[Funding alert] Beauty startup RENEE Cosmetics raises $10M in Series A from Mensa Brands, existing investors

Beauty Brand Renee Cosmetics on Friday raised $ 10 million in a Series A round led by Mensa Brands. The round also witnessed participation from the existing investors, including Equanimity Investments and 9Unicorns. The brand has raised a total of $ 11 million till date, including the current round. 

Last year in October, the startup raised $1.5 million in a pre-Series A round led by Equanimity Ventures and 9Unicorns, with participation from Titan Capital.

According to the official statement, the Indian beauty brand plans to use the funds majorly in strengthening the brand presence and widening offline presence. A part of the fund will also be leveraged for catalogue expansion and marketing budgets.

RENEE is currently selling products through all leading online channels and 500+ stores in the country. 

 Aashka Goradia Goble, Co-founder, RENEE Cosmetics, stated, “This fundraise will help us expand our expertise into creating and formulating groundbreaking products. We are excited to initiate this next phase of our journey.”  

Founded in 2019 by Aashka Goradia Goble along with Beardo co-founder duo Ashutosh Valani and Priyank Shah, RENEE Cosmetics is a cruelty-free beauty brand offering a wide range of eye makeup, lip colours, skin serums, and highlighters. The brand has been launching back-to-back innovative products, and today boasts a portfolio of about 30 products across three categories.

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Ashutosh Valani, and Priyank Shah previously founded male grooming brand Beardo, which was acquired by FMCG major.

Commenting on the fundraise, Priyank Shah, Co-founder, RENEE Cosmetics, stated,

“We have achieved 400 percent growth this quarter and have set ambitious targets for the brand going forward. This year, we are going to focus on expanding our product catalogue, marketing, and increasing our offline presence across the country.” 

“We are glad to be backed by such seasoned investors and partners. Our belief is that we can create a new-age cosmetics brand for the Indian consumer powered by innovation,” added Ashutosh Valani, Co-founder, RENEE Cosmetics.

The Indian cosmetics market was valued at about $13 billion in FY20 and expected to touch $29 billion in FY26.

At present, the Ahmedabad-based beauty brand claims to clock ARR of Rs 60 crore and is all set to reach Rs 150 crore by the end of this fiscal year.

“RENEE Cosmetics has established a unique positioning and garnered customer love in the competitive beauty market. As the colour cosmetics segment rapidly grows over the next few years, I believe that RENEE Cosmetics will emerge as a category leader owing to its innovative products and strong founding team,” said Ananth Narayanan, Founder and CEO of Mensa Brands.