India’s D2C market is projected to become a $100 billion industry by 2025. It has shown exponential growth in the past few years. And as of 2022, there are more than 800 D2C startups in India.
Many emerging D2C brands have made it to the top in a matter of years and become so popular that almost everyone has heard of them, even if they may not have shopped with them. They were not only disruptive but also an inspiration for everyone who wanted to start their own DTC startup. Let’s take a look at these iconic D2C businesses.
boAt
Launched in 2016 by Aman Gupta and Sameer Mehta, boAt manufacturers earphones, headphones, speakers, and many other audio products. Not only do they have their own website, but they also sell their products on different marketplaces like Amazon.
Right from quality products to a top-notch marketing strategy that appealed right to their target audience, they grew their startup in just three to four years. And in the year 2021, their profit increased a whopping 61% from last year to INR78.6 crore.
Bewakoof
There are innumerable Marvel, F.R.I.E.N.D.S, DC, etc. fans in India. But when it came to wearing the merchandise of their favorite TV series or superhero movies, they didn’t know where to go. That’s where Bewakoof enters. They manufactured merchandise, clothes, and accessories for some of the fan favorites.
The startup was founded in 2021 by Prabhkiran Singh and Siddharth Munot and has sold over 1 crore products to around 60 lakh customers. Their aim is now to record an INR 2000 crore sales by 2025.
CaratLane
This jewelry startup was started in 2008 by Mithun Sacheti and Srinivasa Gopalan. CaratLane has a variety of jewelry, from bracelets to rings. There are kids-focused pendants and customized jewelry as well. It sells its products through omnichannel marketing strategies.
In 2021, CaratLane reported INR 723 crore earnings and a profit of INR 1.6 crore. It has managed to create a space for itself in a market where customers prefer doing their jewelry shopping in stores and not online.
Lenskart
Peyush Bansal, Amit Chaudhury, and Sumeet Kapahi started Lenskart in 2010, and now it has about 750 outlets in 750+ cities. They sell eyewear to over 7 million customers every year. This unicorn startup has raised $827 million in funding from investors like Premji Invest, Unilazer Ventures, and so on.
Lenskart aims to expand its engineering team to 500 members by 2023 and is also working on automation and supply chain integration.
SUGAR Cosmetics
Vineeta Singh and Kaushik Mukherjee founded SUGAR cosmetics in 2015 as an omnichannel D2C brand. It has a range of cosmetic products, including but not limited to lip care, skin care, eye care, makeup, etc.
As of today, it has about 40K retail stores in more than 550 Indian cities. So far, SUGAR has raised $73 million from its investors, and its revenue for the year 2020-2021 was reported to be INR 126.3 crore.
So, these were some of the startups that have paved their way into the crowded market and created a place for themselves. What other startups have caught your eye?