Venture Catalysts

Venture Catalysts is an integrated incubator that offers funding, mentorship, and network. It provides investment of $500K to $2MN per startup with incubation support for 18-24 months. It was established in year 2016 and in a short span, it boasts of successful incubatees like BharatPe, Fynd, Beardo, PeeSafe, Innov8, vPhrase, SuprDaily, DSYH, IGP.com etc., which are today category leaders. It is one of the largest early stage players in India with 4500+ angel investors spread across 36 cities in 6 countries - India, Hong Kong, Singapore, UAE, Saudi Arabia & USA. Globally, marquee investors such as YCombinator, Greenoaks, Axis Capital, Alpha Capital, Rocketship, FJ Labs (investors of Airbnb, Uber, Facebook) have co-invested with Venture Catalysts. With its focus on developing startup ecosystem in Tier II, III cities in India, Venture Catalysts has launched its incubation program in cities like Ahmedabad, Lucknow, Raipur, Surat and Nagpur besides metros like Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and Kolkata. These centres not only offer incubation support to startups but also organise regular investor education sessions for potential angel investors viz. HNIs & industrialists. Besides raising seed stage and Series A investments for startups, Venture Catalysts is known for its startup building capability, strategic guidance, generating business leads, leveraging its network across the globe through its partners and providing phenomenal returns to its investors. It is evident from the fact that more than 10 incubatee companies of Venture Catalysts have raised Series A investment in the last two years especially when the market had not been very upbeat. Today, Venture Catalysts has taken the leadership position in startup investments and incubation and has been rated as India's top Early stage Investor by leading national media.

Gaurav Jain

Co-Founder

Past deals in Shopping

ClearDekho

Series A in 2022
ClearDekho is an online eyewear marketplace based in Uttar Pradesh, specializing in a diverse selection of eyewear products. The company offers prescription eyeglasses, sunglasses, reading glasses, computer glasses, and branded contact lenses. It provides customers with the convenience of purchasing eyewear through both online and offline channels, ensuring affordability and accessibility. ClearDekho aims to meet the growing demand for quality eyewear while catering to a wide range of customer needs.

Join Ventures

Series B in 2022
Join Ventures is a leading celebration-focused company in India, known for its portfolio of digital-first brands such as IGP and Interflora. The company specializes in e-commerce, offering handmade and customized products across various categories, including home décor, food, flowers, fashion, jewelry, accessories, and festival items. By leveraging proprietary technology and a network of strategically located dark stores throughout India, Join Ventures enhances the consumer shopping experience. The integration of artificial intelligence and analytics allows the company to provide hyper-personalized services, ensuring that its brands effectively meet the diverse needs of customers during special occasions.

ShoprTV

Seed Round in 2022
ShoprTV is Twitch for selling things, where anyone (creators, brands, influencers) can broadcast, build an audience and sell things over live-streams. ShoprTV exists at a unique intersection of Live-commerce, creator economy and social commerce.

Join Ventures

Series A in 2022
Join Ventures is a leading celebration-focused company in India, known for its portfolio of digital-first brands such as IGP and Interflora. The company specializes in e-commerce, offering handmade and customized products across various categories, including home décor, food, flowers, fashion, jewelry, accessories, and festival items. By leveraging proprietary technology and a network of strategically located dark stores throughout India, Join Ventures enhances the consumer shopping experience. The integration of artificial intelligence and analytics allows the company to provide hyper-personalized services, ensuring that its brands effectively meet the diverse needs of customers during special occasions.

TinyChef

Seed Round in 2021
TinyChef, originally known as Klovechef, operates a cooking experience platform designed to enhance culinary and shopping experiences. By utilizing conversational AI technology, TinyChef transforms recipes into voice-guided instructions, making meal planning and cooking more engaging and accessible. The platform allows users to search, plan, shop, and cook with ease, promoting the joy of home-cooked meals and fostering family connections. Additionally, TinyChef integrates contextual, consent-based brand promotions into its voice interactions, providing marketing exposure for clients while enriching the cooking experience. Through its innovative approach, TinyChef aims to revolutionize the way individuals interact with food and cooking in their daily lives.

