Mumbai: WickedGud, a D2C brand making healthy food and snack alternatives, has raised US$ 250,000 in additional growth funding from GetVantage, India’s first and largest alternative financing platform for eCommerce entrepreneurs and SMEs.
The food startup has made a significant impact in the healthy food space, building on strong momentum and consumer sentiment. The additional growth funding will be invested in marketing, product expansion, and retail distribution to achieve a 5X growth in net revenues in FY 24, despite already growing 3X in net revenues over the past 12 months. It also plans to exponentially increase its retail footprint to 2,000+ retail stores PAN-India through its distribution partner network.
WickedGud makes healthy pasta and noodles that are 100% maida-free, oil-free, and MSG-free across online marketplaces and is on track to launch 3 new product categories over the next 18 months – Malted Drinks, Sweet Spreads, and Popped Chips. Just last month, the brand, which also appeared on Shark Tank S2, raised INR 2.25 crore from fitness evangelist, actor, entrepreneur and serial investor Shilpa Shetty.
Talking about the recent investment, Bhavik Vasa, Founder & CEO, GetVantage, said, “Bhuman and his team at WickedGud have impressed with their traction, extensive market knowledge and ability to identify opportunities. At GetVantage, we are thrilled to support their strong early fundamentals, exciting growth roadmap, and vision to unjunk India one kitchen at a time.”
As a seasoned D2C founder, and having previously launched and scaled the consumer favorite tea brand, TGL Co. (The Good Life Company), Bhuman Dani, Founder & CEO of WickedGud, said, “My previous experience at TGL, along with a strong founding team at WickedGud, gives me the conviction to build a robust distribution network across the country, that will drive the next phase of our growth. It’s great to have the backing of GetVantage as our strategic long-term growth funding partner, who understands our objectives and gives us the strength and flexibility to focus on achieving our expansion plans.”
WickedGud products are made using wholesome, mom-approved ingredients such as wholewheat flour, lentils, brown rice, chickpeas, oats, and millets and are manufactured using innovative Steaming and Convection Air Drying (SCAD) technology, fostering sustainable food habits and resulting in a superior macronutrient profile when compared to legacy brands.
GetVantage continues to strengthen its leadership position as the preferred non-dilutive funding partner for new-economy businesses. In less than 24 months, the company has amassed one of the largest consumer portfolios in India, having facilitated funding for over 300+ D2C brands. In addition to other sectors, it continues to serve more businesses, including B2B SaaS, Cleantech, EV & infrastructure, cloud kitchen, and QSR, among others.
About GetVantage
GetVantage is India’s premier alternative funding marketplace & growth platform providing fast, fair, flexible non-dilutive capital to SMEs. Launched in 2020 by seasoned fintech entrepreneur Bhavik Vasa and Tech & Ops veteran Amit Srivastava and headquartered in Mumbai, GetVantage makes data-driven investments from INR 20 lakhs to INR 20 crore to supercharge growth for businesses. The platform provides various non-dilutive working capital solutions for marketing, inventory, logistics, and other recurring CapEx to businesses across sectors, including B2B SaaS, eCommerce, D2C, ed-tech, cloud kitchens, and many more. The company, which has registered over 14,000+ signups on its platform, has a broad investment portfolio of over 550+ of the most exciting new-age businesses in India. The company is backed by leading Indian and Japanese investors, including Chirate Ventures, Varanium Nexgen Fintech Fund, Sony Innovation Fund, Dream Incubator Japan, DMI Sparkle Fund, and InCred Capital.
About WickedGud
Founded in 2021, WickedGud is a D2C start-up dedicated to un-junking India one kitchen at a time with a variety of healthy and indulgent food products. With a commitment to wicked taste and good ingredients, WickedGud’s product lineup includes a range of healthy pastas and noodles that have seen the brand grow over 300% in the last 12 months.
