Hopscotch raised $20 million in a funding round that was led by Amazon for its line of children’s clothing. Eduardo Saverin, a co-founder of Facebook, joined the financing round along with other current investors Lionrock, IIFL Seed Venture Fund, RPG Ventures, and Techpro Ventures.
According to a statement from the company, the funding will allow Hopscotch to broaden its product selection and provide the newest kid’s fashion trends to even more customers. Previously, the company had received $13 million in a Series C round led by Eduardo Saverin in February 2016 and $25 million from EE Capital, Lionrock Capital, Rise Capital, and others in September 2022.
Hopscotch, a company founded by Rahul Anand, specializes in kid-focused lifestyle items that have much higher margins and larger basket and ticket sizes. The business claims to be able to predict major fashion trends and deliver the newest styles before other retailers.
Hopscotch is one of the more established brands in the children’s clothing market, competing with FirstCry, Lilliput, Gini & Jony, and other well-funded brands. When compared to FY21, the company’s operating revenue increased 15.7% to Rs 235.7 crore from Rs 203.7 crore. According to Hopscotch’s independent financial report, its losses increased 3.7X to Rs 17.75 crore in FY22 from Rs 4.86 crore in FY21.
The company’s biggest competitor, FirstCry, on the other hand, recently reported a 49.8% increase in revenue to Rs 2,401 crore in FY22. After making a profit of Rs 79 crore in the previous fiscal year (FY21), the SoftBank-backed company slipped into losses in FY22.
Amazon’s investments in Indian startups have grown over the past two to three years. The e-commerce behemoth has invested in a number of startups, including Shuttl, Acko, Capital Float, ToneTag, MyGlamm, Smallcase, and Cashify. It has also acquired a few businesses, including Perpule in 2021 and GlowRoad in 2022.
Amazon made its first investment in Gurugram-based, MSME-focused fintech startup M1xchange in 2021 when it announced the $250 million Amazon Smbhav Venture Fund for Indian startups. Through the recently started fund, it has supported FreshToHome and XYXX in the current calendar year.
