Livspace Enters Unicorn Club With KKR-Led $180 Mn Round

Home renovation and interiors platform Livspace has announced a $180 Mn funding round that has taken the company past the billion-dollar valuation mark. The round was led by American investment giant KKR & Co as Livspace eyes international and domestic expansion. Swedish retail giant Ikea, Jungle Ventures, Venturi Partners and Peugeot Investments also invested in the round.

CEO and cofounder Anuj Srivastava said the company would look to replicate its India playbook in markets such as Asia Pacific, Middle East, North Africa and Australia.

This is the company’s second major round in the past 15 months after it raised $90 Mn in Series D in September 2020, led by Switzerland-based investment firm Kharis Capital and consumer space-focused Venturi Partners.

After going through rough times in early 2020, when the company had to lay off 450 employees, Livspace used the funds to rejig supply chain and enter new cities. It also launched a major marketing campaign with ads across formats. Following this, the company decided to focus heavily on Neo, a proprietary design, manufacturing and installation platform that is built around modular solutions.

As part of the Neo plan, the company said it would onboard over 2500 ecosystem partners including franchisees, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), modular furniture, kitchen and wardrobe brands and other related players in 2022.

Then late last year, French multinational giant Saint-Gobain acquired a minority stake in the startup. Till date, Livspace has raised close to $450 Mn across several rounds.

Founded in 2014 by Anuj Srivastava and Ramakant Sharma, Livspace is a curated marketplace that provides an end-to-end home design experience. The startup’s online marketplace also offers software tools that can help designers and homeowners design interiors.

It boasts of a presence across nine metro cities and claims to have helped design over 20,000 homes. Last year, the company had said that it would be looking to enter 80 markets with a sharp focus on the Middle East. It formed a joint venture with Alsulaiman Group to make inroads into the ME market.

In India, Livspace competes with Bengaluru-based Homelane and other players in a largely unorganised market for home redesigns, interior design and custom furniture.

This year has continued off from a record-breaking 2021, following the unicorn status for Fractal Analytics, Lead School, Darwinbox and Dealshare in January. With ElasticRun also entering the unicorn club this week, and now Livspace, there are already two unicorns in February, taking the total tally of unicorns in India to 92.