SoftBank Vision Fund invests $275m in India's Lenskart
SoftBank Vision Fund has led a Series G round of more than $275 million for Lenskart, an Indian omnichannel eyewear retailer, facilitating exits for several early investors.
The round takes Lenskart’s valuation past $1.5 billion, Indian media reported. According to AVCJ Research, the company has now received more than $500 million in private funding from the likes of Chiratae Ventures, Unilazer Ventures, TPG Growth, Eqiq Capital, Steadview Capital Management, TR Capital, Adveq Management, and the International Finance Corporation (IFC). Most recently, it received $55 million from Kedaara Capital just three months ago.
Several investors have sold shares along the way. For example, TR first backed Lenskart in 2013 and then last year acquired shares from TPG and Unilazer to take its holding to more than 10%. Later the same year, TR invested again alongside Epiq and Steadview. TPG, Unilazer and IDG were the sellers.
Lenskart was established in 2010 as an e-commerce platform. While online channels still account for most of the company’s sales, it has expanded offline as well. As of September 2019, Lenskart had over 500 stores across 70 cities in India.
The company uses technology and artificial intelligence (AI) in every aspect of its operations, from manufacturing and supply chain management to pricing and online and offline customer engagement, Avendus Capital – Lenskart’s exclusive financial advisor for the SoftBank investment – said in a statement. The proceeds from the round will largely go towards technology and supply chain improvements.
“Lenskart’s vision is to revolutionize the eye-wear industry and make a significant impact in the lives of at least a billion people globally. We are committed to our vision and think if we can continue to create enthusiastic customers, we will get there. Technology and AI are the biggest enablers in what we do and want to achieve. Our strategy is to continuously push the bar in customer experience and surprise our customers,” said Peyush Bansal, the company’s founder and CEO.
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