mCaffeine Raises Rs 42 Cr in Series B Funding Led by Amicus Capital

• RPSG ventures along with existing investor Telama Investments also participated in this round
• Aman Gupta, Founder of Boat Audio also participated in the round.
• Investors see a big promise in India’s fastest growing new age FMCG brand with the potential of leading the premium personal care category for millennial India

L-R : Tarun Sharma and Vikas Lachhwani, Founders, mCaffeine, India’s 1st Caffeine infused skin and hair care brand for the bold, young and confident which is positioned as a gender neutral brand for emerging and evolving millennials.

In a development highlighting its exemplary growth, Mumbai-based Pep Technologies Pvt. Ltd., which owns mCaffeine, India’s first Caffeine Infused Skin and Hair Care Brand has raised INR 42 cr in a Series B funding round from a consortium of investors led by Amicus Capital along with RPSG Ventures and its existing investors, Telama Investments.

This is the third round of funding raised by the company so far. A majority of the investment has come from Amicus Capital and RPSG Ventures. The company last raised funds in June 2019, when it received $2 million in a Series A round of funding from a group of investors led by RPSG Ventures.

The investors have seen a huge promise in mCaffeine, India’s fastest growing new age FMCG brand with a strong potential to become one of the leading brands in the premium personal care category for millennial India. mCaffeine, a D2C brand which focuses on young millennials, has sold more than 2.8 million products amounting to Rs. 100 crores in just 4 years of launch. As a testimony to its strong connection with its consumers, the Company has bounced back from COVID-19 disruptions to surpass its pre-COVID19 revenue run rate. While the brand is still quite young, mCaffeine products are best sellers amongst multiple categories on Amazon and Nykaa.

Commenting on the rapid pace of growth, Tarun Sharma, Co-founder & CEO, mCaffeine said, “In this round, we had 3 term sheets and chose Amicus Capital as we loved the long term, product focused approach of the fund. We are extremely happy to have them alongside us while we build mCaffeine from Rs.100 cr to 500 cr brand in the next 3 years. mCaffeine is a digital-first brand focused on millennial India. All of the mCaffeine products are envisioned, engineered, designed & manufactured in India. We strongly believe in ‘Make in India’ and ‘Vocal for local’ to support home grown enterprises. The products are manufactured after extensive Research & Development. We embody the millennial philosophy of “natural first” in the form of clean label. We see product development as an exercise to address the needs of modern lifestyle. We believe in pure, natural ingredients and pursue a rigorous clinical and dermatological testing regime. For us, research is paramount. We will utilise the funds in scaling up our R&D capabilities significantly to consistently deliver high quality products that are well differentiated. Apart from R&D, we will invest in expanding our distribution across digital channels and continue to grow our operations, brand building and organizational scale up. There are about 20 products in portfolio so far and we have aggressive plans to further launch 15-20 products in the next one year.”

mCaffeine plans to penetrate the market aggressively by giving more emphasis to a customer-driven approach especially for the young millennials of India with premium offerings. Currently, the products are available at 18000 pin codes across India. The plan is to increase online and offline presence substantially. Venturing into this competitive market with a very superior product range which is natural and organic has helped mCaffeine stay ahead of the game.

Commenting on the investment, Mr. Sunil Theckath Vasudevan, CoFounder and Partner, Amicus Capital, said, “Amicus Capital has a strategy of investing in emerging consumer brands with sharp positioning and strong online presence. Within a short period, the founders have built mCaffeine into a leader in personal-care products based on a very unique proposition of caffeine based products. We are very impressed with mCaffeine’s research-led product development and intensive engagement with consumers across social media. The company has also demonstrated very healthy unit economics while delivering high revenue growth. We are excited to partner with Tarun and Vikas to scale up mCaffeine with new product offerings and expand the distribution network.”

Commenting on the unique positioning of the Company, Mr. Abhishek Goenka, Head & CIO, RPSG Ventures, said, “mCaffeine has built a solid differentiation around caffeine based personal care products which is demonstrated in their strong growth profile and superior capital efficiency. Our follow on investment is a reflection of our continued confidence in Tarun and Vikas and resonates well with RPSG Venture’s philosophy of backing it's portfolio companies from a long term perspective.”

