Korean Shaving Company Dorco Makes Its First India Bet With 10% Stake In LetsShave

Chandigarh-based men grooming company LetsShave has raised an undisclosed amount of fresh funding from Korean razor manufacturer Dorco Ltd against a 10% stake.

Headquartered in Seoul, Dorco is one of the leading manufacturers of razor blades in the world with more than six decades of global business.

The company plans to use the newly raised funds towards its online business and expanding the product portfolio to cater to men’s and women’s grooming needs more efficiently. LetsShave wants to become a one-stop solution for grooming while keeping shaving as its core category.

Founded in 2015 by Sidharth S Oberoi, LetsShave offers shaving products for men and started with four products. The company is now selling 22 products and plans to expand to 40 products in the near future.

It claims to have more than 4,50,000 customers base while growing at 45% YOY.

Sidharth S Oberoi, Founder and CEO, LetsShave said, “This investment has given both the companies a great opportunity to share unique resources and capabilities to create a competitive advantage in the market. We believe that this alliance will ensure life-long product supply for the Indian market and help us introduce advanced products. We are seeking out further strategic partnerships with like-minded FMCG’s for entering into retail channel to grow our business.”

“Acknowledging their enthusiasm and vision for the grooming business, and their differentiated capabilities, we considered LetsShave as the best partner for our long-term vision for the Indian market,” added Ken Kwak, Director, Dorco.

Men’s Grooming: Why Should Girls Have All The Fun?

In the booming wide array of beauty and care products of women, men’s grooming had remained indigenous to next door hair-dresser and kirana store oil-shave etc purchases.

However, from the past few years, with increasing offline turning online process, men’s grooming became a new online range of products with products like hair wax, beard wax, beard essence etc becoming the next-gen choice.

Catering to this shift, the players like LetsShave have their eyes set on shaving, which according to Euromonitor holds the largest market share in the grooming category with more than 42%.

At the same time, men’s grooming market is expected to account for $2.2 Bn by 2020.

Ecommerce companies such as Flipkart, Amazon India, Nykaa, and Purplle are some of the well-known brands that sell male grooming products online, typically under a separate category on their flagship platforms.

Here’s a quick look at some of the recent activity in the segment:

• Delhi-based men’s grooming startup Bombay Shaving Company (BSC) raised an undisclosed amount in Series A funding from new investors such as Colgate-Palmolive Asia Pacific Limited and others
• Hindustan Unilever (HUL) and Amazon India co-developed a line of hair and men grooming products
• Brands such as Ustraa by Happily Unmarried have entered the market, seeking to offer slightly premium products
• Players such as The Man Company, Beardo, etc, challenging established players such as Emami and Gillette

A TechSci Research estimates that India men’s grooming products market stood at $1.4 Bn in 2016 and is projected to grow at a CAGR of over 15% during 2017-2022, to reach $3.3 Bn by 2022.