Chumbak looking to raise $20-m in Series C funding

Lifestyle retailer Chumbak is looking to raise $20 million in Series C funding of $20 million by the first quarter of next year.

The Bengaluru-based firm, which had earlier raised funds from Seedfund India in 2012 and Matrix Partners India in 2014, will use the fresh capital to increase the number of stores across metros.

Chumbak CEO Vivek Prabhakar said: “By the beginning of the first quarter of next year, we should be ready to say hello to investors again.

“We have raised $2 million from Seedfund, but this time the amount raised will cross $ 20 million. Our existing investor Matrix Partners will also participate in the fund raising.”

With plans to increase its store count from the current 12 to 25 in six months, Chumbak is now scouting for new locations in Mumbai, where it will launch four new stores. These are apart from its popup stores in some malls here.

The company is gearing up for competition from international retailers.

“Consumers prefer to go for international designs but, being a made in India retailer, we want to create designs which will also get appreciated by Indian consumers,” said Prabhakar.

The five-year-old retailer uses social media rather than mass media for advertising. It also mostly stays away from discounts.

Hybrid model The company opts for a hybrid model, and almost 30 per cent of its sales come from e-commerce.

“We will stay away from discounts as it does not lead to healthy margins and profitability. Today the way to make money is to be present in both online and offline and as a company we hope to reap profits next year,” observed Prabhakar.

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