Delhi: Feminine hygiene start up Sirona (makers of PeeBuddy and other innovative feminine hygiene products and market leaders in menstrual cups) have raised INR 100 crores in Series B funding from South Asia’s largest DTC conglomerate and recent BPC Unicorn Good Glamm Group.This is one of the largest amounts invested in a Series B round for a DTC feminine hygiene start-up. The round also saw secondary buyout with early investors including seed and angel investors taking a very happy exit.
Sirona is known for introducing numerous award-winning products that solve unaddressed feminine hygiene issues faced by women from Puberty to Menopause. They are behind many innovative category-defining, India-first products like PeeBuddy (India’s first ‘stand and pee’ device for women to pee in dirty toilets), Herbal Feminine Pain Relief Patches, Anti Chafing Rash Cream for rashes in intimate areas, Period Stain Remover, Oxo-biodegradable Sanitary & Tampon Disposal Bags, and Sirona Menstrual Cup range (India’s highest selling menstrual cups including India’s first Menstrual Cup Steriliser and Cup Wash).
Despite a huge taboo, they have successfully changed many old habits by offering products in this category – almost 1 million women use Sirona Menstrual Cups, over 3 million units of PeeBuddy and over 400,000 Sirona Feminine Pain Relief Patches have been sold, making the company pioneers in this segment.
Commenting on this announcement, Deep Bajaj, Founder & CEO, Sirona Hygiene said “We had multiple term sheets from VCs and other strategic investors but the combination of money and immediate value which the Good Glam Group offered was unparalleled. We have been profitable for the last 3 years and are growing steadily. We believe that the partnership with The Good Glamm group, given their edge in terms of content and offline access will help us scale faster while staying profitable. We hope to soon hit the 100cr revenue mark. Aspirations are to see Sirona at leading stores, solving more feminine hygiene problems faced by Indian women from puberty to menopause & become the first start-up in our category to hit 500 Cr revenue, hopefully within 3 years!”
Commenting on the investment Darpan Sanghvi, Founder & CEO, Good Glamm Group said “Sirona has built a great business. Very few start-ups are able to grow profitably with innovative products in a taboo category with low capital. Feminine Hygiene segment, especially given the taboo around the category, is a tough one to pull off but needs far more intervention to make life simpler for Indian women. And we believe our ecosystem of content and creators will greatly increase the education of and adoption of Sirona’s innovative hygiene products. Sirona has made its mark by creating a new category of modern Intimate & Menstrual hygiene solutions, something we valued and decided to come in as a strategic investor at this stage. The team is passionate, their social mission is amazing and we are confident of growing this together and creating history!”
The Good Glamm Group comprises a portfolio of beauty & personal care brands that are powered by a proprietary digital ecosystem of content, community and creator assets. This unparalleled digital reach, combined with 30,000+ offline retail points of sale of the Group’s flagship beauty brand, MyGlamm, offers Sirona an unprecedented opportunity to scale both online and offline.
Besides offering products that solve feminine hygiene problems, Sirona also extensively works towards creating a larger impact in society by providing awareness, education and opportunity. The brand conducts awareness campaigns and medical expert-led informative workshops and knowledge sessions for different members of the society on an ongoing basis. Sirona also donates 1 Re from every Sirona and PeeBuddy product sold towards initiatives that improve menstrual health of underprivileged women across India. Moreover, the brand has recently launched an online community called “Sisterhood” where women can discuss unspoken issues such as mental health, interpersonal difficulties, and other taboo matters with other women without the fear of judgment.
On exiting the business, Vikas Kuthiala, lead investor from angel around said, “I am very confident that Sirona is on its way to becoming a full stack consumer brand company and market leader in addressing the needs of intimate hygiene for women. Since inception Deep has demonstrated that he can develop and sustain a long-term business enterprise built on strong fundamentals.”
Other lead investor from Angel round – Ishan Singh said “Deep & team Sirona has done an amazing job in building India’s leading feminine hygiene brand and the MyGlamm platform will further allow Sirona to scale to new heights. This exit for investors is a culmination of 4 years of hard work and I am proud of having been the lead investor and board member.”
