Melorra’s scale surge 4.6X in FY22, losses exceed Rs 100 Cr

After facing pandemic-led disruptions in fiscal year (FY21), direct-to-consumer (D2C) gold jewellery brand Melorra has grown at a scorching pace in FY22. The Mumbai-based company has managed to grow its operating revenue to the tune of 4.6X in the last fiscal year (FY22).

Mellora has posted an operational revenue of Rs 364.4 crore in FY22 from Rs 78.6 crore during the previous fiscal year (FY21), according to its annual financial statement filed with the Registrar of Companies (RoC).

Melorra deals in gold-diamond and gemstone-focused lightweight and fashionable jewellery for regular or everyday use. Its product portfolio consists of rings, earrings, pendants, chains, solitaires, and among others. Sales of these products are the only source of revenue for the company in FY22.

Going over the expense sheet, cost of materials is the largest cost center for Melorra which formed around 62% of its total expenditure. This cost kept pace with top line growth, growing 4.6X to Rs 291.5 crore in FY22 from Rs 63 crore in FY21.

Mellora has spent heavily on marketing and promotion to drive scale, and also roped in Bollywood star Shraddha Kapoor as its brand ambassador at the start of FY22. These costs shot up 2.7X to Rs 120.3 crore during the last fiscal year.

The company’s employee benefit expenses and IT cost (including gateway charges) grew 56% and 239.6% to Rs 30.1 crore and Rs 9 crore respectively in FY22. It also had to bear Rs 4.1 crore as legal and professional fees, taking final costs up 3.3X to Rs 471.3 crore.

With a sharp rise in its expenses, Mellora’s losses increased 73.5% to Rs 106.7 crore in FY22. The surge in losses also impacted its cash outflows which spiked 84% and stood at Rs 138.2 crore during the same period.

On a unit level, Melorra spent Rs 1.29 to earn a single rupee in FY22. The high growth rate, coupled with the tempering in the growth rate for losses, indicates the firm might well be on a path to profitability if it sustains the momentum, perhaps as early as FY23 if not FY24.

Melorra competes with Ratan Tata-backed BlueStone which has raised $30 million in a funding round led by Hero Enterprise at a valuation of $410 million. Bluestone registered Rs 269 crore in operating revenue while losses were recorded at Rs 13.7 crore in FY21. GIVA raised $10 million in a Series A round led by Sixth sense ventures and booked Rs 21.53 crore in operating revenue during FY21. Tiger Global backed Caratlane which has raised $58 million over 4 rounds since its inception is the largest player in the segment which closed Q1 FY23 with Rs 483 crore revenue and Rs 34 crore EBITDA.