New Delhi, Dec. 2 -- Venture capital firm Fireside Ventures, which makes early-stage consumer bets, has closed its fourth fund after collecting Rs 2,265 crore ($253 million) from its limited partners (LPs) for what is its largest investment vehicle yet.
The latest vehicle, which comprises a GIFT City feeder fund and an India master fund, takes the Bengaluru-based VC firm's total assets under management past $650 million.
Fireside, which counts marquee consumer brands such as Mamaearth, boAt, and The Sleep Company among its portfolio companies, has secured both domestic and offshore capital for the latest vehicle in an equal ratio, founder and managing partner Kanwaljit Singh said in a media briefing.
The LPs for the fund include US university endowments, sovereign wealth funds such as Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and the Investment Corporation of Dubai, global financial institutions like HarbourVest, Fidelity International, and consumer-focused companies such as Emami Ltd.
Its other LPs include multi-family office Waterfield and single-family offices Sharrp Ventures, Catamaran, and Mirabilis. Sharrp Ventures is the family office of Marico's Harsh Mariwala while Catamaran and Mirabilisy are the family offices of Infosys Ltd co-founders NR Narayana Murthy and K Dinesh, respectively.
Singh said Fireside raised the fund at the time when "everybody talked about the slowing economy and consumption issues" but added that it saw "very high interest" from investors.
"This fund is the benchmark of the kind of investor cohort that we have been able to get. It talks as much about our performance or our success, but also about the opportunity that India offers today as a consumption economy."
The new fund comes about three years after Fireside closed its third fund in October 2022 after raising $225 million. The fourth fund will invest at the seed, pre-Series A and Series A stages in companies across categories such as health and wellness, food and beverages, beauty and personal care, lifestyle, home products and fashion.
Fireside aims to cut the first cheque in the range of $1-2 million, the same as before, co-founder and partner Vinay Singh said. "About a third of the fund will be used to construct the portfolio. We're looking at 10-12 deals a year, so we'll do maybe 30 to 35 deals in the fund. The balance 67% is reserved for follow-on investments," he said.
Fireside was founded in 2017 by Singh, who earlier co-founded venture capital firm Helion Venture Partners where he primarily managed investments in consumer companies. In 2023, it promoted Kannan Sitaram, Vinay Singh, and Dipanjan Basu to co-founders. Last year, it added Adarsh Menon as partner.
Fireside's first two funds invested in companies like personal care unicorn Mamaearth and IPO-bound boAt, as well as fast-growing businesses that are now household names like Slurrp Farm, Kapiva, 91 Cycles, Design Cafe, FS Life (erstwhile FableStreet), The Sleep Company, Gynoveda, Wellbeing Nutrition and Pilgrim.
The VC firm hit the final close of its debut fund at $52 million in March 2018 and the second fund in 2021, overshooting its target and raising $118 million. It closed its third fund raising $225 million (Rs 1,830 crore) in October 2022.
The firm also said its Distributions to Paid-In Capital for the first fund stood at 3.4x, with several other exits on the way including consumer electronics company boAt that is headed for a public listing.
"Fund IV gives us the opportunity to continue doing what we value deeply - working with founders who are building India's next generation of iconic consumer brands," said Singh. "The environment around us is evolving fast, but the principles of building enduring brands remain the same: clarity of purpose, a sharp view of the consumer, and laser sharp focus on execution."
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from VC Circle.