 "Shopping app Sweet Couch looks to raise Rs 40 crore in Series-A round")
Sweet Couch Technologies, a Mumbai-based tech startup, is planning to raise between Rs 35 crore and Rs 40 crore in a Series-A round of funding from existing investors and private equity players in 2015.
The startup had earlier raised $2 million in a pre-Series-A round from an institutional investment firm.
"A majority of the proposed funds will be used for product enhancements, including building algorithms and machine learning, around our newly-launched window-shopping mobile app," founder Rajesh Chokhani told Business Standard.
Sweet Couch on Wednesday launched a window-shopping mobile app with the same name, on iOS and Android platforms.
The app has a 'Chit-Chat' feature that allows users to browse through products and converse with friends and family without leaving the platform, thereby eliminating the requirement of taking screenshots to text or email the image to seek an opinion.
The Sweet Couch app, which has tied up with 2,500 online shops, small boutiques and independent designers, offers lifestyle products in premium listings, fashion clothing, home and outdoor decor categories.
"At present, our focus is on user engagement. We will look at the monetisation part only after a year," Chokhani said, adding that Sweet Couch was looking at various options, including premium listings of online shops, to garner revenues.