🤔What's In A Name?
😎Teen Splash, Policy Critique, Modern Trade POs, Spice Boom.
Hi, Surgies 👋
The budget is expected to spruce consumption while creating a ‘Rs13 lakh tax victim club’. “From an e-commerce/retail perspective, this presents an opportunity for companies to continue to invest in premium and discretionary categories.” as per Kalyan Krishnamurthy, CEO, Flipkart.
Meanwhile, ecommerce is fueling a beauty boom! India’s beauty & grooming sector is exploding, with 3,500+ brands now selling online. The number of electronic beauty device brands (hair stylers, shavers) has surged from 399 in 2022 to 571 in 2024, far outpacing offline retail.
Ecommerce has reduced entry barriers compared to the offline pain of setting up distribution. It’s never been easier to launch a brand online as per an industry expert ( addendum: It’s never been more difficult to scale a brand online).
HUL, the country’s largest consumer goods company, pegs the total beauty products market at Rs 68,000 crore.
Micro-trends or short-duration fads of 3-6 months, especially among GenZ consumers, are also driving growth with products such as graphic eyeliners, tinted moisturisers, lip stains and colour-shift lipsticks becoming viral according to Redseer
NielsenIQ shared that the growth is driven by premiumisation, innovative offerings, and the influence of global trends such as the rising popularity of Westernisation and South Korean beauty products in India.
🗞️Marketplace Buzz
Funding Surge: Meesho has locked in $250-270 million in fresh funding (majorly secondaries). The round, backed by existing and new investors, signals strong confidence in the platform’s scalability and profitability. As Meesho expands beyond resellers to direct sellers, this capital will likely fuel deeper market penetration and tech advancements.
Corporate Restructuring of the Dark Store Kind: Zepto is making major changes to the management structure of some of its active dark stores. The company will transfer the operations of these outlets from licensee partners—namely Geddit Convenience, Drogheria Sellers, and Commodum Groceries—to third-party franchisees. Earlier this month, the company formed Zepto Marketplace Pvt Ltd to move from a B2B2C format to a marketplace one. So far, Zepto has relied on a combination of company-owned and franchised stores. Gotta stay compliant with the regulations!
Emiza Gears Up! Logistics player Emiza bags ₹100 Cr in a Series C round valuing it at ₹400 Cr. The funds will boost automation, expand services, and speed up deliveries🚛 as e-commerce logistics heat up.
What’s In a Name?: Flipkart has rebranded its grocery business from ‘Grocery’ to ‘Kilos,’ aiming to provide everyday essentials at wholesale prices. It remains unclear whether Kilos offers more than just a rebrand from Grocery. has been bullish on its expansion plans for Flipkart Minutes, focusing on adding new categories on the platform and cities to its dark store network. It has already launched quick medicine delivery in Bengaluru and Delhi, aiming to expand the feature to other top cities.
🍕D2C Snippets
Mosaic Wellness Scales Up: Parent firm of Man Matters, Boywise & Little Joys, Mosaic Wellness hit ₹333 Cr revenue in FY24, marking a 61% YoY growth while trimming losses by 37% to ₹39 Cr. Backed by $35M+ funding, its growth signals strong demand in men’s & kids' wellness.
Teen Splash: 🧴Teen self-care brand Sammmm has raised ₹10 Cr in a seed round. Founded in 2024 by Rishi Seth and Mantosh Roy, the Mumbai-based brand caters to Gen Z and Gen Alpha with skincare and wellness products like Glow Moisturizer and Love Lip Tint Oil.
Fresh Funding: 🍎Bengaluru-based Origin Fresh raised $1M in a pre-seed round. Founded in 2020, the farm-to-table startup cuts out middlemen to deliver fresh, affordable produce. With 5,000+ orders in 40 days and a 60% repeat rate, the funds will boost delivery & infra. The company aims to become an omnichannel brand in the fresh produce consumer category with an e-commerce platform while expanding its reach through 200 supermarkets across Bangalore and Chennai by next year.
Fashionable Search: Fashion search engine Shoppin has secured $1 million. Founded by Shlok Bhartiya, Shoppin enables users to discover apparel through prompts, vibes, descriptions, and images, bridging the gap between social media inspiration and e-commerce discovery. With over 35,000 Instagram followers and 20,000+ on its waitlist, Shoppin plans to launch its beta search engine in February🛍️.
Shoe Dog: Direct-to-consumer footwear startup CHK has raised $2.5 million in funding. CHK has a manufacturing facility in Tamil Nadu and plans to launch sales through its own D2C website before expanding into offline retail channels.
Good Glamm Group, the beauty and personal care firm which owns Sirona, the Mom’s Co and MyGlamm, has faced another challenge as representatives from major investment firms Accel, Prosus Ventures, and Bessemer Venture Partners have resigned from its board. These resignations come amid ongoing financial struggles for the company, which has been dealing with a cash crunch, salary delays, and layoffs.
📚Reads and Recommendations
Policy Critique: Medianama highlights pertinent issues with the 2025 draft e-commerce governance policy. Check out the draft policy’s oddities.
🌶️ India’s Spice Boom: India’s ₹7.8 billion spice industry is expanding at an 8.11% CAGR, driven by rising global demand for organic & premium spices. While India leads global spice production, challenges like fragmented supply chains & adulteration persist.
📦 Cracking the Modern Trade PO Code! Navigating modern trade purchase orders (POs) isn’t for the faint-hearted! In a recent post, Suraj Raina unpacks the pain points—compliance, delays, and supply chain inefficiencies—and why brands must leverage tech for seamless execution.
📈 Cracking the E-commerce Marketing Code! How should one define the success metrics for a 360-degree campaign? How to measure intent on and off platform?
💳 Credit Card Boom! India’s credit card count has more than doubled in 5 years, hitting 10.8 Cr by Dec 2024 (vs 5.53 Cr in 2019), per RBI. The surge reflects rising digital adoption & consumer credit demand, fueled by BNPL schemes, cashback offers, and fintech innovations. As spending habits evolve, the plastic money wave isn’t slowing down!
Advertising expenditure in India is projected to grow by 8-10% in 2025, driven primarily by digital media expansion, while TV and print will see steady growth. Cricket.
That’s all for this week! Bye!
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