High Street raises Rs 40 cr in debt, enters into premium occasional wear market

By Shubhobrota Dev Roy

  • 20 May 2022
Credit: Thinkstock

Fashion e-retailer High Street Essentials Pvt. Ltd, which owns women-centric fashion brands, FabAlley and Indya, on Friday said it has raised debt of Rs 40 crore (around $5.2 million) from existing investor Stride Ventures.

With this new round, the platform has rolled out a new range, Indya Luxe, marking its   

foray into the premium occasional wear market. The company will also use the new capital to expand its offline footprint.

HSE plans to double its offline presence by adding 30 more emerging business opportunities (EBOs) - a mix of company owned stores and franchisees – and another 100 shop-in-shops in large format stores over the next 12-18 months, it added. 

The latest capital infusion comes seven months after the Delhi-based company raised Rs 15 crore from Stride Ventures.

Founded in 2012 by Shivani Poddar and Tanvi Malik, High Street Essentials Pvt. Ltd claims to be among the first Indian fashion retailers to have a robust omni-channel retail model.   

“We value the trust and confidence that Stride Ventures has shown in us and are excited about building the company with their support. The investment has come at the right time as we kick start our next leg of success with key category expansions and scaling our offline and online presence,” said Shivani Poddar and Tanvi Malik, Co-Founders, HSE

“We are elated to support High Street Essentials as they bring a wave of change in the women's fashion and apparel industry. HSE through its bold, inclusive and fashion-forward brands and robust marketing strategies has been very successful in creating a unique market identity," said Apoorva Sharma, Partner, Stride Ventures.  

Founded in 2019, Delhi-based Stride Ventures is a sector-agnostic venture debt fund, managed by veteran ex-bankers. It provides tailor-made debt solutions to startups, enabling them to strategically allocate capital.

The fund uses its portfolio companies to leverage the banking ecosystem through their domain expertise and extensive network.  

Last year in May, High Street Essentials raised Rs 25.5 crore ($3.5 million) in a follow-on round of funding from its existing investors.  

In June 2020, it raised Rs 20.75 crore (approximately $2.72 million at current exchange rates) in its pre-Series C funding round.