Beauty, personal products maker Believe raises $55 mn in Series C funding

Singapore-headquartered consumer products company Believe Pte Ltd, said it has raised Series C funding of $55 million from incoming investors Venturi Partners and IIFL AMC alongside continued participation from Jungle Ventures, Accel, Alteria Capital and Genesis Alternative Ventures. Investment from IIFL AMC is subject to approval from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). The firm said it is serving the global Muslim audience with brands spanning skincare, fragrances, make-up and hair care.

The company (started in mid-2019) said it has delivered rapid growth in its relatively short history, thereby inspiring investor interest and has cumulatively raised over $80 million over the last two years. Believe said its vision to create enduring brands consistent with consumers’ belief systems while ensuring the highest efficacy, quality and uniqueness drives its success across distribution formats in the Middle East and Asia. This fundraise will catalyze consolidating market share in Bangladesh and India (via strategic acquisitions) while deepening reach in GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) and South-East Asia (through both organic and inorganic growth). It would pave a path for the company to become a large global CPG (consumer packaged goods) conglomerate.

“We have received tremendous consumer love all the way from launching our first product in 2019 to witnessing 2.5x growth in the last one year. Our 2000 family of happy Believers is our eyes and ears to the ground that help us be nimble and responsive to consumer needs,” said Ankit Mahajan, CEO of Believe PTE Ltd. “We have created a relentless marketing organization that has the ability to identify consumer needs, use 12-member strong R&D expertise to make fantastic products and then put our international supply chain to deliver global standard products to countries across the world.”

The Series A and Series B fundraises were led by Accel and Jungle Ventures with participation from Wamda Capital, a Middle East-based fund. The current Series C raise in Believe’s third year of operation is led by Venturi Partners, a Singapore-based investment platform founded by veteran consumer investor Nicholas Cator. Venturi Partners enables consumer-facing business startups to build disruptive brands in sectors such as FMCG, education, health-tech, home improvement, etc. in India and Southeast Asia. IIFL AMC’s private equity fund that has backed several leading consumer brands will also co-lead this round, subject to approval from SEBI.

This is Venturi’s second investment and is a testament to the investment platform’s expertise in identifying and supporting multi-geography, high-growth consumer brands with an online and offline presence.

“We are excited to be backing the most experienced BPC (beauty and personal care) founders in the region and have been extremely impressed by their ability to build a diversified portfolio of products and a unique distribution network during a pandemic,” said Nicholas Cator, founder & managing partner at Venturi. “We are convinced that with its strong team and group of investors, Believe will become the leading global halal and clean BPC house of brands.”

With the likes of Swiggy, Licious, Dailyhunt, and Country Delight in its portfolio, IIFL AMC said it looks to back market leaders and disruptors across businesses while keeping sight of profitability at a steady state.

“Believe has demonstrated unprecedented traction and growth in a very short period via its brands focused on the global markets in the BPC segment. With its unique positioning of halal based clean products (devoid of alcohol and animal ingredients), it has addressed the latent need of a large target market in a highly focused manner,” said Chetan Naik, Fund Manager at IIFL AMC. “Its growth is a testament to how a relevantly positioned brand with strong product efficacy creates resonance with its consumer and creates value for all. We are delighted to partner with the exceptional team at Believe for the company’s next phase of growth.”

Believe is a house of brands that includes Lafz, ZM and Dr.Rhazes. The brands have received huge traction in Bangladesh and India with a growing base in GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) countries. They are sold in over 8 countries and are manufactured across the globe including countries like South Korea, Italy, Spain, France, Germany and UAE.

Lafz is the flagship premium brand of the firm crafted with traditional ingredients. The company said ZM’s vegan, cruelty-free, single ingredient positioning finds popularity among the youthful and aspirational.

Bengaluru-based investment bank IndigoEdge was the sole advisor for this transaction.

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