D2C firm Pilgrim raises $20 Mn in Series B led by Vertex Ventures

Beauty and personal care D2C firm Pilgrim has raised $20 million in Series B funding led by Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia and India. Existing investors Fireside Ventures & Narotam Sekhsaria Family Office also participated in the round.

According to the company, it raised $14 million via primary while the remaining came from secondary transactions.

Pilgrim has raised a total fund of Rs 48 crore (approximately $6 million) across angel, Series A and bridge rounds. Its investors include founding teams from Boat, NoBroker, and Bewakoof.com.

The company plans to double down on this growth by deploying the fresh funding in brand building, R&D, and bolstering offline expansion within India, Pilgrim said in a press release.

Founded by Anurag Kedia in 2019, Pilgrim offers more than 90 SKUs across face care, haircare and skincare products, and fragrances in over 25,000 pin codes. The company said that it offers a wide range of products curated with ingredients from France, Korea, Spain, Australia, the Amazon Rainforest, and Swiss glaciers.

The startup claims to have over 5 million customers, with an additional 500,000 being added every month. As per the company, it has solidified its position as a promising player in India’s potential $30 billion beauty and personal care market.

According to data intelligence platform TheKredible, Pilgrim registered Rs 16.89 crore in revenue with Rs 7.53 crore loss in FY22. While the company is yet to file its annual financial statement for FY23, it claims to have Rs 300 crore ARR and aims to scale it to Rs 1,000 crore by 2025.

Lead investors Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia and India recently completed the fundraising for its fifth fund with commitments of $541 million. The firm has made more than 80 investments and will continue its strategy of investing in early-stage companies. Its portfolio includes Licious, KukuFM, Kissht, Ace Turtle, Kapiva, BeepKart, Certa, Signzy and Ayu Health.