Chaayos bags $45 million in the Series C funding round at a valuation of $250 mn

• ByStartupStory     |    June 14, 2022

Chaayos, a tea-café chain, has raised $45 million in a Series C funding round led by Alpha Wave Ventures. Existing investors such as Tiger Global Management, Elevation Capital, and Think Investments also participated in the round. With this round, the startup’s valuation is estimated to be around $250 million. 

On June 7, the startup’s board of directors approved a special resolution to issue more than 13.89 million Series C preference shares at an issue price of Rs 2,514 per share in order to raise $45 million. 

Chaayos, founded in 2012 by Nitin Saluja and Raghav Verma, offers a wide range of teas and packaged food products. It sells its flagship tea in physical stores, as well as pre-packaged snacks through online marketplaces and physical stores.

Chaayos last raised $21.5 million in equity and debt in February 2020 as part of its Series B round. Prior to that, in September 2018, it raised $12 million from a number of venture capital (VC) firms, including SAIF Partners and Integrated Capital. 

The startup’s business suffered greatly as a result of the pandemic, as the national lockdown and subsequent fears about Covid-19 forced the closure of stores and restricted movement. 

Chaayos competes with Chai Point in the tea segment, and with Starbucks, Costa Coffee, and others in the overall cafe segment. The Indian tea and coffee chain market is expected to reach Rs 4,540 cr by 2023.

Meanwhile, the interruption in operations during the fiscal year had no effect on losses. Chaayo’s losses increased by 1.8% in FY21 to Rs 52.06 crore from Rs 51.14 crore the previous fiscal year (FY20).

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