Eyewear brand ClearDekho has raised $4 million (about Rs 30 crore) in a pre-series A funding round led by Aroa Ventures, the family office of OYO founder Ritesh Agarwal. The funding round also saw participation from investors like CK Jaipuria Family Office, Anuj Sheth of AAJ Ventures, Infoedge's Kitty Agarwal, Venture Catalysts, SOSV MOX, Gemba Capital, and Kaaf Investments, among others. ClearDekho plans to systematically utilise the funds for expansion of stores across geographies (40 per cent), marketing and on-ground activities to drive new customer acquisition (30 per cent), and back-end operations infrastructure to automate fittings and quality check, hiring and training infrastructure and enhance inventory and private label brands (20 per cent), it said in a release. "The funding will strengthen the company's back-end operations and empower it to establish 200 stores across tier 2/3/4 towns of India," it said. Founded by Shivi Singh and Saurabh Dayal in 2017, ClearDekho's platform blends both online and offline eyewear shopping experiences and offers a wide range of affordable eyewear solutions to customers. The company claims it has grown 1,300 per cent in three years owing to an extreme surge in demand for affordable eyeglasses. Also Read: With sharp global economic recovery, will global container shortage pose a formidable challenge?
"The unorganised optical market has a lot of scope for becoming standardised and hassle-free for the mass consumers. ClearDekho is deeply focused on organising this highly fragmented market and consistently delivering high quality affordable optical solutions. We have strong conviction in the team and their expansion plans," Aroa Ventures Head & Chief Investment Officer Gaurav Gulati said. He said ClearDekho will be present in over 100 cities within the next 12 months and will continue to penetrate tier 2/3/4 cities across India. "The post-Covid-19 exponential increase in screen time across age groups has led to the surge in demand for affordable eyeglasses, especially from new-age consumers from smaller towns which are driving the revolution. We strongly believe in creating value for our customers and as we set out to transform this massive unorganised sector, the next decade 2020 to 2030 would be defining for us," Singh said. Apart from opening new franchise outlets, ClearDekho plans to add 1,000 retail stores in the next 3 years by collaborating with existing optical retailers across India, Dayal said.
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