As the story goes, mCaffeine was founded by Vikas Lachhwani and Tarun Sharma in October of 2016 after 9 months of extensive research. The research yielded that caffeine is basically a superfood - it is a rich source of antioxidants and has several benefits for skin and hair. Thus caffeine became the primary ingredient in all of their products. mCaffeine has 20 products in its portfolio across 3 major categories - Face Care, Hair Care and Body Care.

About mCaffeine

mCaffeine as a brand is for the Bold | Young | Confident and is positioned as a gender neutral brand for emerging and evolving millennials aged 20 to 28. mCaffeine believes that beauty has no colour or gender, it’s all about well-being. With caffeine at the heart, mCaffeine’s products are designed to bring you the best in skin & hair care. They believe that Skincare, Haircare and most importantly Self Care is for everyone. The brand’s promise to the world is that they will never sell fairness creams. The brand embodies the millennial ethos with key principles of: clean label (natural as a choice), why hurt (no animal testing), confidence over colour (don't sell insecurities or fairness products).

mCaffeine products are available on its own e-commerce portal www.mcaffeine.com and also sell through all major shopping portals namely – Amazon, Nykaa, Flipkart. Their products are already gaining cult status in the Indian beauty community. mCaffeine’s Coffee Body Scrub has become a favourite of the community, recently winning the ‘Best Scrub’ Category in the Cosmopolitan Beauty Awards and Nykaa Femina Beauty Awards.

About Amicus Capital

Amicus Capital is an Indian mid-market growth fund set-up by private equity professionals with a track record of investing in and building successful ventures. The Fund is currently investing its first fund of US$ 88 million (INR 625 crores) in four sectors where the investment team has deep experience and networks – financial services, consumer, healthcare and technology. The Fund seeks to invest typically US$ 820 million to take minority stakes in fast growing businesses which are looking to scale up proven business models. The Amicus Team works closely with the entrepreneurs and management teams to build scale and create segment/category leaders.

mCaffeine Partners with Clinikk to Provide free medical facilities for the Employees and their Families in the Current COVID-19 Pandemic

mCaffeine, India’s fastest growing caffeine infused personal care brand has partnered with Clinikk, the healthcare startup to provide free medical facilities for the employees and their families in this current 21 days lockdown due to COVID-19 pandemic.  

This association will help mCaffeine employees and their families to get access to 24*7 medical support and unlimited and free consultations with doctors on call through their helpline number. All doctors are qualified (MBBS or specialization), with extensive training in telemedicine. Post the consultation; a signed prescription will be shared on SMS/WhatsApp & the Clinikk App. If a further diagnosis requires lab tests, the sample will get collected at home. Employees can also order medicines online and can get benefited from discounts. 

Tarun Sharma, co-founder & CEO, mCaffiene said, “The need of the hour is to extend maximum possible support to your employees and their families. Besides assuring the job and financial security, it is pertinent to take care of their physical and mental well being. In a lockdown scenario when one cannot step out of their home more so because of the spread of a highly contagious virus, its our responsibility to take care of their health needs. We don’t want them to compromise or neglect themselves. In such a panic scenario one may not know whom to approach or where to go. 

While all employees are working from home; we want them to be tension free regarding any health problems of themselves and their families by providing them door-step medical facilities. Clinikk app which gives a one-stop solution will provide the much required ease and convenience. Employee wellness is prime at mCaffeine. More than 400 people will benefit from this association.’’

Bengaluru based health tech startup, Clinikk is revolutionizing the approach to healthcare in India, by building a one-stop solution for all healthcare needs at just one-phone-call-away. The ability of Clinikk is to diagnose and treat certain ailments using remote technology instead of person-to-person contact, thereby creating ease of access to medical care. 

“At Clinikk we believe in becoming the first point of contact for any medical need that a family might have. Being there for them 24*7 ensures that we are able to detect any medical problem proactively at its onset and make necessary intervention before it manifests itself as a more serious issue", Said, Bhavjot Kaur, co-founder of Clinikk Healthcare.

Apart from doctor consultations, if any medical information is required for eg. partner hospitals, it can be directed to the Health Assistants, who provide relevant, accurate information. Based on seasonal change, medical history etc. - Clinikk provides personalized awareness building information through WhatsApp, SMS and IVR calls. The languages currently supported are; English, Hindi, Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Bangla, Assamese, Marathi.

