Indian Angel Network tops up investment in women-focussed hygiene startup PeeBuddy

By Narinder Kapur

  • 02 Jul 2019
Credit: 123RF.com

Sirona, a startup that sells women-focussed hygiene products such as urination device PeeBuddy, has raised an undisclosed sum of money from the Indian Angel Network in a follow-on funding round.

Existing lead investors Vikas Kuthiala and Ishan Singh participated in the round along with a clutch of high-net-worth individual investors, Sirona said in a statement. 

The investment is in addition to the Rs 2.96 crore that the startup, operated by First Step Digital Pvt. Ltd, raised from the IAN in March 2017.

The company said the investment is a precursor to its plans of raising up to $5 million (Rs 34.5 crore at current exchange rates) by the end of the year.

Sirona founder Deep Bajaj said the fresh capital will help the company support its position in the women-focussed hygiene segment as well as allow its products to reach a wider audience.

Kuthiala said the IAN was aligned with Sirona’s goal of building a “robust, full-stack consumer products company” in the feminine hygiene segment. Singh added that Bajaj and his team had built a global brand for their products.

Incorporated in 2015 by Deep Bajaj and Mohit Bajaj, Sirona has produced several hygiene products including period pain relief patches, menstrual cups and natural anti-chafing rash cream.

The company sells its products on its own platform as well as major e-commerce ones such as Flipkart, Amazon and Nykaa. Its products also have an offline presence in the Delhi-National Capital Region area.

IAN

Founded in 2006, IAN invests across sectors and usually exits over a three- to five-year period through a strategic sale. According to its website, the network has invested in over 130 enterprises and has operations in at least seven cities.

In June, it led a Rs 19 crore ($2.87 million) Series A funding round in Chakr Innovation Pvt. Ltd., which is building a suite of products to reduce air pollution. It also invested Rs 3.5 crore (around $500,000) in education-technology startup ConceptOwl.

In May, the network led an investment round in vernacular hyperlocal news platform PublicVibe, with two of its investors joining the startup’s board as well.

In April, IAN co-founder Saurabh Srivastava said the network had raised the targeted corpus of its eponymous debut fund and expected to make its final close by August.