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Beauty-care retailer Purplle pauses fundraise over valuation expectation mismatch

Economic Times  

Mumbai-based omnichannel beauty and personal care retailer Purplle has paused fundraising talks with private equity investors due to mismatch in valuation expectation. Simultaneously, the founders - Manish Taneja, Rahul Dash and Suyash Katyayani - are acquiring shares from angel investors and employees at a valuation of approximately Rs.11,300-Cr. This transaction reflects an 11% increase over the valuation from the company's previous funding round in 2024, when the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) led a Rs.1,500-Cr investment at a valuation of Rs.10,000-Cr.The decision to shelve fundraising talks follows previous negotiations with investors including KKR, TPG Growth and ChrysCapital for a potential Rs.1,800-Cr round at a valuation of nearly Rs.13,000-Cr. The company opted to halt these talks, maintaining that its current growth trajectory and fiscal performance - including a revenue increase of 35-40% in FY26 - warrant a higher valuation.Founded in 2011, Purplle offers a range of beauty and personal care products through its digital platform and physical stores. The company intends to focus its resources on its portfolio of six in-house brands: Faces Canada, Alps Goodness, Good Vibes, Carmesi, NY Bae, and Dermdoc, which currently account for over half of its total sales.

Between Aug 2013 and Feb 2025, Purplle had attracted about $ 597 M from Blume Ventures, IvyCap Ventures, JSW Ventures, Mountain Pine Capital, NB Ventures, AET Fund, Dream Incubator, BlackSoil Capital, Goldman Sachs, Verlinvest, Spring Marketing Capital, Peak XV Partners, Kedaara Capital, PremjiInvest, Paramark Ventures, ADIA, MEMG Family Office, PixelSky Capital, Sharrp Ventures, Tenacity Ventures, Chiratae Ventures, NEO Alternative Asset Managers and others.For FY25, Purplle had reported about INR 462 Cr in Operating Income and about INR 5 Cr in PAT.