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MUMBAI : D2C (direct-to-customer) online brand Flatheads has raised $1 million in pre-series A round from We Founder Circle, Dexter Angels, Gaurav Kapur (TV presenter and founder, Oaktree Sports), Sahil Barua (co-founder, Delhivery) and Radhika Ghai (co-founder, ShopClues).
Flatheads, which designs all-day wear casual sneakers for the discerning urban consumer, was launched with a vision to create versatile sneakers suited for the Indian urban lifestyle.
Flatheads is the first Indian brand to introduce bamboo fibre shoes that are uniquely suited for the Indian tropical climate. Flatheads is disrupting the footwear category by building unique products that are well designed, high on comfort and distinctively suited for the young urban consumer.
With this investment, startup investment platform We Founder Circle completes 20 investments in 2021 in continuation of its mission to fund early-stage startups in India. Angel investors investing in Flatheads through WFC include Siddharth Shah, Sandeep Balaji, Hemant Umbarkar, Swati Mittal, Victor Banerjee, Shefali Saxena and NK Securities Research.
“The funding in D2C sector rose by 251% in the first seven months of 2021. The reason is the newly identified scope of growth, and performance of innovative business models in the field," said Neeraj Tyagi, co-founder, We Founder Circle, adding that Flatheads have a product innovation focus, which has resulted in lightweight and comfortable shoes.
"They have taken a tough road by choosing to sell from their website aggressively, while using big marketplaces also. As a result, they have created unique value by making their online website also a popular platform to launch multiple product lines in the future," he added.
The brand plans to utilize funds for international expansion and product differentiation in the market. Including the current round, Flatheads has raised a total of $1.5 million since its inception.
“The pandemic has accelerated the adoption of online D2C brands. With the current fundraise, we aim to establish Flatheads as a lifestyle brand made in India for the world - by building the brand identity, expanding our presence internationally and investing in product differentiation," said Utkarsh Biradar, co-founder and chief executive officer, Flatheads.
