Sequoia-backed, sleep and home solutions start-up Wakefit.co has invested ₹12 crore in ramping up its manufacturing capacity with two new units in Bengaluru and one new unit in Jodhpur, to cater to growing demand for its products. The start-up has already started hiring for its requirement of an additional 200 people to support its 500-strong team.

After posting a 2.5X growth in revenue in FY2020 at ₹200 crore (unaudited financials) up from ₹81 crore in FY2019, Wakefit saw zero demand from mid-March to April 30 due to the nationwide Covid-19 lockdown.

“We saw 50 per cent demand revival in May and in June we outdid pre-Covid level sales. This bounce-back of demand in the sleep and home category is driven by three main factors: Pent up demand from the two months plus of forced lockdown, when purchases were held off. Customers spending more time at home necessitating the need for better mattresses, tables and sofas. And lastly, buying online is a much safer option given that offline stores carry the risk of infection along with temporary closure of many stores,” Chaitanya Ramalingegowda, Director and co-founder, Wakefit.co, told BusinessLine .

Since last week, Wakefit has ramped up its manufacturing capacity from 1,500 mattresses/day to 2,000 with three new units, taking the total number of manufacturing units to 5, spread across 2.2 lakh sq ft in Bengaluru and Jodhpur. Of the 200 additional hires, 150 will be added in manufacturing and 50 to the corporate team in roles including marketing, growth, customer experience and finance.

Wakefit started off as an online mattress and sleep accessories start-up, but diversified its product portfolio 18 months ago with solid wood beds. Last week it launched a new range of furniture including study tables, coffee tables, shoe racks, wardrobes, bookshelves, TV units and bedside tables.

“Beds are already contributing to 10-12 per cent of our revenue, mattresses contribute to 70 per cent and the rest is from accessories like bed linen, comforters, pillows, mattress protectors etc. Our products are 30-40 per cent cheaper than other online players. We have 35-40 per cent market share of the ₹500 crore online mattress market” said Chaitanya.

Revenue target

The start-up is targeting ₹450 crore revenue this fiscal, which Chaitanya says is achievable given the demand, provided there is no nationwide lockdown. In case of a lockdown, the start-up expects to post ₹300 crore revenue in FY2021. While 65 per cent of its sales comes from its website, Wakefit is also listed on Amazon and Flipkart. It won the Amazon Gold Seller award in 2019 and is also a Gold Seller on Flipkart. “We hope that the pandemic will be an inflection point for the whole e-commerce industry to deliver on the promise of employment, convenience and affordability” said Chaitanya.

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