FashionAndYou raises $10 mn

Eyes more funding next year

e-Commerce firm FashionAndYou today said that it has raised funding of about $10 million (Rs 60 crore) from its exisiting partners like Sequoia Capital and Smile Group and a new investor.

The company is looking at raising an additional $5-10 million in funding early next year to fuel its growth plans. Its present round of funding saw participation from the existing investors — Sequoia Capital, Smile Group, Norwest Venture Partners, Intel Capital and Nokia Growth Partners.

“We will utilise proceeds in marketing, strengthening the tech platform and improving distribution. The funds will also help strengthen our inventory light business model, acquire more customers to bolster our flash sale dominance and build a more cohesive brand,” FashionAndYou CEO Aasheesh Mediratta said.

He, however, declined to name the new investor on-board. Mediratta said, the company is looking at setting up two more delivery centres, in Surat and Bangalore, to increase the efficiency, in addition to its existing centre in Gurgaon. Besides, the company plans to bring in a mobile app for the Android platform by September to cash in on the burgeoning number of smartphone users shopping using their handheld devices.

FashionAndYou, which claims to have over 5.5 million registered users, gets a majority of its business from women’s ethnic wear and fashion apparel categories, followed by fashion accessories, footwear and home and living.

“The focus remains on expanding differentiated supply in the key categories and further strengthening international alliances,” he said. The online fashion and lifestyle industry is expected to grow to $15 billion by 2020. “We are looking at more funds, something like $5-10 million early next year,” he said.