India's Ace Turtle raises $34m Series B
India’s Ace Turtle, an omnichannel platform used by lifestyle and fashion retailers such as Wrangler and Toys R Us, has raised USD 34m in Series B funding featuring Singapore’s Vertex Ventures.
Vertex, an affiliate of Temasek Holdings, is investing via its growth unit as well as via its Southeast Asia and India platform. They are joined by SBI Investment, Stride Ventures, Tuscan Ventures, Trifecta Capital, and Innoven Capital, among others.
It follows a USD 5m Series A in 2017 from Vertex and C31 Ventures, an arm of Singapore-based property giant CapitaLand, according to AVCJ Research. London and Zurich-based private equity firm Rianta Capital is also an investor.
Ace provides e-commerce services in areas such as payments, customer engagement, and logistics, acting as the licensee for global brands in South Asia markets. In addition to Wrangler and Toys R Us, its portfolio includes Babies R Us, Lee, Polaroid, Samsung, Ray-ban, Seiko, Guess, Michael Kors, Saint Laurent, and Stella McCartney.
The core technology offering, Rubicon, is described as a distributed order management system that can process inputs from any digital channel and identify the most preferable fulfilment points in real time. Rubicon can also be used to catalogue product inventories and manage digital assets such as marketing materials.
Ace is said to have doubled revenue and become EBITDA positive during the 2023 financial year, with Vertex citing strengths in an asset-light approach and data-driven insights. The investor has also highlighted a post-pandemic increase in brick-and-mortar footfalls amidst store expansions in recent months.
Last July, Ace helped Wrangler open its first offline location in Mumbai, its 39th store in India. At the time, Ace CEO Nitin Chhabra said he expected Wrangler and Lee to add another 100 stores within the financial year. Wrangler owns Lee.
“Our aim is to lead the next phase of retail in India and scale it to new heights through vertical commerce,” Chhabra said, referring to the Series B.
“The funds will be utilised to develop cutting-edge technological tools that ensure seamless omnichannel operations, acquire licenses for new fashion and lifestyle brands, and recruit skilled talent across all levels to support the aggressive growth plans. This will help us to expand our brand portfolio and solidify our competitive edge in the market.”
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