Mattress makers tap furniture and home décor opportunity amid Wakefit’s IPO plans, Furlenco's fundraise

Mattress-maker Sheela Foam is doubling down on its investment in furniture and lifestyle brand Furlenco, as its peer Wakefit gears up for an IPO with a strategy to build its furnishing and furniture play.

The Sleepwell-parent infused Rs 125 crore ($15 million) in Furlenco with additional participation from Whiteoak and Madhu Kela. 

This development comes as Wakefit opens its Rs 1,289 crore IPO for bidding next Monday. The Ankit Garg-led company is being valued at Rs 6,400 crore, based on the upper band of its price band of Rs 185 to Rs 195. Based on the company's FY25 operating revenue of Rs 1,274 crore, it translates to a revenue multiple of 5X, particularly helped by Wakefit's healthier margins.

On the other hand, Sheela Foam clocked Rs 3,439 crore in FY25 revenues and holds a market cap of Rs 6,599 crore, which translates to a revenue multiple of Rs 1.92X.

Wakefit has been sharpening its focus on high-volume home categories such as curtains, tabletop décor and soft furnishings, positioning these as entry-level products that draw new shoppers into its ecosystem before they graduate to big-ticket furniture. The company said these loose, small-ticket categories act as trust drivers and account for over half of its unit volumes.

The tussle comes as both players look to strengthen their home decor segments, as margin improvements and volume growth take centre stage.

Wakefit plans to use the majority of its IPO proceeds to expand its store network, double down on high-volume and better-margin categories like home decor and furnishings. Similarly, Furlenco will also plan to use the capital to expand its portfolio of furniture and home products and scale its offline and omnichannel footprint.

“We are embarking on the next phase of Furlenco’s growth journey. This fundraise will help us deepen our presence in existing markets, strengthen our footprint and bring our offerings closer to more customers. With a clear path to profitability and scale, this round sets us up strongly for the next coming years, as we work towards building a long-term, public-market-ready business,” shared Ajith Mohan Karimpana, Founder and CEO, Furlenco.

This marks Sheela Foam's second investment in the buy and rent furniture player after it acquired a 35% stake in the company in 2023 for a cash consideration of Rs 300 crore. Furlenco counts Lightbox Ventures, Crescent Ventures and Eagles and others among its investors.

(The story was updated to reflect accurate leadership for Wakefit.)