[Funding alert] Risers Accelerator invests Rs 11 Cr in three startups

Delhi-based Risers Accelerator has funded three startups -- Zeleno, Cosmeto Food, and Playtoome -- with a total investment of approximately Rs 11 crore. 

Zeleno was started three years back by ISB Hyderabad trio Nimish Gupta, Prateek Mittal, and Rishabh Aggarwal towards furthering the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan. Valued at Rs 50 crore, Zeleno has been installing the reverse vending machines in New Delhi and Lucknow. Piloting with these places, the company has already come up with a blueprint of places across India where the machines will be installed. Risers Accelerator holds 10 percent equity in the company. 

Zeleno recently got a contract through Rail India Technical and Economic Services (RITES) for Central Railways of 500 machines. 

"With such a huge recycling industry at work in India, the scope of such startups is good. The industry employees around four million people and it is one of the best ways of income generation for various people including ragpickers and recyclers. We see a huge potential as the India’s waste management sector would be worth $13.62 billion by 2025," added Rachit Chawla, Director, Finance & Technology, Risers Accelerator. 

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On the other hand Cosmeto Food Organic Pvt Ltd, a startup that provides taste-able authentic Ayurvedic organic handmade skin care products, was started two years back by Himanshu Chadha. Valued at Rs 20 crore, Cosmeto has been operating pan India and is exporting to about 35 countries. 

Risers Accelerator has funded Rs 2 crore for product distribution and it holds 10 percent equity in the company. 

"Our products are proudly free of paraben, animal by-products, silicon, mineral oils, toxins, alcohol, and other harsh cosmetic chemicals, and are safe to be tasted as well. Since they are made of almost 100 percent natural ingredients, you might mistake them as natural food because of their appearance and texture. And yes, they are all taste-able," said Chadha.

The third company in which Risers Accelerator has invested in is Playtoome -- a company that is into technology-enabled live performance, entertainment, and consumer engagement platform. The company is targeting to be a $50 million business and five million unique customers in the next three years. Playtoome will get next round of funding from Risers of Rs 4 crore. 

The online portal is two-years old and has a customer base of 50,000 and has 3,500 artistes. The customers can view the concerts on his/her mobile, tablet, laptop, PC, or even on a smart TV. On the other hand, it takes off the pain of paying a hefty fee for listening to a live concert and to be physically present there. 

“Playtoome was launched with a singular vision – to transform the live entertainment space by connecting audiences with their favorite artistes through technology and enabling more interactive and immersive live entertainment experiences. The investment will give a big boost to that vision,” S Keerthivasan, Founder and CEO of Playtoome said.

Risers Accelerator is also in talks with 'Just Happy' as well, which is in the retail segment of household gifts stationery.

Risers Accelerator is a conglomerate of 35 individuals based out of Delhi and has been aggressively promoting startups with good business potential. 

(Edited by Evelyn Ratnakumar)

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