About mCaffeine

India is now seeing innovations in areas which were once dominated by imported products and foreign brands. Confidence over colour; this simple thought guided the development of MCaffeine as a personal care brand. Inner beauty trumps everything else was an idea that Vikas and Tarun, the co-founders of MCaffeine were absolutely convinced about. While conceiving the identity and character of the brand, the duo also laid out strict boundaries for it. They wanted to do research based products that connect with people, says Vikas. The market is full of brands that make you look down upon yourself. We decided that we will never sell insecurities as a brand, says Tarun. They believe that beauty has no colour or gender, it's all about well-being.

With caffeine at the heart, they make premium world-class products using Coffee, Tea and Chocolate. Caffeine present in Coffee, Tea, and Chocolate has magical properties of Hair and Skin Care. Caffeine penetrates the surface and helps in growth and shine in case of hair and glow and glide in the case of skin. The effectiveness of Caffeine is well researched and documented in the latest dermatology and Trichology.

Caffeine does its magic on hair by going to the hair follicles and strengthening the hair roots and hence delays Hair Fall. On Skin, it removes the dead skin, delays the ageing process and works as a powerful antioxidant. Add to it the omnipresence of caffeine as a social lubricant and a lifestyle indicator - they see a Global Brand emerging from India.

MCaffeine is India’s first caffeinated personal care brand. mCaffeine as a brand is for the Bold | Young | Confident. mCaffeine largely targets young millennials of India. The brand is focused on the millennial lifestyle with mass premium offerings. mCaffeine as a brand is gender neutral and never supports colour discrimination. The brand’s promise to the world is that they will never sell fairness creams. 

They are positioned as a unisex brand for emerging and evolving millennials aged 20 to 28. MCaffeine focuses on India for now with global potential for the future. The brand embodies the millennial ethos with key principles of: clean label (natural as a choice), why hurt (no animal testing), confidence over colour (don't sell insecurities or fairness products).

About CLINIKK

Healthcare in India continues to be broken and chaotic, especially for people with limited means or access to quality care. Running pillar to post for prudent and quality medical counsel in time of need, is regrettably, the norm today.

Clinikk is revolutionizing the approach to healthcare in India, by building a one-stop solution - for all healthcare needs - “one-phone-call-away”. Clinikk deliver affordable and accessible services, to your doorstep, on-demand, and 24*7. By helping our customers navigate the healthcare system, and safeguarding their interests, we are building a healthcare experience like never before - centralized, convenient, affordable, and above all, worthy of our customer’s trust.

India's 1st Caffeinated Personal Care Brand mCaffeine Raises $2 Mn from RPSG Ventures, Others

Mumbai-based PEP Technologies Pvt. Ltd., which operates mCaffeine, India's first caffeine infused personal care brand, has raised US$2 million from a consortium of investors and RPSG Ventures, a fund backed by RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group, reported ET Retail.

The startup will use the funds raised in in Research & Development, expand distribution across digital channels and grow its operations. mCaffeine also plans to expand its product portfolio to include 30 more products in the next one year.

Founded in 2016, by Tarun Sharma and Vikas Lachhwani, mCaffeine brand has nearly ten products with caffeine as one the key ingredient, which is said to have anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. It is sold online through its own portal as well as marketplaces such as Amazon, Nykaa and Flipkart.

[caption id="attachment_130925" align="aligncenter" width="600"] mCaffeine Team[/caption]



Tarun Sharma, co-founder of mCaffeine, said in a media statement, "With a surge in disposable income, millennials are becoming more discerning and indulgent. In an evolving trend in India, youth are beginning to look at innovative personal care products created specifically for them."

In March last year, mCaffeine had raised Rs. 3.5 crore from Harminder Sahni, Founder & MD of Wazir Advisors, and Mohit Bajaj, Managing Partner at LetsVenture. Prior to that, the startup had raised angel funding from Sahni and three other investors, in December 2016.

According to Assocham, Personal care market in India is set to touch $20 Billion by 2025 from the current $6.5 billion on the back of rise in disposable income of middle class and growing aspirations of people. Within personal care segment, natural and organic personal care is amongst the faster growing category.

"However, it is increasingly getting cluttered with little or no realdifferentiation. We believe the “caffeine” based sharp positioning of mCaffeine sets them apart, which is also reflected in their growth profile,” said Abhishek Goenka, head of RPSG Ventures.