Venture Catalysts invests in puja cotton-wick maker OM Bhakti

Venture Catalysts, an incubator and accelerator platform, has made an investment in OM Bhakti, a profitable organised brand in the puja cotton-wicks market. This investment was made during OM Bhakti’s seed-funding round.

Management consulting and business strategy veteran Mr Sridhar Joshi along with consumer product sales/distribution expert Mr Prashant Kulkarni founded OM Bhakti which has a pan-India presence with around 1,000 stores across the country.

Mr Apoorv Ranjan Sharma, President and Co-Founder, Venture Catalysts, said: “The spiritual market in India is estimated to have a valuation worth US$ 30 billion annually. Additionally, the total addressable market is US$ 2 billion, which comprises puja samagri items”.

“However, this sector is highly fragmented. OM Bhakti is one of few players that is making conscious efforts to make the market organised. We are confident that the latest round of investment will go a long way in empowering the company to bolster its operations,” Mr Sharma added.

Mr Sridhar Joshi, Co-Founder, OM Bhakti said: “We are part of a high-potential market that still remains untapped in major parts. We are determined to transform the ‘puja needs’ category at modern retail and general trade. The seed funding will give us more firepower to expand into new geographies and strengthen our marketing efforts”.

The company works closely with farmers and women self-help groups in rural India to produce the high-quality puja cotton-wicks. Its business model has been yielding results in all channels, with good traction in the FMCG retail industry.

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