Firstcry, the Indian ecommerce + offline retailer that specialises in baby products, has recieved yet another capital infusion from Softbank. The $150 million investment that Softbank has made via Vision fund, is apparently the second tranche of an originally $300 million round. The first tranche was handed over to the company in January last year. The data comes in via regulatory filings, accessed through data intelligence platform Paper.vc.
Post the current infusion, Softbank’s holding in the baby products retailer stands at 46.6%. After the first tranche of funding, the company was valued at $850 million and with this second tranche, it is estimated to be valued between $975 million and $1.09 billion.
If the company is indeed valued at $1 billion or more, then it would become the latest entrant in the unicorn club, which is a private company valued at more than $1 billion. The valuation is approximate and can not be ascertained as of now.
Firstcry, which claims to be Asia’s largest online store for baby and kids’ products, was founded in 2010 by Supam Maheshwari and Amitava Saha and it is the most heavily funded baby products e-tailer in India.
The company counts several well-known investors as its backers, including Ratan Tata, IDG Ventures, Valiant Capital Partners, New Enterprise Associates and SAIF Partners, among others.
It offers lakhs of products across categories, including diapering, feeding and nursing, skin and health care, toys, clothes, footwear and fashion accessories, among others.
A few years ago, it acquired Mumbai-based BabyOye, an online store for pregnancy, infant-care, and mother care products, for a sum of $54 million, while simultaneously raising a $34 million round. FirstCry Group also owns Edubees Education which recently acquired Oi Playschool that aims to refine skills, nurture curiosity, and encourage exploration among early learners.
