Healthkart raises Rs80 cr from Sequoia, Kae Capital, others

New Delhi: Online health products vendor Healthkart, owned by Bright Lifecare Pvt. Ltd, has raised Rs.80 crore in a Series E round of funding from existing investors Sequoia Capital India and Kae Capital among others, documents with the Registrar of Companies showed.

The money will be used to enhance marketing initiatives and offline expansion, Sameer Maheshwari, founder and managing director of Healthkart, said in an email response.

Currently, Healthkart has two offline stores and plans to set up seven-eight more of 200-300 sq. ft size in the next six months.

Maheshwari said his company’s focus is on the fitness segment.

“Fitness is a very engaged and assistance-oriented category and customers trust us across their fitness lifecycle—from seeking advice from expert trainers/nutritionists, connecting with other fitness enthusiasts, specialist curation of products, customer reviews and buying authentic nutrition products,” he said.

“We plan to continue to expand into a wider range of nutrition products. The idea is that Healthkart should be able to address all preventive care and wellness needs of the consumer,” he added.

According to its website, Healthkart, which sells consumables such as protein supplements and vitamins, has more than 200 brands and authorized vendors on its platform.

The company also has private-label products in the nutrition and supplements business called MuscleBlaze and Incredio.

Last year, Maheshwari told Mint that private labels help Healthkart get 40-50% margins. He also said these products are 30-40% cheaper than imported brands which attract duties.

But Healthkart declined to specify what amount of its current business was being driven by the private-label products.

“Healthkart has executed extremely well and carved out a valuable area in the online nutrition products and services market. We continue to believe they are on a unique path that will generate significant value,” said Shailesh Lakhani, managing director, Sequoia Capital India Advisors, confirming the investment.

Healthkart, which last year launched Phyzo, a mobile app to discover neighbourhood gyms, yoga classes and trainers, has now closed this business.

“Phyzo was an early initiative for us, where we experimented with an on-demand pay-per-use fitness model, and given that we saw stronger growth opportunities in other areas, we decided to discontinue the initiative,” said Maheshwari.

Founded by Maheshwari and Prashant Tandon in 2011, Healthkart last year separated its generic drug search business HealthkartPlus as 1mg.com and raised $6 million for the new venture from existing investors.

1mg is headed by Tandon, while Maheshwari continues to look after Healthkart.

In April, 1mg Technologies Pvt. Ltd raised Rs.100 crore in a Series B round from investors including Maverick Capital Ventures, the venture capital arm of US-based hedge fund Maverick Capital Ltd, besides existing investors Sequoia Capital and Omidyar Network.

Later, in May, global healthcare-focused fund HBM Healthcare Investments AG also invested an undisclosed amount in the company.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.