Nanavati who believed in the brand and unique product offering. This gave the much-needed resource to scale operations and dream bigger. Juicy Chemistry has seen a 300% jump in revenues for this fiscal year with a growing customer base, who are torchbearers for the brand with high repeat cohorts.
Juicy Chemistry Cofounder & COO Megha Asher the company’s workers are the pillar of strength for it and their sheer commitment and dedication to the brand has made this possible.
“It’s a privileged position for us to be in as this new round of funding from the strongest purpose-led, consumer-focused investor will tremendously accelerate our expansion plans and help us penetrate the market deeper and reach more consumers to spread the message of Organic beauty care,” said Megha Asher.
Digital-first strategy
She also pointed out that Juicy Chemistry looks forward to building the brand full steam ahead keeping the core ethos and values unaltered as it scale the business over the next phase.
Verlinvest Executive Director Arjun Anand the company is excited to start its journey with Juicy Chemistry, which forms part of Verlinvest’s global effort in backing unique digital-first beauty brands for the long term.
“We are impressed with Pritesh &Megha’s passion to create high quality, organic certified beauty products and the customer love they have received. Verlinvest looks for authentic and passionate entrepreneurs who are creating a consumer revolution using their product & brand stories and we saw like-mindedness with the way Pritesh & Megha are building their business,” said Arjun Anand.
He also said Verlinvest is very happy to partner with Juicy Chemistry and will support its development in the years to come.
Verlinvest Investment Professional Manvitha Janagam said India is on track to become one of the largest beauty markets in the world.
“An increasingly conscious customer is shaping the trend towards clean beauty. Megha and Pritesh with their deep knowledge of organic beauty, have been able to craft the perfect beauty brand, that strongly resonates with this conscious consumer,” said Manvitha Janagam.
Consumer Brands
By emphasising on sourcing unique organic ingredients from across the world and manufacturing at highest ECOCERT standards, Manvitha Janagam said Verlinvest is creating nothing short of a revolution in the organic beauty segment in India.
“I started my journey with Juicy Chemistry as a consumer a year ago and now I am absolutely thrilled to be a part of their future growth as an investor,” said Manvitha Janagam.
Founded in 1995, Verlinvest is a private Belgian family investment firm of the founding families of Anheuser-Busch InBev, the World’s largest beer company.
Verlinvest is a global investor focused exclusively on Consumer Brands and specializes in partnering with entrepreneurs where it can play an active role and create value over the long term.
Investment company Verlinvest has an extensive portfolio of consumer brands online & offline and its current Indian portfolio includes brands such as BYJU’S, Sula Vineyards, Epigamia, Veeba Foods, Purplle.com, Wakefit and Future Consumer Limited.