Koovers

Seed Round in 2021
Koovers is a car service platform that simplifies the procurement of car spare parts for independent workshops, catering to a wide range of vehicles from Maruti to Mercedes. Recognizing that many small garages lack dedicated resources for procurement and accounting, Koovers offers a user-friendly digital management system (DMS) that allows these workshops to easily submit their spare part requirements through various input methods. Once a request is made, the necessary spares are delivered to the workshop within a predetermined turnaround time, tailored to the specific needs of the parts and the workshop's location. In addition to parts procurement, Koovers also provides car owners with access to service centers, enabling them to obtain estimates, track maintenance progress, and manage service histories, thus facilitating comprehensive vehicle maintenance.

ClearDekho

Seed Round in 2021
ClearDekho is an online eyewear marketplace based in Uttar Pradesh, specializing in a diverse selection of eyewear products. The company offers prescription eyeglasses, sunglasses, reading glasses, computer glasses, and branded contact lenses. It provides customers with the convenience of purchasing eyewear through both online and offline channels, ensuring affordability and accessibility. ClearDekho aims to meet the growing demand for quality eyewear while catering to a wide range of customer needs.

Melorra

Venture Round in 2021
Melorra is a jewelry brand based in Bengaluru, Karnataka, founded in 2016. The company specializes in designing and retailing affordable, trendy jewelry suitable for everyday wear. By utilizing 3D printing technology, Melorra ensures an accurate and elegant finish for its products, catering to contemporary wardrobes. The brand's offerings are developed in alignment with global fashion trends, with a focus on versatility for various occasions, including casual outings, work, and parties. Melorra's collaboration between fashion stylists and jewelry designers enables the creation of light and stylish pieces that appeal to modern consumers.

ANS Commerce

Seed Round in 2021
ANS Commerce is a full-stack e-commerce enabler that provides comprehensive support for online brands. Its offerings include platform support, performance marketing, marketplace management, as well as warehousing and fulfillment services. By helping brands acquire consumers and manage their operations, ANS Commerce enables clients to establish and enhance their online presence efficiently. The company aims to streamline the e-commerce process, allowing brands to focus on growth and customer engagement while leveraging a wide range of integrated services.

Coutloot

Series A in 2021
Coutloot is a mobile-first consumer-to-consumer (C2C) social commerce platform based in India, designed to facilitate online sales for small businesses and individual sellers. The platform enables a diverse range of users, from local vendors to celebrities, to list products for sale quickly and efficiently. Sellers can connect with buyers across the country, offering trending products while maintaining quality through rigorous checks. Coutloot also incentivizes sellers with opportunities to earn weekly cash bonuses based on their sales performance. The app provides a seamless shopping experience, allowing buyers to bargain for products from the comfort of their homes, thus enhancing the accessibility of online commerce for all participants.

TinyChef

Seed Round in 2020
TinyChef, originally known as Klovechef, operates a cooking experience platform designed to enhance culinary and shopping experiences. By utilizing conversational AI technology, TinyChef transforms recipes into voice-guided instructions, making meal planning and cooking more engaging and accessible. The platform allows users to search, plan, shop, and cook with ease, promoting the joy of home-cooked meals and fostering family connections. Additionally, TinyChef integrates contextual, consent-based brand promotions into its voice interactions, providing marketing exposure for clients while enriching the cooking experience. Through its innovative approach, TinyChef aims to revolutionize the way individuals interact with food and cooking in their daily lives.

ClearDekho

Seed Round in 2020
ClearDekho is an online eyewear marketplace based in Uttar Pradesh, specializing in a diverse selection of eyewear products. The company offers prescription eyeglasses, sunglasses, reading glasses, computer glasses, and branded contact lenses. It provides customers with the convenience of purchasing eyewear through both online and offline channels, ensuring affordability and accessibility. ClearDekho aims to meet the growing demand for quality eyewear while catering to a wide range of customer needs.

