[Funding alert] D2C tea startup Vahdam raises Rs 174 Cr from IIFL AMC, others

Delhi-based Vahdam Teashas raised Rs 174 crore in Series D funding round led by IIFL AMC's private equity fund. Existing investors including Infosys co-founder Kris Gopalakrishnan's family office and Sixth Sense Ventures, and others participated in the round.

The direct-to-consumer (D2C) tea brand said it will use the funding to increase online and offline penetration, enter new geographies, and to develop new product categories. Till date, Vahdam has raised over Rs 290 crore.

The startup also claims to have crossed Rs 160 crore in net revenue for FY21 from Rs 75 crore in FY20. Vahdam is also growing 110 percent year-on-year and also claims to be net profitable.

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The tea brand, which is recommended by personalities including Oprah Winfrey and Mariah Carey, is targeting Rs 500 crore in revenue in the next three years.

Founded in 2015 by Bala Sarda, Vahdam India procures teas directly from plantations and manufactures in-house. The startup operates in the wellness space with turmeric, matcha, and immunity-boosting teas, among other categories.

“The pandemic has accelerated our growth, given the shift towards high quality and trusted wellness products, and larger adoption of ecommerce globally. We are excited to have IIFL AMC join our mission of building one of India’s most loved consumer brands in global markets," said Bala Sarda.

"With the current fundraising, we plan to continue deepening our distribution in key markets, both online and offline. We will also look at entering new categories, new markets, invest heavily in R&D, and further strengthen our management team," he added.

“VAHDAM is a rare example of a company, which has successfully taken products of Indian origin to global markets. With its superior quality and innovative blends, VAHDAM has been able to create a premium brand and reach out to global consumers via digital channels. It is remarkable that the company, under the leadership of Bala, has been able to execute this by being highly capital efficient and achieving EBITDA profitability," Chetan Naik, Fund Manager, Private Equity at IIFL AMC, said in the release.

The six-year-old tea brand, with other online-first brands, got a major boost last year as many at-home consumers started shopping online. This shift in behaviour was accelerated due to unpredictable lockdowns across the country.

Investment banking firm DC Advisory was the exclusive advisor to VAHDAM India on this transaction.