Purplle Group, an omnichannel beauty platform, has raised ₹1,000 crores in its Series F funding round led by a wholly owned subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), along with participation from other investors, which includes a combination of primary and secondary shares.
Alongside this funding round, Purplle has also announced its largest-ever Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) liquidity program and will offer liquidity of ₹50 crore to its employees.
Purplle has granted ESOPs to 320 employees up to date, and 85 of them have liquidated ESOPs worth ₹75 crores over three buyback programs. In the largest-ever ESOP liquidity program announced, 26% of its beneficiaries are women.
Speaking on the investment Manish Taneja, Co-Founder and CEO at Purplle said, “It is our mission to democratise beauty and make it accessible to all, and while we have reached many beauty enthusiasts across India, we still have a long way to go. We will constantly innovate and leverage our technology and data capabilities to provide our customers with the best omnichannel experience. In increasing its shareholding in Purplle, ADIA has continued to support us as we pursue our vision of building a sustainable and profitable business.”
Purplle is one of the fastest-growing retailers in the Beauty and Personal Care (BPC) segment, having grown its GMV by around four times over the last three years.
The company serves the beauty needs of customers in tier II, and III, micro-markets, expanding beyond metro cities. Purplle is operationally profitable and expects to grow its online platform faster than the industry while scaling offline stores and improving profitability.
Purplle is backed by investors including ADIA, Kedaara, Premji Invest, Sequoia Capital India, JSW Ventures, Goldman Sachs, Verlinvest, Blume Ventures, and Paramark Ventures.
In June 2022, Purplle raised $33 million in its Series E round from South Korea’s Paramark Ventures and turned unicorn with a valuation of $1.1 billion.
