According to a stock exchange filing, men’s clothing company WROGN has raised about Rs 75 crore (roughly $9 million) in funding from Aditya Birla Digital Fashion Ventures Ltd (ABDFVL). As a result, ABDFVL’s stake in the D2C fashion brand has increased from 17.10% to 32.84% on a fully diluted basis.
WROGN previously obtained Rs 125 crore ($15 million) from TMRW House of Brands, a business owned by the Aditya Birla Group, in June of this year. Through this investment, WROGN, a Bengaluru-based brand, was valued at approximately $105 million. TMRW acquired a 16% stake in the company.
Eight Indian fashion brands have now received support from Aditya Birla Group’s TMRW, including the denim label Urbano, the children’s brand Nauti Nati, the men’s casualwear brand The Indian Garage Co., the casualwear brand Bewakoof, and the casualwear brands JuneBerry and Veirdo.
Anjana and Vikram Reddy, siblings, founded WROGN in 2014. With a vast assortment of clothes, accessories, and shoes, WROGN is a well-known brand in casual wear. Through partnerships with major e-commerce platforms and exclusive brand outlets, the brand has expanded its reach by capitalising on the influence of cricketer Virat Kohli.
WROGN has raised about $90 million from investors, including Sachin Tendulkar, Accel, Flipkart, and Virat Kohli, since its founding. Flipkart contributed an undisclosed sum to WROGN’s Series F round in November 2020. Flipkart is also a shareholder in HRX, Hrithik Roshan’s WROGN competitor.
From Rs 344.3 crore in FY23 to Rs 243.75 crore in FY24, WROGN’s operating revenue fell by 29.2%. The Virat Kohli-backed brand saw a sharp decline in sales, which was the main reason for the 28.2% increase in losses, from Rs 44.26 crore in FY23 to Rs 56.76 crore in FY24, despite the implementation of cost-cutting measures.
The fashion and lifestyle industry, valued at $110 billion, is India’s second-largest consumer category, with online sales making up about $11 billion, or 10% of the total, according to a recent report by TMRW X Bain & Company.
