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Mumbai-based D2C brand in the fresh vegetables and fruits space FRAAZO has announced the closing of a fresh $11 million Series A financing round of equity funding led by Sixth Sense Ventures.

Sixth Sense is joined by NABARD-backed NABVENTURES and existing investors Equanimity Ventures; Manish Choksi, Vice Chairman and member of the Board of Directors of Asian Paints Limited; and Apar Group.

Through a network of micro-fulfilment stores, FRAAZO, launched just 12 months ago, claims to be delivering farm-fresh vegetables and fruits across the entire city of Mumbai within 60 minutes. 

With the current round, FRAAZO said it is set to expand operations pan-India, while cashing in on the unprecedented digital adoption within the fragmented fresh food market. 

According to the startup, the $300+ billion fruits and vegetables market is seeing an increasing shift towards digital, with the online grocery segment growing at a 50 percent CAGR, pushed even further by  the behaviour changes due to the pandemic. 

FRAAZO said its custom-built technology stack is aligned with the needs of the fresh produce supply chain. With a data-driven demand forecasting engine, the company is able to accurately match demand and supply for every catchment, thereby reducing supply chain losses, improving farmer income, and offering daily savings to its customers. 

FRAAZO has also received strong interest from Development Finance Institutions and Multi-laterals for an additional $5 million of financing for expansion and strengthening and enhancing its procurement base with farmers in North and North-East. 

“We are thrilled by the support of ambitious and successful investors who see the disruptive potential of technology in building D2C brands,” said Atul Kumar, Co-founder and CEO, FRAAZO.”

“The need for hygiene, digital convenience, and customer service has never been greater, especially with  quality inequity and disparities in service levels across traditional channels.” 

Targeting 1,000 centres across the country, FRAAZO aims to become India’s leading fruits and vegetables player, with a  capability to deliver fresh produce to a customer’s doorstep within 15 minutes of ordering.

Nikhil Vora, Founder and CEO, Sixth Sense Ventures, added, 

“With a frequency-driven model, supply-chain moat, and a remarkable cross-functional team, coupled with product extensions to drive higher AOVs, FRAAZO is poised to dominate the perishables space. FRAAZO meets our sweet spot of investing in super scalable  spaces, first-gen founders with a highly motivated entrepreneurial team, leveraging the  change in behaviour of the evolved Consumers of Tomorrow!” 

According to Gills John, Vice President, NABVENTURES, “the D2C fresh food market is one of the most challenging and nascent spaces in India with limited penetration by horizontal D2C players. We will strive to make FRAAZO as India’s largest fresh food D2C brand in the next 5  years.”