[What The Financials] D2C Brand Plum Sees Revenue Grow 140% In FY20, Maintains Profitability

Pureplay Skin Sciences, which owns and runs beauty brands Plum and Phy, recorded a total income of INR 53 Cr in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2020 (FY20), marking a year-on-year (YoY) growth of 141%, from INR 22 Cr in FY19. The company maintained its profitability status for a second straight year. 

Over the same period, the company’s expenses also increased 143% from INR 21 Cr in FY19 to INR 51 Cr in FY20. The company saw its total profit (after tax) for the year grow by a slim margin, from INR 1.07 Cr in FY19 to INR 1.27 Cr in FY20. 

The company’s expenses increased across the board. Purchases of stock-in-trade increased 106% YoY to INR 21.91 Cr; employee benefits expenses increased 70% to INR 4.84 Cr; and, other expenses, which includes the company’s spends on rent, fuel, conveyance, legal, advertising and other miscellaneous expenses, increased 190% to INR 26.77 Cr. 

Founded in 2014 by Shankar Prasad, Plum claims to be a 100% vegan beauty brand and offers skincare, cosmetics, body, and bath products mostly tailored for women. The company’s other brand Phy claims to be a similarly 100% vegan grooming range for men.  

With over 80 SKUs in its portfolio comprising skincare, haircare, body care, and eye makeup, the Plum brand has experienced a 2.5x growth YoY, expecting to be at an annual revenue run rate of INR 200 Cr by March 2021, the company said in a statement in November last year. 

The omnichannel retailer sells its Plum products D2C through its website and is also available in more than 220 cities at 6,000 retail outlets, in addition to 15 online marketplaces which still account for over two-thirds of Plum’s topline.

Pureplay’s last reported funding round was a Series B round worth INR 110 Cr, led by Faering Capital in November last year. 

In 2018, the company had raised an undisclosed amount in Series A funding from Unilever Ventures, the venture capital and private equity arm of consumer giant Unilever. To date, the company is estimated to have raised $5 Mn in funding.

Earlier this month, Plum was featured in Inc42’s Startup Watchlist: Six Indian D2C Startups To Watch Out For In 2021. The company has claimed that it has managed to recover its pre-Covid volumes over the last six months. Plum counts Mamaearth, Dot & Key, The Body Shop and Innis Free as its primary competitors. 

According to Statista, the Indian beauty and personal care market is projected to reach $26,853 Mn in revenue this year. The market is expected to grow annually by 8.5% (CAGR 2021-2025). Its largest segment will be Personal Care with a market volume of $12,261 Mn in 2021.