Venture debt firm InnoVen Capital on Friday said it has invested Rs35 crore in debt in Mumbai-based online furniture marketplace Pepperfry, making it their third investment in the startup since 2017.
“We remain focused on expanding Pepperfry’s leadership position in the Indian furniture and home ecommerce. Our business has seen strong momentum through covid and we continue to make good progress towards achieving profitability and managing cash flows. These funds will be used to increase our footprint across the country and capitalise us even beyond achieving profitability,” said Neelesh Talathi, chief financial officer at Pepperfry.
Mint had earlier reported that Pepperfry was close to profitability as it looks to go public by 2022.
According to co-founder and chief executive officer Ambareesh Murty, Pepperfry almost broke even in August last year. The company hopes to have six to nine months of sustained profitability before going public. He said, currently, it made sense for the company to list on Indian stock exchanges but there hasn’t been a formal decision on the matter yet.
The company has more than 60 experience centres called Pepperfry Studios across cities, and competes with Reliance Industries-owned Urban Ladder.
Reliance Retail Ventures Ltd (RRVL), the retail unit of billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s RIL, bought a 96% stake in Urban Ladder for ₹182.12 crore in November last year.
“We have seen Pepperfry grow while adding new capabilities and product offerings on its platform. They have built a strong brand and this investment reaffirms our commitment to back high performing portfolio companies across their life cycle,” said Sameer Mansukhani, senior director, InnoVen Capital India.
