Social Commerce Startup Stage3 Raises Pre Series A Fund

Delhi-based social commerce startup Stage3 has raised INR 20 Cr (~$2.65 Mn) in a Pre Series A funding round led by Inflection Point Ventures and LC Nueva Investment Partners. 

Let’s Venture, Stanford Angels, Blume Ventures and angel investors, including Ananth Narayanan, founder, Mensa Brands, Dinesh Aggarwal, CEO of IndiaMart and Sashwat Nakhrani, cofounder, Bharat Pe, also participated in the round.

The startup will use the freshly raised capital to improve technology infrastructure, hire talent and build data science capabilities. 

Founded in 2016 by Sabena Puri, Sanchit Baweja and Rina Dhaka, the Delhi-based fashion startup Stage3 is a social commerce marketplace for fashion and lifestyle. The influencer-driven platform focuses on providing affordable fast fashion in the form of celebrity or influencer endorsed designer outfits and accessories. 

“Our AI powered app will dramatically change how consumers shop by building a hyper-personalised feed reflecting their interests, personal style, size and brand preferences. In addition, they will be able to share their wishlist, group shop with friends and directly connect with sellers,” said Sabena Puri, cofounder and CEO of Stage3.   

According to Inc42 Plus, the online fashion market in India is expected to reach $43 Bn by 2025. Apparel and footwear will command the largest share, contributing about 77.6% of the total online fashion market in 2025. 

According to Stage3, it has registered a year-on-year growth of 200% with a current annual recurring revenue of $3 Mn and a gross margin of 70% across the platform. It also claims to have clocked a 30% increase in its follower base across social media platforms in the last 12 months to reach 500,000 followers. 

“The two key trends driving the growth of fashion ecommerce are the shift to online and the shift to social; where we leverage a daily active user base of a billion users across various social platforms in the country to enable 3M+ Influencers, small brands and Instagram boutiques to build their own social storefront and monetise their personal brand like never before,” said Sanchit Baweja, cofounder and chief business officer at Stage3.

The social commerce segment in India is a fast-growing sector, with companies like Meesho, YouTube-acquired SimSim, GlowRoad, Trell, which acquired Womaniya, DealShare which raised $144 Mn in Series D from Tiger Global, Elevation Capital-backed CityMall and Bulbul getting attention from both customers and investors. The market is currently valued at $1.5 Bn and is expected to reach $60 Bn in 2030.