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Personal care D2C brand WOW Skin Science has raised an undisclosed amount of investment from Singapore-based sovereign wealth fund GIC in an equity funding round.

The fresh capital will be deployed for brand building, hiring talent across verticals and launching new products. 

The latest development comes after WOW Skin raised worth $50 Mn in an equity funding round from India-focused private equity firm ChrysCapital for business expansion and product development. In the round, ChrysCapital received a significant minority stake. 

Founded in 2014 by Manish and Karan Chowdhary, WOW Skin Science offers an array of personal care products across categories such as skin, hair, bath and body, wellness, nutrition and health. It follows an omnichannel approach for sales thus, sells products on its website and other ecommerce marketplaces. 

With the current fundraising, WOW Skin will focus on innovation and sustainability areas of the brand. It aims to achieve INR 3000 Cr in revenue in the next five years.

As per the statement, WOW Skin sells products in over 2500 retail stores in the US. It further claims to have 300 stock keeping units (SKUs) as of now. 

WOW Skin faces competition from mCaffeine,  Plum and Phy (PurePlay Skin Sciences), Beardo, Mamaearth and Bombay Shaving Company in the personal care segment. 

Growth Of India’s Personal Care Market 

According to a report, the Indian beauty and personal care product market is currently pegged at $26.8 Bn. The industry is anticipated to reach $37.2 Bn by 2025.

A slew of business deals have been witnessed in the personal care industry. In March this year, D2C personal care startup mCaffeine raised over $31 Mn (INR 240 Cr) as part of its Series C funding round led by Paragon Partners.

The funding round also saw participation from VC firms Singularity Growth Opportunities Fund, Sharrp Ventures, along with existing investors such as Amicus Capital Partners and RPSG Capital Ventures.

At the beginning of March this year, Ador Group-led 1908 E-ventures acquired personal care brand, Coccoon for an undisclosed amount. 

The acquisition would help 1908 E-Ventures to build a clean beauty platform, invest in brand building, and launch new products. 

In February this year, Delhi NCR-based D2C beauty brand RENEE Cosmetics raised $10 Mn led by Ananth Narayanan’s D2C roll-up unicorn Mensa Brands. Existing investors Equanimity and 9Unicorns too have participated in the Series A round.

In January this year, Good Glamm Group acquired a majority stake in beauty and personal care startup, Organic Harvest for INR 75 Cr.

The acquisition would help leverage Good Glamm Group’s online audience and more than 50K offline sales points in 150 cities.