Home interior solutions provider Design Café has reportedly secured USD 25 million during an extended Series B funding round. This time the round was led by Westbridge Capital as well as Sixth Sense Ventures.
Existing investor Fireside Ventures was also involved in the latest fundraising, with added participation from a few family offices. The startup has now raised a sum of USD 53.5 million, including the USD 27 million it raised back in 2018.
Founded by Gita Ramanan and Shezan Bhojani in 2015, Design Café operates using a vertically integrated business model, having its own designers, workforce, and a factory in Bengaluru that manufactures all its products. The company currently has operations in Hyderabad, Mumbai, and Bengaluru, with additional centers likely to be launched in Thane and Chennai soon.
Design Café intends to use the fresh funds to expand into newer cities. In this context, Chief Executive Bhojani claimed that the funds will enable the company to take its services to more markets in the upcoming months as well as invest in technology and people.
The home solutions startup is planning to increase its annual booking rate to around USD 95 million in the next two years. A large part of this will come from the growing home segment, which is believed to be a billion-dollar opportunity.
The founder and CEO of Sixth Sense Ventures Nikhil Vora was quoted saying that profitability in home improvement and design industry has always been a challenge. Regardless, Design Café’s focus on standardized modular furniture, full-stack tech platform, and vertically integrated manufacturing will allow it to witness substantial growth.
If market speculations are right, home improvement and design industry is worth around USD 20 billion, however it is currently highly fragmented and unorganized in India.
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