Bummer, a direct-to-consumer apparel company, secured Rs 9.25 crore in funding. Gruhas’ Collective Consumer Fund, backed by Nikhil Kamath, led the funding.
Fluid Ventures, a D2C-focused venture firm and an existing investor in Bummer, also participated in this round. The investment was made against fresh shares, and all proceeds will benefit the company.
Previously, the company had raised Rs 5.5 crore in seed funding. Contributors included Aman Gupta from Boat and venture firm Beenext Asia, based in Singapore, which has invested in companies like NoBroker and BharatPe.
Following this funding, Gruhas and Beenext will emerge as the primary institutional stakeholders in Bummer, according to founder Sulay Lavsi, who didn’t disclose specific details.
“Bummer is disrupting the longstanding monopoly held by a handful of players in the men’s underwear Category. We believe that Bummer’s innovative approach, coupled with its quality products and edgy new-age design, is perfectly positioned to capture the Gen-Z market,” said Abhijeet Pai, a cofounder of Gruhas and the general partner of the Collective Consumer Fund.
Specializing in underwear and loungewear, such as t-shirts and pajamas, the company generates around 85% of its revenue through its website. The remaining portion comes from online channels like Amazon and Myntra, as Lavsi mentioned.
While experimenting with sales in markets like the Middle East and Singapore, Bummer maintains its core focus on India for the foreseeable future.
Currently, the company has a presence in approximately 10 physical stores and aims to expand its distribution to around 100 stores next year. “Our ambition is to reach 10,000 touchpoints in the next five years … for comparison, Jockey has about 70,000 touchpoints in India,” he said.
In the future, Bummer anticipates that half of its revenue will come from non-metro cities, including Ahmedabad, Indore, Chandigarh, Bhopal, and Jaipur. “The focus is on amplifying brand awareness and expanding into tier-2, 3, and 4 cities across India,” the company said in a statement.
Approximately half of the funds raised will be allocated to marketing expenses, with a particular emphasis on offline marketing, according to Lavasi. Around 40% of the funds will be directed towards expanding distribution, especially in offline avenues, while about 10% will be invested in expanding the team.
“The Indian consumer is very used to the plain, black and white underwear that they have been using for ages. The kind of focus on design and quality that we bring will be new to them, and we will have to see how they react to it, especially in the offline stores,” Lavasi said.
In the fiscal year 2023, the company achieved a revenue of Rs 10 crore and aims to end fiscal year 2024 with revenue ranging between Rs 14-15 crore. The company expressed its plans to break even at the earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) level within the next 12 months, although specific details were not provided.
The recent funding provides the company a runway of approximately 15-18 months. Bummer’s founder, Sulay Lavsi, mentioned that they will likely seek another funding round closer to the end of this year.
