Consumer-focused venture capital firm Fireside Ventures on Tuesday said it has marked the first close of its second fund that has a corpus target of $100 million (Rs 716.36 crore). Also, the fund has placed its debut bet on Gynoveda Femtech Pvt. Ltd – an ayurveda health-tech brand dealing with menstrual health.
Fireside did not disclose the amount at which it has hit the first close but said it has received commitments of over $60 million for the second fund. The first close is a fundraising milestone for a fund after which venture capital and private equity firms start deploying the capital.
The new fund is anchored by Indian and global investors, Fireside added without disclosing their identities.
The fund's first bet Gynoveda was founded by Vishal Gupta and Rachana Gupta last year. The financial details on the transaction were not shared.
Prior to starting Gynoveda, Vishal Gupta was chief operating officer at Binny Bansal-backed digital insurance startup Acko. He was earlier associated with companies such as Jio, Amazon and Cleartrip. Rachana Gupta has over 18 years of work experience in multinational companies, according to the company's website.
The fund was in the news recently in September, when French cosmetics giant L'Oréal had announced its limited partner (LP) bet on the investment vehicle through its corporate venture capital fund, BOLD Business Opportunities for L’Oréal Development.
Fireside’s second fund aims to follow the same strategy as the first: That of investing in millennial brands.
Kanwaljit Singh, managing partner at Fireside, said the fund believes that brands in nutritionally dense foods, personalised beauty, fashion and personal care will be the new frontrunners in the consumer segment.
"We are also starting to see credible opportunities for Indian brands to go global," he added.
Fireside was founded in 2017 by Singh, who earlier co-founded venture capital firm Helion Venture Partners where he primarily managed investments in consumer companies.
The venture capital firm had hit the final close of its debut fund at $52 million in March 2018.
Fireside has invested across segments including personal care, processed foods, lifestyle and home products. Its portfolio includes Yoga Bar, Samosa Singh, Bombay Shaving Co., Mamaearth and Vahdam Teas.
There are a few other consumer-focused venture capital firms in India including DSG Consumer Partners, Sixth Sense Ventures and Sauce.vc.
Earlier in August, DSG Consumer Partners marked the final close of its third fund at $65 million (Rs 465 crore), overshooting the target of $50 million.