CityMall

Debt Financing in 2019
CityMall is a community commerce platform aimed at serving the 300 million new internet users in small cities, towns, and villages across India. It focuses on categories such as groceries, fresh and packaged FMCG, electronics, and fashion. Historically, e-commerce has primarily benefited residents of large metropolitan areas, largely due to barriers like trust issues, unfamiliarity with online transactions, and low average order values. CityMall addresses these challenges by leveraging "Community Leaders," who act as local connectors to facilitate customer acquisition, localized marketing, and last-mile logistics. This community-driven approach makes the model well-suited for smaller urban areas. Founded by alumni from IIT Delhi and IIT Roorkee, CityMall aspires to create a network of micro-entrepreneurs, empowering them to establish a prominent e-commerce platform in India. The company is supported by several notable venture capital firms.

Coutloot

Series A in 2019
Coutloot is a mobile-first consumer-to-consumer (C2C) social commerce platform based in India, designed to facilitate online sales for small businesses and individual sellers. The platform enables a diverse range of users, from local vendors to celebrities, to list products for sale quickly and efficiently. Sellers can connect with buyers across the country, offering trending products while maintaining quality through rigorous checks. Coutloot also incentivizes sellers with opportunities to earn weekly cash bonuses based on their sales performance. The app provides a seamless shopping experience, allowing buyers to bargain for products from the comfort of their homes, thus enhancing the accessibility of online commerce for all participants.

CityMall

Seed Round in 2019
CityMall is a community commerce platform aimed at serving the 300 million new internet users in small cities, towns, and villages across India. It focuses on categories such as groceries, fresh and packaged FMCG, electronics, and fashion. Historically, e-commerce has primarily benefited residents of large metropolitan areas, largely due to barriers like trust issues, unfamiliarity with online transactions, and low average order values. CityMall addresses these challenges by leveraging "Community Leaders," who act as local connectors to facilitate customer acquisition, localized marketing, and last-mile logistics. This community-driven approach makes the model well-suited for smaller urban areas. Founded by alumni from IIT Delhi and IIT Roorkee, CityMall aspires to create a network of micro-entrepreneurs, empowering them to establish a prominent e-commerce platform in India. The company is supported by several notable venture capital firms.

Rare Planet

Seed Round in 2019
Rare Planet operates a retail platform dedicated to showcasing and selling traditional handicrafts and souvenirs created by rural artisans. By merging the traditional skills of Indian artisans with contemporary design expertise, the company provides a venue for these talented individuals to present their creativity. Rare Planet offers a variety of products, including mugs, copper bottles, cups, and plates, all handcrafted to highlight the unique artistry of its makers. The platform aims to uplift the economic conditions of rural artisans by facilitating online sales, thus expanding their market reach and promoting their craftsmanship.

ClearDekho

Seed Round in 2018
ClearDekho is an online eyewear marketplace based in Uttar Pradesh, specializing in a diverse selection of eyewear products. The company offers prescription eyeglasses, sunglasses, reading glasses, computer glasses, and branded contact lenses. It provides customers with the convenience of purchasing eyewear through both online and offline channels, ensuring affordability and accessibility. ClearDekho aims to meet the growing demand for quality eyewear while catering to a wide range of customer needs.

Coutloot

Seed Round in 2018
Coutloot is a mobile-first consumer-to-consumer (C2C) social commerce platform based in India, designed to facilitate online sales for small businesses and individual sellers. The platform enables a diverse range of users, from local vendors to celebrities, to list products for sale quickly and efficiently. Sellers can connect with buyers across the country, offering trending products while maintaining quality through rigorous checks. Coutloot also incentivizes sellers with opportunities to earn weekly cash bonuses based on their sales performance. The app provides a seamless shopping experience, allowing buyers to bargain for products from the comfort of their homes, thus enhancing the accessibility of online commerce for all participants.

