[Funding alert] Licious raises $192M in Series F round led by Temasek and Multiples PE

Licious, the online fresh meat and seafood brand, has raised Series F funding of $192 million. The round was led by Temasek, the Singapore-based investment firm, and Multiples Private Equity. This fundraise makes Licious the highest funded company in the segment.

The round also saw participation from Brunei Investment Agency and existing investors 3one4Capital, Bertelsmann India Investments, Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia and India, and Vertex Growth Fund. Avendus was the exclusive financial adviser to Licious for the transaction.

With this investment, a few early-stage investors have exited the company. The company also recently announced its pledge to comply with the lofty global ESG standards, setting new benchmarks for sustainability and governance.  

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The funds raised will be deployed towards deeper investment in technology-led supply chain transformation, quality improvement, and customer experience elevation, along with expanding presence in a greater number of Indian cities, powering the international expansion plan, augmenting capabilities in existing markets, strengthening omnichannel presence, and powering new product launches.

Commenting on the fresh round of fundraise, Vivek Gupta and Abhay Hanjura, Co-founders, Licious, said,

“With every passing year, Licious has received overwhelming love and adoption across all cities of India. This is just the beginning of our pursuit of building an exemplary and iconic tech-led D2C brand. There is a massive opportunity to be unlocked in this large $40 billion sector, which has hitherto been devoid of safety, innovation, quality, and sustainability standards."

They added that with rapidly increasing protein consumption being driven by a vast majority of Indian consumers, it was a matter of time before the larger global investor community partook in this ambitious and transformative journey.

"In the coming years we will bolster our presence through multi-geo and channel presence, unlocking true disruption for the industry through deployment of top-notch tech and supply chain practices and innovating the meat and seafood product roadmap in a way that India has never experienced before."

"We are thankful for the support we have received from our patrons, partners, and consumers. We are all set to continue celebrating the great Indian culinary heritage through more delectable products and unparalleled experience," they added.

Currently, Licious is present in 14 Indian cities. This 3,500+ employee-strong company is touted as the fastest-growing consumer brand in India. The company claims to have seen an unprecedented growth of over 500 percent during the last year, followed by the continuing momentum of the same. The startup said it has successfully delivered to more than two million unique customers till date.

Sridhar Sankararaman, Managing Director, Multiples, said,

"Abhay and Vivek have revolutionised the purchase of poultry, seafood, and meat in the country, delighting customers with their promise of quality, freshness, and timely delivery. Their obsession with customers and quality gives them an eternal edge to create Licious as a category leader and as one of India’s most admired consumer brands. We are proud to be a partner in this journey”.