Early-stage consumer-focused venture capital fund Fireside Ventures on Wednesday announced the final close of its third fund at $225 million (₹1,851 crore) .
VCCircle reported the development of a third fund in April.
Fireside Fund III will invest in 25-30 startups that adhere to its thesis of digital-first consumer brands. It will focus on health and wellness, edutainment, lifestyle and FMCG (fast-moving consumer goods), according to a statement. In addition to products offering personalized customer experiences using data analytics-based value propositions, the third fund will seek out brands with a strong purpose, responsible practices and healthy governance, it said.
The third fund is anchored by new and existing Indian and global investors such as Self-Reliant India Fund, Investment Corporation of Dubai, SBI, Premji Invest, Waterfield-Fund of Funds, ITC, Emami, Sharrp Ventures and startup founders.
Fireside was founded in 2017 by Kanwaljit Singh, who earlier co-founded venture capital firm Helion Venture Partners where he mostly managed investments in consumer firms. “At the stage at which we invest (which is seed, Series A), we have not seen too much froth/volatility in valuations and they continue to be in a range; we see the valuations persisting at similar levels,” said Singh, who is also managing partner at Fireside Ventures.
Fireside Funds I and II have invested in companies like personal care unicorn Mamaearth and IPO-bound boAt, as well as fast-growing businesses such as Slurrp Farm, Kapiva, 91 Cycles, Design Café, FS Life (erstwhile FableStreet), The Sleep Company, Gynoveda, Wellbeing Nutrition and Pilgrim. Fireside has invested across segments, including personal care, processed foods, lifestyle and home products.
The firm said half of its investments have gone to startups founded or co-founded by women. It has been the first institutional investor in 75% of its 31 portfolio companies, one of which is a unicorn, and another is IPO-bound. The cumulative value of its portfolio firms is at $3 billion.
The firm said it is expecting the market for direct-to-consumer brands to touch $100 billion by 2025. The pandemic, e-commerce penetration and focus on health wellness will accelerate development. It expects new-age players to compete with legacy brands in key categories like beauty and personal care, food and beverages and fashion.
The venture capital firm made the final close of its debut fund at $52 million in March 2018.