Arken enterprises Pvt Ltd, which operates direct-to-consumer (D2C) footwear brand Desi Hangover, said it has raised $180,000 (around Rs 1 crore) in a pre-seed round from Social Alpha, CIIE.co and Be An Angel Network.
The platform said it will use the fresh funds to hire, bolster their business-to-consumer clientele and business-to-business network as well as expand across product categories and conduct research and development.
Founded by Hitesh Kenjale, Lakshya Arora and Abha Agarwal, Desi Hangover claims to create a sustainable footwear using an age-old vegetable tanning process. It also uses an omnichannel method, driving product sales through diversified online channels and offline retail partners.
"Our strong relationships built over the years will help us build a strong D2C channel supported by our offline networks. The fundraise will help us double down on the strategy," said Hitesh Kenjale, CEO of Desi Hangover.
Social Alpha is a multistage innovation curation and venture development platform for science and technology startups.
Be An Angel is an early-stage investing platform, which identifies prospective start-ups in the pilot phase and supports them with the required funding and mentoring for future phases of growth.
However, CIIE.co is the startup incubation centre at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad. It provides support to startups and entrepreneurs across their lifecycle by supporting early-stage startups from tier two-tier three cities.