STEM-based toys startup Smartivity secures second pre-Series A funding of $2 M from Ashish Kacholia, others

New-Delhi based Smartivity Labs, a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math) toys design startup has raised $2 million from Ashish Kacholia, an investor and Director-Research at Mumbai-based Lucky Securities.

This round also saw participation from existing Smartivity investors S Chand Group, AdvantEdge Founders, and Ant Space.

Talking about his decision to invest in Smartivity Labs, Ashish Kacholia said, “I got interested in Smartivity because my daughter Anisha loved their STEM toys, and the toys gave me quality bonding time with her every weekend. I can see the improvement in her understanding of scientific concepts and analytical skills; and reduction in screen time. Same will apply to many young parents and their kids, at a value for money price. I believe that Smartivity is going to revolutionise the Indian toy industry and bring up a whole generation of tech-smart kids.”

Smartivity Labs was founded in February 2015 by Tushar A Amin, and IIT-Delhi alumni Apoorv Gupta, Rajat Jain and Ashwini Kumar. Smartivity Labs is dedicated to designing, developing and selling STEM educational toys, Blended Learning (technology-enabled physical toys) and Tangible Play activities for children in the age group of three and 14 years.

STEM toys is one of the fastest growing categories in the global toy industry and includes toys designed to introduce children to fundamental concepts from the STEM fields. Smartivity has emerged as a global consumer brand in the toy industry with a strong presence in highly discerning markets of USA, Canada, Europe and Australia, among other countries.

Tushar A Amin, Co-founder, Smartivity Labs, said, “Smartivity has grown over 10X in the past two years. We expect to cross Rs 100 crores in revenue in the next three years. The current round of fund infusion will be primarily used towards strengthening product development, bolstering manufacturing capabilities, and launching innovative brand awareness initiatives in India, as well as American, European and other international markets.”

Smartivity claims that it has a robust global order book and its exports are expected to grow three to four times this year. Smartivity will also be expanding its presence to geographies like Russia, China, Japan and South America over the next few months.

“We are on track to meet the ‘Rs 100 crore by 2021’ target. We are focussed on the needs of our evolving audience and the industry. People, processes, and product innovation are Smartivity's core strengths. We will be strengthening our design capabilities to ensure that every young mind that engages with Smartivity product has a fun, flawless and world-class experience, We want to win every parent’s trust and every child’s love. Our vision is to be the best STEM toys brand in the world,” added Tushar.

The global market for STEM educational toys is valued at $29 billion and is expected to grow to $35 billion by 2020. Of this, India accounts for about $235 million and is expected to grow to $500 million by 2020. The STEM is also one of the few categories of the toy industry that has shown consistent growth over the past five years, and this growth is expected to be faster over the coming years, as parents across the world are increasingly becoming aware of the value of STEM learning in a technology-driven future.