Fynd

Series C in 2018
Fynd is India's Largest Fashion O2O company with real-time inventory access to over 9000+ stores. Being a unique fashion e-commerce portal, it brings the latest in-store fashion online. The company channelizes its combined outreach to offer the best brands and fashion along with superior customer services to its ever-growing clientele. Technology plays a major part in the company's growth and APIs are the backbone of this business. Founded by Farooq Adam, Harsh Shah, and Sreeraman MG, the Mumbai-based firm was incepted in 2012 as Shopsense Retail Technologies Pvt Ltd. However, in November 2015 the company pivoted to Fynd, a unique fashion e-commerce portal offering fresh fashion to customers much ahead of any other e-commerce player. In March 2018, Fynd raised an undisclosed amount of funding in its Series C round led by Google and other existing investors including Kae Capital, IIFL, Singularity Ventures, GrowX, Tracxn Labs, Venture Catalyst, Patni family office and Hong Kong-based Axis Capital among other angel investors. The latest round of funding will be utilised to improve engagement between consumers and retailers. So far, Fynd had raised $3.4 Mn funding in Series A from investor groups led by IIFL. The capital was used to reach out to more than 20 million customers and increase inventory to include more than 15 lakh products. Fynd’s capability of sourcing its products across various fashion categories directly from most prominent brands' stores in the country, enables it to develop this edge over any other e-commerce marketplace. At present, Fynd serves customers located across India and receives inventory data from stores in 42+ cities.

Purple Style Labs

Seed Round in 2017
Purple Style Labs Private Limited is a fashion house based in Mumbai, India, that specializes in personal shopping and styling solutions. Established in 2015, the company operates two multi-designer platforms, Pernia's Pop-Up Shop and The Stylist, which allow customers to discover and purchase Indian designer wear. Purple Style Labs caters to a diverse clientele, offering a wide range of clothing, accessories, footwear, and jewelry for men, women, teens, and children. The company provides various styling appointment and subscription plans, along with online shopping assistance and wedding styling services globally. Its mission focuses on delivering a memorable shopping experience while promoting the growth of Indian brands and designers.

Fynd

Series A in 2017
Fynd is India's Largest Fashion O2O company with real-time inventory access to over 9000+ stores. Being a unique fashion e-commerce portal, it brings the latest in-store fashion online. The company channelizes its combined outreach to offer the best brands and fashion along with superior customer services to its ever-growing clientele. Technology plays a major part in the company's growth and APIs are the backbone of this business. Founded by Farooq Adam, Harsh Shah, and Sreeraman MG, the Mumbai-based firm was incepted in 2012 as Shopsense Retail Technologies Pvt Ltd. However, in November 2015 the company pivoted to Fynd, a unique fashion e-commerce portal offering fresh fashion to customers much ahead of any other e-commerce player. In March 2018, Fynd raised an undisclosed amount of funding in its Series C round led by Google and other existing investors including Kae Capital, IIFL, Singularity Ventures, GrowX, Tracxn Labs, Venture Catalyst, Patni family office and Hong Kong-based Axis Capital among other angel investors. The latest round of funding will be utilised to improve engagement between consumers and retailers. So far, Fynd had raised $3.4 Mn funding in Series A from investor groups led by IIFL. The capital was used to reach out to more than 20 million customers and increase inventory to include more than 15 lakh products. Fynd’s capability of sourcing its products across various fashion categories directly from most prominent brands' stores in the country, enables it to develop this edge over any other e-commerce marketplace. At present, Fynd serves customers located across India and receives inventory data from stores in 42+ cities.

Coutloot

Seed Round in 2016
Coutloot is a mobile-first consumer-to-consumer (C2C) social commerce platform based in India, designed to facilitate online sales for small businesses and individual sellers. The platform enables a diverse range of users, from local vendors to celebrities, to list products for sale quickly and efficiently. Sellers can connect with buyers across the country, offering trending products while maintaining quality through rigorous checks. Coutloot also incentivizes sellers with opportunities to earn weekly cash bonuses based on their sales performance. The app provides a seamless shopping experience, allowing buyers to bargain for products from the comfort of their homes, thus enhancing the accessibility of online commerce for all participants.
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