Singapore’s Believe Pte Picks Majority Stake In Indian D2C Brand Iba Cosmetics

Singapore-based FMCG company Believe Pte Ltd has picked up a majority stake in Ahmedabad-based Iba Cosmetics as part of the latter’s Series B round of funding. The transaction was valued at around $10 Mn, Iba Cosmetics told Inc42.

As part of the deal, Iba will join the house of brands developed by the Singapore-based conglomerate, and its cofounders Mauli and Grishma Teli will continue to lead Iba.

The personal care startup last raised INR 15 Cr in its Series A round of funding in 2018.

“In today’s beauty landscape, brands need an omnichannel approach. This strategic alliance with Believe is going to help us with distribution and scale not only within India but in international markets as well,” said Mauli Teli, CEO of Iba Cosmetics.

Founded in 2014 by Mauli and Grishma Teli, Iba Cosmetics has an omnichannel presence, with retail outlets in Delhi, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Kerala and via ecommerce marketplaces such as Nykaa, Amazon, Flipkart, Purplle and Bigbasket. The startup sells products across verticals such as skincare, haircare and makeup.

Iba Cosmetics claims to be India’s first Halal-certified and PETA-certified vegan cosmetics and personal care brand. The D2C brand claims that all of its products are free of alcohol, pig fat, other animal-derived ingredients and harsh chemicals such as sulfates, parabens, ammonia, and bleaching agents.

In India’s personal care segment, Iba competes with behemoths Nykaa and Mamaearth, along with Plum, SUGAR Cosmetics, WOW Skin Science and many others.

Founded in 2019 by Ankit Mahajan, Believe Pte Ltd is a Singapore-based house of brands that operates multiple brands in the beauty segment. It distributes its products in nine countries in Asia and the Middle East, with manufacturing in Asia, the Middle East and Europe.

Believe has raised $80 Mn from investors such as Accel, Jungle Ventures, IIFL and Venturi Partners. While it did not reveal the latest revenue figures, the Singapore-based conglomerate aims to reach $100 Mn in revenue by March 2023.

Believe operates in over 1,000 shop counters in India and services more than 60,000 outlets through its direct field force in the country. According to Believe and Iba, India’s growing clean beauty market size is estimated to be close to $1 Bn; the global clean beauty industry is projected to reach close to $54 Bn by 2027.

India has seen a rapid rise in D2C brands over the past few years, aided by the rise in ecommerce expenditure by Indian customers. Within the D2C landscape, FMCG is the most prominent subsector, with more than 250 funded startups having raised $2.1 Bn in funding between 2014 and Q3 2022, according to Inc42’s ‘State Of Indian Ecommerce, Q3 2022’.

Interestingly, D2C has become a go-to segment for Bollywood and other celebrities to invest in. Several D2C brands, such as Mamaearth, Nykaa and SUGAR Cosmetics have been backed by Bollywood celebrities.

Among the most recent funding events in the sector, Hyderabad-based D2C wellness startup Good Health Company (GHC) raised $10 Mn last month to venture into women’s personal care products.

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Update | November 10, 2022, 2:35 PM

The value of the transaction between Iba and Believe has been added to the story.