Fashion discovery startup Shouto raises $1.6 million in funding from Saama Capital, others

• ByStartupStory     |    July 15, 2022

Fashion discovery startup Shouto has raised $1.6 million, with Saama Capital as the main investor. Arjun Vaidya, the founder of Dr. Vaidyas, Whiteboard Capital, Amit Singhal, the former head of search at Google, and 25 direct-to-consumer (D2C) founder angels also took part in the round. According to a release, the company would use the funds for product development, creative engagement and acquisition, and the establishment of a founding team of engineers and creator success managers.

Former executives from Myntra, Ajio, and Amazon, Maruthy Ramgandhi, Abhishekk Handa, and Ayyappan Lakshmanan, respectively, established Shouto. For Gen-Z in Tier-1 cities, it aims to be a centre for fashion discovery.

According to Ramgandhi, “the disruption or tremendous proliferation of D2C brands creates a lot of clutter for consumers.” he said, “There are around 63–65 fashion brands on your five major marketplaces, of which 40 are supported. You will have options for any fashion-related question or need. A discovery platform is required because of all the clutter. He claimed that young Indians had a harder time finding fashion than millennials or older generations does. What classifications are they seeking? Street, athleisure, plus-size, sustainable, mindful clothing and casuals for the office are mostly new-age categories. You won’t see the new-age nuances addressed in some of these marketplaces, including Myntra and Ajio,” Ramgandhi claimed.

The company will employ social media influencers on websites like Pinterest and Instagram to curate and advertise products through live or video commerce. Ramganidhi compared Shouto to US-based LTK, which received over $300 million from SoftBank’s vision fund and was valued at over $2 billion. Instead of increasing inventory, the corporation will point customers to the websites for each brand. Shouto’s business model is based on this since it generates revenue from clicks and sales. It already has partnerships with labels like Urbanic, H&M, Damensch, and Zara.

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