Licious Raises $192M to Expand Internationally | India

Licious Secures $192 Million to Fuel Expansion

Licious, an online marketplace for fresh meat and seafood headquartered in Bangalore, has successfully secured $192 million in a recent funding round. This new capital injection will be utilized to broaden the company’s reach beyond the South Asian region.

Series F Funding Details

The financing round, designated as Series F, was spearheaded by Temasek, a Singaporean investment firm, alongside Multiples Private Equity. This investment elevates the total funding raised by the six-year-old Indian company to over $285 million.

Valuation has increased significantly, now exceeding $650 million, a substantial rise from the $285 million valuation achieved during its Series E funding in December 2019.

Investor Participation

Existing investors also contributed to this round, including 3one4 Capital, Bertelsmann India Investments, Vertex Growth Fund, and Vertex Ventures. Notably, some initial investors also chose to partially liquidate their holdings.

Licious's Operational Model

Licious operates a direct-to-consumer (D2C) e-commerce platform, offering a wide selection of meat and seafood products to customers in over a dozen cities throughout India.

The company has established a robust supply chain network spanning numerous Indian cities. This network ensures efficient procurement, preservation of freshness, and rapid delivery – often within hours of order placement.

Growth and Market Trends

The startup reports accelerated growth in recent months, attributing this to a rising consumer focus on protein intake for improved immunity.

While specific figures were not disclosed, Licious has experienced a 500% growth rate over the past year and has served more than 2 million unique customers.

Company Vision

“This represents a pivotal step in our journey to establish a leading and highly recognizable tech-driven D2C brand,” stated Vivek Gupta and Abhay Hanjura, co-founders of Licious, in a joint announcement.

India's Online Meat Market

Industry analysis indicates that the Indian online meat market is currently valued at over $4.4 billion. This market has seen more than a 2.5x increase in size since the onset of the pandemic last year.

Future Plans

Licious, a competitor to FreshToHome, intends to allocate the newly acquired funds towards expansion into “multiple geographies,” though specific target markets remain undisclosed.

Further investments will also be directed towards enhancing its technological infrastructure and strengthening its supply chain capabilities.

Industry Recognition

Sridhar Sankararaman, MD at Multiples, commented that the co-founders have “fundamentally changed how consumers in India purchase poultry, seafood, and meat, consistently delivering on their commitments to quality, freshness, and prompt delivery.”